BIG GAME HUNTING IN AFRICA.

Dunstan Times, Issue 3133, 4 September 1922, Page 8

BIG GAME HUNTING IN AFRICA.

(By Prince William of Sweden.) It is going to be an unhappy dayand one that may come very soontor the sportsman and the nature lover when the king of junglte beasts is added to the already long list of extinct animals. Without its lions, Africa, will lose much of the awe and majesty with which it is invested in the minds of most of us l . Yet, at the present rate of extermination, combined with other circumstances, 1 can foresee a day when the lion will be a jealously guarded denizen of zoological gardens; when the hunter will have to be content with going out after less important and less fearsome game. Then Africa's starridden nights willl be shorn of the greater part of their glamor and mystery and the jungle no longer will echo and re-echo that sound which still fills the mind of even the most hardened hunter with fear and awe.

In the Congo lions provided us with, a fair amount, of sport, although they are rapidly decreasing in numbers. This is so apparent in some dtV'l.riVtthat, if I had my way. f should forthwith place a ban.on shooting them for sonic time to come. It has been said that the plains around Lake Edwaird comprise Africa's richest hunting ground, but this is doubtful. During the war the black troops located there took an extremely heavy toll of game. Since then a. great deal of hunting has been going on. with the result thjfcf lions, as well as other animals of the district-once a hunter's El Doradoare net nearly so plentiful. Hut while at some stages of the trp no lions could lie found, in spite of tlnmost diligent search, at others they proved to lie still sufficiently numerous to cause alarm among neighboring; tribes. Tlftfr in one village, on the Buindi Plain, the inhabitants beggcdJ us to organise a lion hunt and so rut them of the attentions of some of the more daring of the species. A few days before a girl of 15 bad been so severely mauled by a lioness that she had died, and in view of this episode I agreed to help. A shelter was built and zebra steaks temptingly displayed in front of it. Late that night no fewer than 15 lions presented themselves as targets lor our guns. .Their leader, a thin but otherwise magnificent blackmailed male, was surrounded by his mates and their cubs. He fell to my first shot, while the rest stampeded toward our hiding place. One exceedingly fierce lioness made a determined rush at the barrel of my rifle, almost tearing the weapon from'my hands, while the rest bounded past us' into the jungle. .Half an hour later we were surprised: to discover from the suppressed growls and crunching sounds that came to our ears, that some of the animals had iv turned 1 to the bait regardless of the danger that awaited them. Tins incident served to emphasise another aspect of the danger that threatens the lion. The beasts were starving, no doubt as a result of the diminution of smaller game, which has suffered! in common with the larger kinds: ami' they returned again and again to the feast in spile of our shots, which resulted in the village being freed, at any rate for the tine being, from their depredations. Nevertheless, it is my earnest hope that some means will be found of enforcing protective measures in this and other districts. Otherwise man will have to answer for yet another crime against Nature-the crime of deserating the last stronghold of her greatest wild beasts. When we had explored the vost volcanic region that has for its hub the mysterious Mountains of the Moon, we turned our steps northward and started on what in some respects was the most interesting phase of our journey, ft involved a long and 1 at first seemingly endless tramp through the immense tropical forest belt that lies to the west of the Ruwenzori range, between Lakes Edward and Albert. The forest is the haunt of tho pygmy and of the okapi. of which extremely rare animal wc did not succeed in obtaining a specimen, although we engaged the services of expert native trackers to help us in the search. But while we had no luck in this direction, we found .some consolation in the fact mat we traversed many little known parts of the forest and studied as many little known aspects of pygmy life. Until within quite recent year the "little, people" of the forest bore evil reputations as cannibals, among whom it was unsafe to venture without a very strong escort. Now, however, they are comparatively harmless, although i| is nob difficult to appreciate the fact, that their savage instincts are concealed beneath only a thin veneer of respect for Hio white man. Of a very low culture level, they live a lazy life in the forest clearings, where they build homes which, 1 verily believe, most domestic animals in civilised countries would disdain to occupy. Consisting simply of leaves covering hooped sticks, their queer little dwellings are lacking in every quality that makes for comfort. Except for a rudely made knife and perhaps a bowl, used both for cooking and serving food, they have no household utensils of any kind. Their dietary consists almost exclusively of meat and wild honey, varied on somewhat rare occasions by sweet potatoes, and when game is scarce they go in danger of starving, for they have no knowledge of gardening or agriculture, and if they had they would probably he too lazy to apply it to good purposes. As hunters, however, they have few equals among the world's primitive peoples. Thanks to their spare build and great natural ability, they are able to nunc through the forest, at great speed, while they are marvellously dexterous with their bows and poisoned arrows, the only weapons they use. They get their poison from some obscure forest plant, and once it has been used it is rendered inocuous; hence meal that has been poisoned does them no harm in the. eating. I'lilike tho men of many other African tribes, the pygmy husband rarely allows himself tho luxury of niaiiitainining more tbari one wife, more than two being rarely if ever heard of. Likewise, his offspring seldom consists <>l more than two children, three being considered a big family and too great a responsibility for one father. The pygmy makes a tolerably good husband, too. but like .some civilised husbands, lie is not averse on occasions, from administering corporal punishment, whenever he deems if, deserved.

Theu he takes his erring spouse by the hair and beats her soundly with a big slick!