A HUNTER'S ADVENTURES.

Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume XXXIX, Issue 12662, 23 January 1904, Page 3

A HUNTER'S ADVENTURES.

There has just been published another highly interesting volume by the late M. Paul du Chaillu, which adds to his already extensive set of books on African exploration and adventure. “In African Forest and Jungle” describes tho author’s travels in the land of Chief Kotembo, accompanied by a powerful and active native hunter, Kogala, a very useful and heroic dog, Andekko, and a precocious monkey, Ndova. The meeting with the chief is interesting:— “There we waited for Hotembo the Wise, surrounded by hundreds of villagers. Soon we heard the noise of tho Kendo, a rude iron bell, the emblem of chiefs. Rotembo was coming. As he rang it, he invoked the spirits of his ancestors to be with him, and soon I saw his tall, erect form walking towards us. He was dressed with a waistcoat, a shirt, and an old silk hat, which to judge by its shape and shabbiness must have been at least twenty-five years old. He was covered with mondahs, or charms, that he believed had the power of preventing any harm from coming to him. Then, addressing me, he said: 'Ognizi, we have heard of you. Your fame is great all over the land. You are known as the good Oguizi. I want you to love me as you love King Mombo.’ ” The Oguizi, that is to say, Paul du Chaillu, thanks the King for his good wishes and they become very friendly. The latter upon hearing the white man’s purposes of hunting in the forest, makes him the three presents above mentioned. The party of four set out and soon arrive at Eogala’s abode in the jungle—- .' . . “composed of tour small struc-

tures. The dwelling-house had a verandah in front. It was built of bark with a roof thatched with palm-leaves, and was about eighteen feet long and twelve wide. It had only one door. Under the verandah hung the tails of nearly all the elephants he had killed. I counted ninety-five of them. All along the roof were skulls of antelopes, with

the graceful spiral horns, two skulls of male gorillas, several skulls of nshiegos or chimpanzees, of wild boars, of buffaloes, of leopards and other wild animals. Four elephant-skulls stood at each corner of the house. A small house near by was Mburu, & spirit, who sometimes came to visit there during the night. His bed lay on the ground, and was composed of dry leaves covered with a mat. His pillow was a smooth round piece of wood.” The dog is very useful in driving antelopes towards the hunters, and the monkey, by calling to bis tribe in the forest, brings them within range of his masters’ guns and provides ■iioukeymeat for their sustenance. Indeed they had to eat snake-flesh, and on one occasion boiled antelope-hide when at the point of starvation. Twice they were invaded by the dread bashioukay ants, who cat every man and beast that comes their way, leaving only the bones. “I wondered again why the leopards were moving away from their (air, I soon found out. Other animals, and even snakes, were all fleeing in the same direction as the leopards. This, and the flight of insects themselves, told me that an army of bashioukay ants was advancing, attacking every living thing before them. There was a great commotion among the mice, rats, and cockroaches. Wherever they fled, there were the bashioukays to attack them. The scorpions, centipedes, and spiders could not help themselves, and Were eaten up in a short time.”

What would .the average Englishman think o£ this? “I was short of soap; so my hunters collected a quantity of palm nuts, the kind from which palmoil is made. These nuts we boiled until the pulp became quite soft. Then the women pounded the nuts in wooden mortars, and the pulp furnished the oil. I then gathered all the ashes from the fires, boiled these for a long time, then, leaving the ashes at the bottom of the vessel, took the water and boiled it with a certain amount of palm-oil. By this process I made soft soap. I had to wash my own clothes, for not only did the people not know how, but in _ one sense did not know what clean linen was. They could not tell whether my clothes were soiled or not. I did not wonder, seeing the way they made their toilet. After taking a bath, they rubbed their bodies with oil mixed with clay, or mixed with the powder of odoriferous woods. This was what they called making themselves clean.” Sexual deference of i he lower animals, one for another, is a remarkable trail portrayed by M. du Chaillu. It one creature goes its mate is sure to prowl the region diligently in search of it, ready to wreak vengeance upon the guilty huntsman. In the case of monkeys, the female goes up a tree with her babies, if she has any, while the big fellow sleeps at the foot of the tree, his back resting against the trunk, and there keeps watch. “We saw the

branches of a tree moving and being swayed to and fro by the ngina (i.e., gorilla). The monster was breaking the branches, and when they had fallen on the ground plucked the fruit. Then I saw peeping through the leaves a black fierce face looking at us. It was a horrid sight. The brute’s eyes were sunken, while a heavy overhanging ridge was over each. He gave vent to yell after yell, followed by terrific roars. The forest was filled with the echo of his horrid voice. How vindictive his eyes looked? They seemed to say to us, ‘You will soon be dead.’ Then he beat his chest with his huge fist. Just as he was ready to advance, we fired in the direction of his heart, and the great monster fell like a human being, face forward, uttering a fearful groan, his limbs stretched out. Then all became silent. He was dead. Mis

arms extended measured nearly nine feet; around his chest measured nearly seven feet. He was nearly five feet ten inches in height.” The effect of a new moon upon the minds of the natives is curious. Upon being asked why he made an extra little hut, Rogala answered ; —” ‘Oguizi, two days from now will be the day of the new moon, and though we cannot see the moon, on account of the trees, her eyes can penetrate anywhere. The new moon is specially angry and hungry on that day. She looks down over our country and seeks whom she can devour. So the night of the new moon I will go into the little house I have just built, and remain silent all that night, for if I spoke the new moon would know where I was.’”

In his wanderings through the forest alone on one occasion M. du Chaillu lost his way. After a couple cf days he chanced upon a native village surrounded by a formidable palisade. “In the middle of • the fence was the gate, on each side of which stood two i,ig idols of human size and representing two women. How ugly they were I Each had a tongue of iron coming out of the mouth about six inches long, sharp as a razor; their eyes were of iron, they wore big ear-rings of copper of the circumference of an ordinary plate; both

wore head-dresses of brilliant feathers. Their bodies were painted of different colours. One held a stick in her hand, which she was brandishing; the other a snake, which she was swinging. At

their feet were bones of different animals, talons and heads of eagles, heads of snakes, and many other things.” The following gives a pretty good idea of the general feeling which the black tribes field towards the white hunter :—“I asked to see the chief. Some

of tlie men went after him, but came back without him. He sent the fol-

lowing message to me: How could he dare to come before the great Oguizi,

whom his forefathers had never seen? He would surely drop dead at the sight. He knew that I was coming, because

for several nights a. gentle wind hovered over the house where he slept, and murmured, ‘The great Oguizi is coming! The great Ogui/.i is coming!’ But he sent word that in three days he would come before me. Soon after, bunches of plantain, two chickens, some eggs, and a dead monkey were laid at my feet, which showed that I was welcomed, and then a hut was given to me that I could occupy by myself. Later in the evening, an idol, called Makambo, was brought ont into the street to remain there all night. She had cloven feet; her eyes and tongue were of copper; she wore bracelets around her arms, and rings of copper around her ankles. The skin of a snake was wound around her legs. That night nobody came out into the street, and nobody talked in the village, for fear of displeasing Makambo. The people expected her to talk to them that night, and to give some advice. The medicine man or the chief of the village interprets to tlie people what the idol says.”