THE MAN WHO LIVED IN THE GORILLA WORLD

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 19846, 21 May 1927, Page 22 (Supplement)

THE MAN WHO LIVED IN THE GORILLA WORLD

High up the side of a live volcano in the gorilla country of Central Africa, at a spot he himself had chosen, Dr. Carl Akeley has been laid to rest. Dr. Akeley was a great naturalist. He had given a lifetime to the study of the haunts and habits of our huge ape cousins; among them he died, and among them he has been buried, as he wished to be. Knowledge brought him a real affection for these great creatures, and he devoted himself with zeal to their defence against those who told untrue talcs of their terrible ferocity.

The traditional idea of the gorilla, based on travellers’ tales and the superstitions of the African native, is of a beast of terrible ferocity which kills and eats human beings, and even, like the ancient Vikings, seeks his bride by capture from among the native kraals. A Strict Vegetarian. But Dr. Akeley found him a very mild creature, ferocious only when cornered, timid and shy and rather gentle in his natural haunts. So far from eating men, the gorilla is a strict vegetarian, and the most diligent search failed to trace one instance of the kidnapping of brides. The gravest charge proved against him is that he will come and eat the fresh grain of the natives and spoil the sugar-cane patch by miking his bed in it!

These prowling visits, always at night, are a source of superstitious terror to the natives, who believe that evil gods have entered into the fearsome bodies of the beasts, and will not hunt them for fear of dire consequences. Certainly their appearance is terrifying enough. As tall as a man, their arms are much longer, and are used to maintain balance, either by waving them in the air or by touching the ground with them as they walk. Their chests and shoulders are enormous, and they are twice as heavy as the most muscular men.

They are easily shot, and so relentless has been the warfare waged upon them that they were rapidly disappearing tijj Dr. Akeley persuaded the Belgian Government to set aside some 250 square miles as a sanctuary. Apart from man their deadliest enemy is the leopard, which they will fight in defence of their young till one or the other falls dead. Two Terrible Encounters. Once Dr. Akeley himself had an encounter with a leopard, and had to fight it as the gorilla fights it, with his hands. He won, but he was badly wounded, and was ill for weeks. Another encounter he had was with a great African bull elephant. The creature charged at him before he could reach his gun, and thrust at him with its tusks. Dr. Akeley had the presence of mind as he fell to seize the tusks and force himself between them. The tusks buried themselves in the ground on either side of him, and the last thing he remembered before losing consciousness was the elephant’s angry eyes as its head came down on his chest. The animal left him for dead, and it was over four hours before he came back to consciousness. THINK TWICE Which monkeys make the best wine? —Grey apes (grapes). What wig can’t a barber make?— An earwig. What does a seventy-four weigh before she sets sail?—Her anchor. If the alphabet were invited out what time would u, v, w, x, y, and z go? —After t (tea). Why do you laugh up your sleeve? —Because your funny bone is up there. What is often found where it is not? —Fault. What, vegetable is never popular on a ship?—A leek. She Ought To Do A boarding-house servant left to get married, and her sister, a big, strapping girl of seventeen, fresh from the country, came as a “temporary” in he/ place. “Do you think you will be able to ‘attend to the gentleman all right?” the landlady asked her. “Oh, yes,” she replied readily. “At home I helped my mother to look after a hundred and forty-three cows and a hundred and seven pigs!” Strenuous! Lady of the House (to maid): “An, Jessie, I’ll give Tibby her saucer of | milk this morning—the doctor says J need more exercise.” j