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SCULL FIELD MANAGER OF THE BUFFALO JONES AFRICAN EXPEDITION WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY THEODORE ROOSEVELT AND A FOREWORD BY CHARLES S. BIRD WITH THIRTY-TWO ILLUSTRATIONS FROM PHOTOGRAPHS NEW YORK FREDERICK A. STOKES COMPANY 1911 < . hh ¥ yf @ ae CS ’ f rm, ¢ ws, \ - > i bee eer — Copyright, 1911, by FrepEerRiIcK A. STOKES COMPANY THE + PLIMPTON + PRESS [w-p-o] NORWOOD + MASS +U+S+A ©clA286958 INTRODUCTION 4 expedition of Buffalo Jones to Africa was noteworthy in every way. The feats described by Mr. Scull are true in every detail; and no hunter with the rifle deserves the credit that Mr. Jones and his two cowpuncher com- rades, Messrs. Loveless and Means, de- serve. Their feats in roping lion, rhino, giraffe, and other animals were extraor- dinary performances, and showed a cool gallantry and prowess which should rejoice the hearts of all men who have known the West and who have felt that the old-style plainsman, and his more modern repre- sentative, the expert cowpuncher, are fit to grapple with any emergency of wild life. The expedition was singularly lucky in having with rt the accomplished nature [vi Introduction photographer, Mr. Kearton, to make per- manent record of what occurred. For cool courage and proficiency in his art there is nothing to choose between Mr. Kearton and any one of the men actively engaged in the work of roping the dangerous wild beasts hunted by the party. The writer of the experiences, Mr. Scull, is a Harvard man who was in my regiment; and tt was - fortunate that there was with the party some man who could record the experiences with truthful accuracy. No hunting trip more worthy of commemoration ever took place in Africa. THEODORE ROOSEVELT. February 24, 1911. [vi] CONTENTS ESEDENTTRVORCUBE LDS BO Ss Le 0 a PE ATUMEVEIER 10k as bale GN Ma CaaS) cel ALL ee PART I LASSOING THE WaRT-HOG, THE ELAND, THE HARTEBEEST, THE SERVAL-CAT AND THE Cerne ey oe age Pe ee eee PART II LASSOING THE GIRAFFE AND THE RHINOCEROS 49 PART Ii hageomg Tee Low 65S Ye! eC eS ee [ vii | Vie { eae gi) , elon AA , 4 Mi i hee ACA RRORILERIR at WDA ad 1 tH Fy Ki MS TARY { int v4 1%) an Wea i i ‘ y vk At ed ai) yan NERO Va ih At IHR i nt i NE ay LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Colonel C. J. Jones (Buffalo Jones) . . Frontispiece f Facine Pace The Colonel and his two cowboys, Loveless and Means Triumphal procession ‘ehrowgh he main street of Nairobi ! The rope caught the wart-hog Realy acne the neck and forelegs It was necessary to rope him again ee tie heels Before releasing the dant hog we uaa a for his picture The wart-hog nearly rips up the hearse’ s less Driving the eland toward the cameras . The smell of the strange beast starts the black horse bucking. . With rope fast to saddle, the binck Caneerad around the eland Se a Roping a hartebeest in the open . Roping a serval-cat —a difficult task as this animal travels close to the ground . “Dropped the noose over the cheetah’s head and dragged him out on to the open veldt”’ The cheetah, in the noose, posing for his photograph mae PEM ABI Wei Ni [ix] 8 t 16 22 93 26 Q7 30 32 33 36 40 44 45 List of Illustrations Facina Paces The Colonel handling the cheetah A zebra safely roped . “Loveless succeeded in placing the noose on the high neck of the giraffe”’. “Well, how are we going to take this rope off Panay | 1 “With the Fond we he draceed eh hares after him” The rhino about to shee Gobbet? s camera “One length of line left — the rest of the ropes dangling, broken, from the rhino”’ *““Step by step the horses dragged him to a tree, where Loveless made the rope fast” ‘From ant-hill to thorn-tree and back sear the fight went on”. . *““He charged again, feebly, bie. the ropes held well and tripped him” ** All at once the lioness charged” “Swinging and tossing about in frantic endeavor to get loose” Laying an extra line to banks sure af her, Her last struggle for freedom — trying to cut the rope with her teeth . “The rest was easy”’ Bound and muzzled : Leaving her hunting-ground forever . : The lioness at home (Bronx Park, New York) as “‘a souvenir of the trip” [x] 46 50° 62 102 108 112 116 120 124 130 134 FOREWORD | "HE expedition of which this is a chronicle centers around the per- sonality of Col. C. J. Jones. It was he who conceived the idea; his boundless enthusiasm and optimism per- suaded me that such an expedition was practicable, and his determination, en- ergy, and daring carried it to a successful issue. Without, however, the skill and courage of the two cowboys, Loveless and Means, without the iron nerve of Kear- ton, the photographer, and, above all, without the patience, force, and grit of Scull, the expedition might not have been successful. Two years ago, when Colonel Jones and I were camping on the Kaibab Plateau on the northern rim of the Grand Cafion of Arizona, we were discussing [xi | Foreword big game hunting in British East Africa. Jones was deploring the killing of wild animals. Suddenly he turned to me with the proposal that we both go to Africa and with Western cow ponies lasso and capture the big game of that country. He realized, he said, that no one would believe it possible, but for that reason he was the more anxious to show the world how easy it would be for American cowboys to rope and subdue the fiercest and biggest game. At the time the proposal seemed quix- otic and, in spite of Jones’s enthusiasm, evident sincerity, and profound belief in the eventual success of such an expedi- tion, it was treated by the rest of us more or less jocosely. Later, when I learned to know Jones better, and understood his courage, determination, and skill in the face of danger, and his never-failing con- fidence and alertness, as shown on our [ xii | Foreword trip north of the Grand Cajion, I began to have faith in his ability to do what he proposed. Impossible? That word does not fit Jones. You cannot find it in his vocab- ulary. When you understand him and know what he has accomplished, you feel confident that anything, however un- usual, which he may undertake in the animal world may be possible. Rightly or wrongly he firmly believes that all wild animals, from the elephant down, can be lassoed, captured, and subdued by man if, as he expresses it, “one has courage in his heart and determination in his soul.” He is at his best in the plains, where he is resourceful, daring, and confident, almost reckless, in fact. Yet he under- stands wild life so well that feats which in another would appear foolhardy seem to be easily and safely done by him. [ xiii | Foreword For many years he has devoted much of his life to the study, preservation, and propagation of animal life. Perhaps no one has done more than he to preserve the American buffalo, and most of the remaining herds in this as well as in other countries owe their existence to his energy and work. Rightfully he is called the “‘preserver of the American bison.” His trip twelve years ago, when he was fifty-five years of age, to the far north, with one companion only, to lasso and capture young musk-oxen, was remark- able and unique. Especially interesting is the story of his adventures during the long winter months in and around the little cabin on Great Slave Lake and his return home with the musk- oxen. In 1907 Ernest Thompson Seton fol- lowed Jones’s trail to that cabin and found around it many skeletons of the | xiv ] Foreword wolves with which Jones and his com- panion had their fight. It was my own observation of Jones, however, that convinced me that his pro- posed African trip might be successful. I shall never forget his lassoing a 200- pound cougar which our dogs had chased up a big spruce tree a thousand feet down the Colorado Cafion. Jones climbed the tree without gun or knife and faced the ugly brute, which at times was not three feet above his head. Deliberately and coolly he threw the noose of the lariat over the head of the animal, which was lash- ing its tail and raising its ominous paw, seemingly at any second about to strike him, while in a quiet voice, alert and con- fident, with no trace of fear, he carried on an amusing and running talk with the savage beast. When the cougar came crashing through the limbs to the ground amidst the dogs and men, with nothing to [xv] Foreword hold him save a half-inch rope around his neck, more lively things happened in a second than I could describe in an hour. The cougar under most situations is a coward, and a cougar hunt with dogs and guns where the game is shot out of a tree is a tame affair — not livelier than a deer or a fox hunt, but to lasso and capture a cougar at bay, fighting for his life (an animal so powerful that when in search of food he will often pull down a horse), is a far different matter. It is keen and dangerous sport, the result always being in doubt from the time the dogs give tongue until the game is roped, tied, and muzzled. In such a hunt there are no dull seconds. I knew, of course, the chances were that the African trip, absurd and impossible as it seemed to be, might end in failure and ridicule. Jones might be seriously injured and the expedition wrecked. [ xvi | Foreword “He is certain to be killed,” a friend said to me. “Well,” I replied, “what of it? He is sixty-five years old, and I am sure would far rather die fighting on the plains than in his bed at home.”’ The expedition started on its long journey, no one, save Jones, perhaps, having much confidence in its success. At last a cablegram came from Nairobi announcing the lassoing and capture of giraffes, cheetah, wart-hog, zebras, and many other animals; and, best of all, it told of a six-hours’ fight and capture of a large rhinoceros, and later, of the lassoing and capture of a full-grown lioness. We were disappointed that the expedition did not have more time at its disposal. Jones wanted to tackle an elephant, which he thought would be easier than a rhino. “An elephant,” he said, “‘stands high, while a rhino is [ xvii | Foreword built low and is much harder to over- turn.” However, the difficulty of finding game, the coming of the rainy season, and the fact that the expedition had lasted longer than intended, made it unwise to continue further. I wish to acknowledge our indebtedness to Mr. Arthur A. Fowler for his assist- ance in outfitting the expedition in London and Nairobi, and to the pho- tographer, Cherry Kearton, of London, expert operator of the cinematographic machine, which recorded in thousands of film-feet the story of the trip. It is difficult to exaggerate the skill and nerve required to take a moving picture in the midst of a rhino or lion fight, especially as sO many conditions of light, atmos- phere, and position must be almost per- fect in order to get any picture at all. Our debt is great, also, to Guy H. [ xviii | Foreword Scull, field manager and the writer of this book, who accompanied the expedi- tion purely because of his love of clean and original sport, and whose patience, common sense, and courage helped much to carry the expedition to a successful finish. CHARLES S. Burp. March 1, 1911. [ xix | t ian hai fi PART ON LASSOING WILD ANIMALS IN AFRICA PART ONE T was a special train — loaded to capacity with horses and dogs, camp baggage, moving-picture cam- eras, cowboys, photographers, and por- ters; and when it pulled out of the Nairobi station on the way to the “up country” of British East Africa, the period of preparation passed away and [3] Lassoing Wild Animals the time of action began. As the faces of the people on the platform glided by the window of the slowly moving car- riage there was good-will written on all of them; but also unbelief. There was no doubt as to what they thought of Buffalo Jones’s expedition that was set- ting out to rope and tie and photograph the wild animals of the East African Veldt. “How are you going to hold a rhino that weighs two tons and a half?” “What are you going to do when the lion charges?”’ Such were the questions asked us by the hunters of the country. They fur- ther took pains to explain that a rhino charges like a flash, and that a lion can catch a horse within a hundred yards. These items of information, however, were well known to Buffalo Jones before the expedition was organized in New [4] In Africa York, and his preparations to meet the difficulties had been made accordingly. Colonel C. J. Jones is tall and spare, with a strong, rugged face and keen blue eyes. During his sixty-five years of life he has roped and tied, often single- handed, every kind of wild animal of consequence to be found in our western country, and his experience with these has led him to believe implicitly that man is the master of all wild beasts. He has climbed trees after mountain- lions, and with a lasso over a branch has hauled grizzlies up into the air by one hind leg. And once he set out alone to journey over a country that no white man had ever traveled before, to reach the land of the musk-ox on the border of the Arctic Circle. The story is told of how he met a trapper on the way, and how these two, in the face of the hostil- ity of all the Indian tribes, the wolves, [5] Lassoing Wild Animals and the cold of the northern winter, eventually came to the musk-ox and captured five calves. Then, deserted by their Indian guide, they started to re- turn with their prizes, got lost in the wilderness, and fought the wolves till their cartridges ran out. And when at last they reached safety and fell asleep, exhausted, the Indians, obeying the laws of their religion, stole upon them in the night and killed the calves. But the success he had achieved with the mountain lions of the Southwest, the musk-ox of the North, and the grizzly bears of the Rockies was not enough. For twenty years it had been the one ambition of his life to take an outfit to British East Africa to try his hand with the more ferocious big game of that country. But in his Western expe- rience Colonel Jones had learned some- thing else besides the mastery of man [6] in Ayriea over beast. Precisely how an American cowboy was going to hold a rhinoceros that weighed two tons and a half was purely a matter of speculation. Yet of one thing the Colonel was certain — the experiment would result in a moving picture that would be well worth the taking. For this reason what afterward came to be known as the “picture de- partment’ was added to the make-up of the expedition. The preparations extended over a con- siderable length of time and were carried on in various places. Unquestionably the most important part of the outfit was the horses. It was absolutely es- sential that they should be Western cow- ponies, fast, well trained, and reliable in every way. The Colonel, who best of all could foresee the nature of the work they would have to do, selected them himself, ten in all, from the ranches of [7] Lassoing Wild Animals New Mexico, and shipped them to New York. The American dogs to be used for trailing were likewise chosen by the Colonel. Some of them belonged to him personally, and had been thoroughly tried out. The rest had reputations of their own. Of the two cowboys who were to act as his assistants, Marshall Loveless had worked with the Colonel before and knew his methods, and Am- brose Means came highly recommended for skill and daring from one of the lar- gest ranch owners in the West. When, at the last moment, the writer of these articles was introduced to the expedition in the capacity of acting field manager, the preparations were well under way. The horses and dogs had been already shipped, en route to Africa, in charge of the cowboys, and the date of our sailing for London had been fixed for the following day. [8] SNVAN GNV SSHTIHAOT ‘SAOTMOO OME SIH UNV THNOTOO HHL i Pe ee Hyp ey In Africa The meeting was held at a luncheon in the Railroad Club, in New York. There were present Colonel Jones, Mr. F. W. Bird, son of Charles S. Bird, who fi- nanced the expedition, Mr. W. G. Sewall, of the Boma Trading Company of Nai- robi, and myself. After certain matters of business had been disposed of, the talk at the luncheon table drifted to the prob- abilities and possibilities of success; to lions, rhinos, elands, and cheetahs; to cowboys, horses, and dogs. But the Colonel would hear of no possibilities, or even probabilities, of failure. He was peculiarly insistent upon this point. And when the hour of the business man’s lunch time came to an end, and the room began to empty, Mr. Sewall said to me across the corner of the table: “Of course, every one in Nairobi will think all of you either fakers or crazy. I know you're no fakers. I don’t know [9] Lassoing Wild Animals whether you're crazy or not. But there is one thing in your favor: The Colonel’s unshaken belief that the thing can be done will probably pull it through.”’ On our arrival in London, about the middle of January of this year, the work of preparation was continued at once. Outside of the minor details of the out- fit, such as personal equipment, saddlery, medicines, bandages, and so forth, the first matter to receive attention was the organization of the picture department. Mr. Cherry Kearton was sought to take charge of this branch of the expedition. Kearton —a_ powerfully built York- shireman — is an experienced cinemato- graph photographer and a naturalist of no small reputation. He had taken mov- ‘ag pictures in Africa before, and so he knew the climatic conditions there — the heat radiation and the different intensities of light. He also knew the animals the [10 ] In Africa Colonel was going to rope. But besides being a cinematograph expert and a naturalist, he was also a sportsman. When Kearton learned of the nature of the undertaking, he was skeptical. He had no more than a slight acquaintance with the Colonel then, and only a vague hearsay knowledge of what the American cowboy could do. Evidently his mind was divided by the dictates of common sense and the sporting instinct. On many occasions during this time he questioned the feasibility of the experi- ment in the light of what he knew of the African beasts. The agreement, in documentary form, was spread out on the table in the Boma Trading Company’s London office when he finally wanted to know how in Heaven’s name we thought this thing could be done. “We'll do it,” the Colonel said quietly. That was all. [11] Lassoing Wild Animals “Well, there’s a picture in it, any way, said Kearton, and signed the papers. With his assistant, David Gobbet, two cinematograph machines and tri- pods, hand cameras and developing ap- paratus, he set sail immediately for Africa, leaving an order for thirty thou- sand feet of film to be divided between two manufacturers and to be forwarded as soon as possible. In the meantime Colonel Jones was hard at work collecting a rather unusual assortment of articles. The experience of a lifetime enabled him to foresee what kind of materials were absolutely neces- sary and what kind might prove useful on the present expedition. Naturally the articles required were not usually in stock, but the London shopkeeper is proverbially obliging and imperturbable. One rainy morning the Colonel walked [12] In Africa into a hardware store and asked to see some handcuffs. A pair was shown him. “Not large enough,” said the Colonel. “How large would you want them, sir?” “Twice that size.” “May I ask for what purpose you require them, sir?” “For lions,’ said the Colonel. “Precisely, handcuffs for lions; yes, you need large ones. I am afraid I have none in stock just now, but I can have them made for you within a few days.” It was the same with almost every- thing the Colonel wanted to purchase; everything had to be made especially for him after his own description — handcuffs, collars, and belts, chains, branding-irons, a block and fall, muzzles of different sizes, corkscrew picket-pins for holding the turn of a rope, and a [13 | Lassoing Wild Animals nondescript article shaped like a huge pair of tongs, for which I feel sure there is no name in any trade, but which looked to be a handy implement for clamping the jaws of a beast. To have these things made according to specifica- tions took time and an endless amount of running about. Besides, there was the more ordinary part of the equip- ment to procure: English dogs, both fox-hounds and terriers, horse-blankets, extra ropes, horseshoes, and so on. When the last of the expedition sailed from Southampton there were forty- eight pieces of baggage on the list. This last contingent reached Nairobi at noon on March 83, and for the first time then all the members of the expedi- tion met together. Loveless proved to be a man a little below the medium height; he held himself very erect, walked with quick, energetic steps, and wore a [ 14 ] In Africa blond mustache. He made polite in- quiries as to our voyage out, commented on the hot weather, and fully explained the condition of the horses and dogs. Means was taller. He carried his head slightly forward and wore his black hair brushed low down over his forehead. He stood slumped on one hip, so that one shoulder also was lower than the other. Please’ to meet you,” he said. On our arrival at Nairobi the first matter to be decided was the district to be worked. The choice lay between the Sotik and the Kapeti Plains. Ac- cording to the usual batch of contra- dictory stories in such cases, the game was said to be equally plentiful, or equally scarce, in both districts. Both had been shot over considerably of late, and, anyhow, no one could really tell us where the most game was to be found; [15 ] Lassoing Wild Animals because, as one informant explained, the game everywhere shifted so frequently and so fast. But the Sotik and the country approaching it—the Kedong and Rift valleys, and the Mau — were reported to be more or less free from ticks, and, as the health of the horses was of the gravest importance to us, we determined to work this district first. The Colonel and his two cowboys, Loveless and Means, were ready to start at once. Eight out of the ten horses were in fine condition. With but one exception, the dogs had come through safely though all were suffering somewhat from distemper. It was concluded, how- ever, that they would recover just as rapidly in the open country as _ they would in Nairobi. Kearton and Gobbet were ready. Kearton had built a dark room in Nai- robi, because his earlier experience had [ 16 ] IGOUIVN JO LHAULS NIVW AHL HONOUHL NOISSHOOUd TVHdIWOTHL In Africa taught him that the pictures could not be developed with any degree of satis- faction in the field. His four special porters to carry the cameras and tri- pods — porters he had trained on pre- vious safaris — were only waiting for the word to move. Mr. Ray Ulyate, the white hunter to the expedition, had already gone to Kijabe to prepare his ox-wagons against our coming, and the Boma Trading Company had engaged a special train to leave Nairobi on the fifth. On the morning of that day we held the customary procession of an outgoing safart down the main street of Nairobi to the waiting train. The Colonel rode first, with the assorted pack of dogs at his horse’s heels. Then came the cow- boys with the led horses; then the pic- ture department; then the long single line of black porters, bringing up the [17] Lassoing Wild Animals rear. Above the loads on the porters’ heads two flags flashed their colors in the sunlight — the stars and stripes, and the house flag of the company, with the white buffalo skull against the red back- ground, and underneath the motto, Sa- piens qui vigrlat. The night had already fallen black and cold when the special train crested the top of the divide and coasted down grade into Kijabe. The most imposing struc- ture in the place is the railroad station, with its red wooden building propped up on piles, its tin guest-house alongside, and the neat gravel platform growing a clump of trees. The rest of Kijabe is composed of four other houses, the goods- shed, an open-faced Indian booth, the post-office, and the water-tank. Ulyate met us with a lantern, for the station lights are dim, and we detrained in the face of the high wind that always blows [18 ] — In Africa there from sunset ye dawn, and picketed the horses among the trees of the sta- tion platform. Because a large part of the revenue of the country is derived from the visiting hunters, a safari is accorded i Sg out of the ordinary. So, as a matter of course, we took pos- session of the station and camped in the tin guest-house for the night. The morning came clear and hot and still. The railroad at Kijabe runs along the face of the hills, so that the land drops down abruptly to the plains below, and you can look away for miles over the Kedong and Rift valleys, with the two sentinel extinct volcanoes rising black against the heat-blurred sky. The floors of the valleys are laid with voleanic ash. But on first appearances the land looks much the same as the reg- ulation veldt or certain parts of our own Western plains. It is only by the fine- [19] Lassoing Wild Animals ness of the dust that hangs about the horses’ feet, and the peculiar quality of the thirst that dries in the throat, that you know this is no ordinary soil. The sun was high in the heavens before we finally started from Kijabe and descended the rough road to the level ground, with the brakes on the ox- wagons squealing harshly and the horses treading silently in the dust. We had planned to camp at Sewell’s Farm that night. It was only about four hours away, but a short trek the first day is always a good rule to follow. It gives every one a chance, so to speak, to shake down well into the saddle. We had gone but a short distance, how- ever, when one thing became strikingly apparent: Gobbet did not know how to ride! He was mounted on a _ white African pony that we had found it necessary to add to our string. The [ 20 | In Africa pony was stolid, lazy, and easy-gaited, but Gobbet’s unfamiliar attitude toward his mount was unmistakable. Now it is a delicate matter in any country to broach the question of a man’s horsemanship, but presently Gob- bet introduced the subject of his own accord. “Of course I can’t ride a horse,” he said. “Have never been on one before. When Mr. Kearton spoke to me about coming out here with him, he just asked me if I could ride, and I told him surely I could ride — but I didn’t tell him I meant a bicycle.” After all, the matter was of no great importance. Gobbet was young and thin and active, with sharp black eyes, and the work that lay ahead of us would probably teach him to ride in short order — and it did. We had little expectation of finding [21 | Lassoing Wild Animals either a lion or a rhino on that first day’s trip. We were traveling on a regular road, making a kind of initial march. The fringe of scrub at the beginning of the valley had been left behind some three or four miles when Ulyate sud- denly reined in his horse and pointed to three black dots on the veldt about half a mile away. The black dots proved to be only wart-hogs, but we wanted them, and, so long as there was little chance of our finding any of the more important spe- cies of game, we took the opportunity that offered. The Colonel and the two cowboys tightened their cinches and then rode out to the westward to round up the beasts. “Drive ’em back to us,” Kearton called after them, and Means waved his hand by way of answer. Behind us the line of porters was [ 22 | SOUTHUOT UNV MOHAN HHL GNOOUV ATHIVE OOHLUYVAA AHL LHONVO AdOU AHL % o a | te _Y “eenA | eae a — re 7:5. » 4 - ie 7 es8 hae) < “ Le set of are 7 as - a an a7 a 4 Pd w1y ‘ d ba erate te “4 p> SOAS ie ea age ee b 5 fe te de ee eS ‘ ho & a Ve. - ‘ay ~~ pS ty SOD i Sat ae i eee a ‘ore ae f Ay) «5 t ) Me ar >! a ere hc oe ee ‘ Pe 7. . > 7 2 > > es 2 " a fe PA a] Coe _ = ie owe 7. a rs es) ~~ STHUH AHL Ad NIVOV WIH AdOU OL AYVSSHOUN SVM LI In Africa coming up along the road. They were straggling badly, broken up into little sections of threes and fours, so that the last of them were not yet in sight. Gobbet was sent back to hurry forward the four special porters with the cameras, and when these finally arrived upon the scene, their faces covered with dust and sweat, the horsemen had dwindled to dots only a little larger than the hogs themselves. Kearton placed the cameras a few yards apart, and there we waited, watch- ing the distant specks. Two of the riders disappeared into a far patch of scrub. The third, began swinging to the southward. His horse was galloping after something we could not see. In the meantime the safari was com- ing up, and as each section arrived it was halted, and the porters put down [ 23 ] Lassoing Wild Animals their loads and sat on them. Some of them turned their backs upon the scene in total indifference as to what was com- ing next; others regarded the cameras with expressions of mild curiosity. Little by little the third horseman had swung round so that he was headed due east, riding straight at us. Rapidly the speck grew larger, and the two other riders came out of the scrub and joined the chase. Nearer and nearer they came, with the dust cloud swirling behind them. Gobbet began turning the handle of his camera, and the whir of the machine sounded loud in the stillness. One or two of the porters jumped to their feet and pointed. Kearton waited. “T hope they won’t come straight into the lens,” he said. “If they do, it won’t make a good picture. They ought to come at an angle. So,” he explained, [ 24 ] In Africa placing his hand obliquely to the line of focus. ‘Then he bent over, laid his eye to the gun-sight of the machine, and likewise began turning. The thunder of the chase could be heard now, and we could see that it was Loveless leading, on his black, with Means and the Colonel close behind and the wart-hog some forty yards ahead. The beast was running strong. His huge snout was thrust forward, and his up- turned tusks gleamed in the sunlight. But gradually the black horse gained on him, and Loveless loosened the rope from his saddle and began swinging the long noose round and round his head. On came the wart-hog, straight for Kearton’s camera. Kearton straightened up above the machine and waved his helmet fran- tically. “Give over, give over!” he shouted. [ 25 | Lassoing Wild Animals “You’re driving him right into the pic- ture. It’s no good. Give over!”’ The chase never swerved an inch, and Kearton bent to his work again, cursing in well-selected periods. The next moment the hog drove past him. At the same instant Loveless threw his rope and caught the beast by one hind leg. The black horse stopped, fore feet planted firmly, and the dust cloud swept across and hid the scene. When the dust cleared away, the hog was lying across the road, blowing com- fortably, with the rope leading from his hind leg to the horn of Loveless’s saddle. Loveless laughed. “There’s the first one for you,” he said. “And my, can’t he run!” Gobbet, however, was indignant. “It’s no use,” he complained. “To bring an object that way straight into the lens is [ 26 ] AUNLOId SIH UOX WIH GASOd AM ODOHLUVM BAHL ONISVATHY TUOINA ae > es Soul SASHUOH AHL dO SdIU ATHVAN OOHLYUVM AHL In Africa against the first principles of cinematog- raphy. It’s no use, I tell you.” Means sat half slumped in his saddle, with his reeking horse panting heavily. “Well, well, well,” he finally drawled. “And didn’t Mr. Pig come a-bending across that prairie? He most certainly come a-bending.” The porters gathered around and looked long at the beast; some of them spoke a few words in low tones, and the others nodded their heads and smiled. Sometimes a wart-hog will act nasty, and his lower tusks are sharp as razors; but when this one was released he walked out of the circle of grinning natives, slowly, quietly, and apparently thor- oughly disgusted. At Sewell’s Farm there is a pan of water made by a dam across an almost waterless brook, and alongside of this pan we pitched our camp. When the sun [27 ] Lassoing Wild Animals set, the high wind rose again, whirling up the dust in heavy clouds and sending the sparks from the fire scurrying over the ground. But the Kedong Valley wind is more or less a phenomenon of the coun- try. You can count upon it absolutely for every one of its disagreeable quali- ties. I think the citizens of Africa are a little proud of it. There was now a fair chance that on our way into the Rift Valley we should flush one or another of the larger animals. Preparations for such a_ contingency were accordingly made before starting from Sewell’s Farm. Canteens and iron drums were filled with water, because the next camp would be a dry one. The cinematograph, cameras, and _ all the extra boxes had been loaded with films the evening before, and the four special camera porters were given strict orders to keep well up with the advance [ 28 ] In Africa of the safarz. The lion-taming outfit — the tongs, muzzles, chains, and collars — was stowed on the first wagon, on top of the load, where it could be got at readily in case of need. The Colonel rode ahead, with the two cowboys close behind, all three ropers mounted on their best horses—the Colonel on “‘the paint,” Loveless on his black, and Means on the big-boned bay. Every member of the party was especially cautioned to keep a sharp lookout on both sides of the road. Just as the day before, the morning came hot and still, and for hour after hour the straggling safari crawled slowly over the long waves of the undulating veldt. The road was a wagon track always vanishing in front toward the head of the valley. The land lay silent beneath the glaring sunlight. We outspanned at noon for an hour. [ 29 | Lassoing Wild Animals Over the country here grew small, scat- tered thorn trees, thick with thorns but with scarcely any leaves, so that the shade beneath them was thin and could shelter no more than one horse. The water in the canteens, cold at the start, had become warm now. When we mounted again, the sweat had dried on the horses, and the boots felt stiff on our feet. The line of the road still stretched away its intermina- ble length until it disappeared in the distance. And then, as we crawled sleepily ahead over the rises, the Colonel was the first to notice the lion spoor in the dust. With sudden animation the safan awoke from the lethargy of the hot, monotonous march. The spoor was judged to be at least four hours old, so there was no use putting the dogs on it. Then presently it disappeared. On the [ 30 | SVHUHNVO HHL SGUVMOL GNVIO AHL DNIAIUG 7 an ny * baa Fe i ! me sw reG cat ms La - . : St ae ear In Africa dead grass of the bordering veldt there was nothing to show which way the lion had gone. But there was a chance — a small one, yet still a chance — that the beast was lying up near by in the shade of a thorn tree. So all the horsemen spread out over the veldt to obtain a wider scope of vision, and for mile after mile the company moved forward, sweep- ing the immediate country. Proceeding in this manner through the afternoon, we eventually crested a slightly higher rise and looked down into a shallow valley that was greener than the rest of the veldt. A few full- sized trees were growing in the bottom, and there were a number of outcroppings of rock. Large herds of antelope were grazing there. The Colonel called a halt. “There is no lion anywhere here- abouts,” he said, “because the game are [ 31 | Lassoing Wild Animals grazing peacefully. But there is a bunch of eland yonder. We might as well round them up while the light lasts.” The plan of operation was quickly made. The cameras were stationed about a mile to the southeast, partly concealed by the bole of a tree, and the bunch of eland were skilfully rounded up and a good specimen was singled out. Everything was working to perfection. The three horsemen drove the eland toward the cameras — not directly at them, but a little to one side, at an angle, as Kearton wanted it done. At the proper moment Loveless roped the animal by the forelegs and neck, and threw it down. Loveless jumped from his horse and was running forward to tie the prize when something —the smel! of the strange beast, perhaps — started the black horse bucking. With the rope made fast to the saddle and the eland [ 32 ] ONIMONG ASHOH MOVIdG AHL SLUVLIS LSVAM AONVULS AHL AO TIHWS AHL ANV1ad AHL GNOOUV GHUAAUVO MOVId AHL ‘ATACVWS OL LSV4I AdOW HLIM In Africa acting as a pivot, the black went career- ing round and round. Both the Colonel and Means tried to rope him, and missed, and finally Loveless, on foot, caught him by the dangling reins. Of course such a thing might have been readily foreseen, but somehow it came as a surprise and opened up grave possibilities. That night in camp at “Rugged Rocks” we were gathered about the cook’s fire for the warmth it gave, when the Colonel spoke of the affair. “Everything was going great till that horse started bucking,” the Colonel re- marked. ‘‘ We’ve got to teach our horses not to mind the smell of these strange animals out here. We've got to be able to depend absolutely on our horses. Of course that eland wasn’t dangerous. But when we tackle something else and a horse acts that way, it might be bad.” But Gobbet said it was good action, [ 33 | Lassoing Wild Animals anyway, and would look fine when thrown on the screen. March 8 was a day of disappoint- ments. Between sunrise and sunset we traveled fifteen miles to the Wangai River and hunted in turn a pair of lions, a cheetah, and a rhinoceros — and lost them all. Two circumstances were held accountable: one was the necessity of getting the horses to water, and the other was the fact that it was just a bad luck day all through. We came upon the lions early in the morning, close to the base of the south- ern volcano. This particular pair of lions must have been shot over at one time or another, for they did not wait to satisfy any curiosity as to our inten- tions, but fled at once for the safety of the mountain. Although we gave chase immediately, their lead was so great, and the distance to the mountains so [ 34 | In Africa short, that they were soon lost to us in the gullies and crevices of the foothills. ft was while we were trying to pick up the lost trail of the lions that we flushed a cheetah out of one of the don- gas.'_ It broke away along the foothills, and finally stopped at bay in a district where the “going” was so bad for the horses that we had to give up the attempt. With the rhinoceros we had scarcely any chance whatsoever. The Colonel, who was scouting the country to the northward of the line of march, caught a glimpse of the beast in the adjacent valley. By the time he had come back to get us and we had ridden in pursuit, the rhino had disappeared. We found his trail leading still farther to the northward, and dismounted and looked down at it in silence. No com- ments were made. No comments were 1 Donga, a gully. [ 35 | Lassoing Wild Animals necessary. Every one knew that for lack of water the horses were too done up to follow. Means had dismounted a little to one side of the group, and for a while he stood there with his arms resting on his saddle, gazing back over the way we had come. Presently he remarked to the world at large: “Excitement has certainly been runnin’ high all day.’ We mounted then; and, instead of hunting the rhino farther, we rode the jaded horses slowly into camp and put a proper finish to a bad luck day by holding a consultation. The Wangai River is no river at all; merely a small spring in the shadow of the range that crosses the head of the valley. But the spring could supply sufficient water for all our needs. Also, the problem of transportation demanded that Ulyate should return to Kijabe and bring up another wagon with supplies [ 36 | NadO HHL NI LSHHEHLYVH V ONICOU LP os EI om ae In Africa before the journey over the Mau into the Sotik could be undertaken. Then, too, here in the Rift Valley we had seen both lion and rhino, and there was always the chance of finding them again. The consultation resulted in the decision to make a permanent camp here and hunt the neighboring country until Ulyate should return. For the succeeding three days the Colonel laid out a plan of campaign; simple, but effective, and limited only by the necessity of keeping within rea- sonable distance of the water. The plan consisted of a series of drives; one in a northeasterly, one in an easterly, and one in a_ southeasterly direction. By this means we would cover in turn all territory at the head of the valley. The Colonel was anxious to try again for the rhino he had seen on the march the day before, and for this reason the [ 37 | Lassoing Wild Animals drive to the northeast was inaugurated first. Every member of the expedition took part in these drives. The Colonel and the writer at one end, and the two cowboys at the other, occupied the ex- treme positions. Between the right and left wings stretched a long line of por- ters, under the command of two escaris, and with Kearton and Gobbet in the center with the cameras. The dogs on leash and the saises carrying water for the horses brought up the rear. When finally formed, the line of the drive ex- tended approximately five miles, and the cameras and the dogs were so placed that they could be brought to either end of the line with the utmost despatch. Two shots fired in quick succession would be the signal to gather. That first day’s drive brought little success. To begin with, we were late in starting, so that the sun had already [ 38 | In Ajfrevea risen before we moved out of camp; and besides, the porters were new at that kind of work and had to be halted and reformed many times before they under- stood what was wanted. The land across which we were driv- ing lay at the very edge of the valley, and was consequently somewhat broken into small hills and hollows. By the time we came to the old rhino trail, the day was well advanced. But no fresh tracks were to be found up and down the entire length of the hollow, nor was any- thing to be seen of the beast from the next hill to the northward, which we climbed to search the country ahead. There was only a large herd of harte- beests grazing on the plains below. The Colonel retreated half-way down the hill and fired two shots from his revolver. Somewhere beyond our range of vision we heard the two shots repeated, [ 39 | Lassoing Wild Animals and at the end of a little more than half an hour all the members of the drive were gathered on the hillside below the crest. Then the Colonel explained the reason for his signal. The rhino was not there. We might still find him, and we might not. The chances were now that we should not. He had probably left the country for good and was already miles away. In the meanwhile a good oppor- tunity offered for rounding up the herd of hartebeests in the plain below and driving them up the hillside to the cameras. On top of the hill was a small clearing, the edges of which were fringed with scrub. While the Colonel and the cow- boys maneuvered to circle the herd, Kearton placed the cameras in the clear- ing, with the northern line of scrub as a background for the intended picture. For a long time there was silence. [ 40 | CNNOW) AHL OL ASOTO STAAVUL IVWINYV SIHL SV ‘MSVL LTNOWMAId V—LVO TWAUHS V DNIGOUW "=, \ pee=e> A WJ In Africa Then suddenly the scrub sprang into life, and the next instant the herd dashed into the clearing in a cloud of dust that was pierced by a hundred startled eyes and tossing horns. At the sight of the cameras the herd broke and scattered in every direction; but the horsemen, pressing them close, roped one in the open, and held him to have his picture taken, and then let him go. On the second drive, over the lowland to the east, the porters worked better; but, although we covered a far greater territory, the total result was the roping and photographing of a serval-cat that we flushed on the way back to camp. The third drive carried us well out toward the southern volcano where we had seen the lions on the march from Rugged Rocks, but this time there was no trace of them anywhere in the land. Means, however, found a cheetah, and [41 ] Lassoing Wild Animals the two faint reports of his signal brought us together on the run. We came upon Means seated on his horse in a bit of the veldt that was covered all over with tufts of rank grass, so that it looked like a swamp that had been dry for ages. Near by ran a small shallow donga. When the rest of us rode up to him, he merely pointed at one of the tufts of grass behind which the cheetah lay crouched. There followed a brief delay, while a plan of maneuver was made and ex- pounded, while the tripods were set up, the cameras screwed on, and the ropers moved out to their appointed places. Then all at once the cheetah started, and, instead of breaking away, as we had calculated he would, he doubled on his tracks and made for the shelter of the donga. It was a quick, sharp race [ 42 ] In Africa — and the cheetah won. He hid in the scrub at the bottom of the ditch. The native porters collected there and com- placently regarded the scene, and the members of the drive ranged themselves on either bank and offered innumerable suggestions as to what had better be done next. But in the midst of it all the Colonel put an emphatic end to the discussion. He rode into the donga with his rope swinging free, and when the cheetah failed to spring at him, he dropped the noose over the animal’s head, and dragged him out on to the open veldt, where his picture could be _ properly taken. The black porters looking on com- menced speaking in low tones in their native tongue, and nodded and grinned at each other as they had done before. But this time Mac was among them. [ 43 ] Lassoing Wild Animals Mac was Kearton’s tent-boy. He orig- inally came from Somaliland and spoke English. He was called upon to explain what the porters said. “Please,” he began. “They are very bad men, these people, but don’t be sorry. They say —they say that, of course, the white gentlemen are able to do what they want to do, but just the same they are all crazy.” That night we held our second con- sultation. Ulyate had returned from Kijabe with the extra wagon-load of supplies, which placed us in a position to move again immediately. The ques- tion now arose as to whether it would be best to remain where we were a few days longer to gain more experience, or to trek at once over the Mau, with a chance at giraffe on the way, and so on into the Sotik country, with its alluring promises of both rhino and lion. [ 44 ] «LQATHA NAdO HHL OL NO LOO WIH GHODVUCd GNV GQVUH S\HVLAHHO FHL WHAO HSOON HHL GaddOUud,, ‘ HdVUDOLOHd STH YO DNISOd ‘HSOON HHL NI HVLAHHO AHL In Africa By this time we had hunted the Rift Valley thoroughly. During the seven days since we had left Kijabe, the expe- dition had roped and photographed a cheetah, a serval-cat, a hartebeest, an eland, and a wart-hog. Although we had been given no opportunity yet to find out how we were going to hold a rhino or what we would do when the lion charged, still, in addition to our success with the lesser animals, we had acquired something else of value. All the mem- bers of the expedition had learned to work well together —in all the usual emergencies each man knew what was expected of him and could likewise make a ready guess as to what the others intended doing. Thus, in spite of the fact that on an expedition of this kind it is the unexpected that always happens, our experience only added to our confi- dence that when we eventually encoun- } [ 45 | Lassoing Wild Animals tered one of the larger beasts we should get him. The consultation ended with the unani- mous decision to start for the Sotik at dawn. [ 46 ] HVLHHHO AHL ONITOGNVH THNOTOO FHL < , \ Ne Ne bei PART TWO ‘i Ane Re . 7A PART TWO OMEHOW everything seemed to S happen on moving day with the Buffalo Jones Expedition in East Africa. Exactly why this should have been it is impossible to tell. Perhaps the reason may be found in the fact that a considerable part of our time was occupied in moving. No doubt the circumstance could be traced to some such perfectly reasonable cause. But we chose to look upon it otherwise. When an outfit like ours has been work- ing for a while in the open country — especially when the undertaking has no precedent and the outcome is decidedly uncertain — the little happenings of each day gradually grow to have a peculiar significance of their own, and finally a [ 49 | Lassotng Wild Animals brand-new set of superstitions is formed and half-jokingly believed in by every one concerned. In this way an expedi- tion comes to be regarded as lucky or unlucky, or lucky on certain days, or at certain hours of the day, or at cer- tain periods of the moon. The wide reaches of the African veldt have some- thing to do with it, perhaps. These superstitions are temporary, local, and often purely personal affairs. Means, being a cowboy, believed that when he rode his big-boned bay the drive would be successful. The native dogboy insisted that when the long-eared blood- hound and the little white terrier were coupled together on the march, the rest of the pack would come through without mishap. Loveless swore by a particular piece of rope, and Mac — which is short for Mohammed — discovered propitious omens on every conceivable occasion. [ 50 | qudOW ATHAVS VUdHZ V eee eee In Africa It was on the first day’s march into the Kedong Valley that we had roped the wart-hog. On the journey from Sewell’s Farm to Rugged Rocks we had rounded up and photographed the eland. Again, it was on the trek of March 8 to the Wangai River that we had caught our only glimpses of rhinoceros and lion — faint chances of making a capture, but still chances, and better than no signs at all. And thus, merely because it had turned out so in the past, every mem- ber of the expedition had come to enter- tain a semi-serious belief that something momentous was bound to happen on moving day. A general feeling of expectancy per- vaded the entire safari when we broke camp at the Wangai River at dawn of a hazy morning. The sky was clear of clouds, but behind the hills of the Mau [51] Lassoing Wild Animals escarpment a veldt fire had been burn- ing for several days, so that a veil of smoke was seen hanging in the air as the dawn broadened into day. The smell of the burning veldt and the nearness of the fire lent an oppressive warmth to the still morning. “You two boys had better carry your heavy ropes,’ the Colonel said at start- ing. ““We might meet something.”’ We had finished with the Kedong and Rift valleys. We had hunted every cor- ner of the district within striking distance of the water. And we had had success of a kind. Cheetah, eland, hartebeest, and serval-cat we had roped and tied and photographed. But the really big game had so far escaped us. For this reason we had decided to take the road over the Mau, where the smoke haze hung heavy, and so on into the Sotik country, where both lion and rhino were said to abound. [ 52 ] In Africa For the first ten miles of the march our way led across untraveled country, toward the two deep ruts in the veldt that were known as the wagon road. We had an extra ox-wagon with us now, in charge of Mr. Curry, an Africander, who lived with his partner on a farm on the border of the Sotik, and who on his return journey home with his wagon had agreed to help us carry supplies. Curry was slight and round-shouldered, with light yellow hair. His face was burned a bright red, excepting his nose, which was white where the skin was peeling. He had a peculiar, slow, drawling way of talking—when he talked at all, which was seldom. Being an inhabitant of the dis- trict into which we were going, he was naturally subjected at first to a number of questions in regard to the big game there. “Plenty of rhino in your part of the world, I suppose?”’ [ 53 | Lassoing Wild Animals ““Y—as,” drawled Curry. ‘And lion, too, I imagine?” “Y—as.”’ “Ought to get some giraffe on the way, hadn’t we?” “YY —as.” “Rhino pretty scarce just now, though, aren’t they?”’ *“Y—as,”’ Curry answered placidly. Thus it soon became apparent that Curry’s chief ambition was to agree pleasantly with whatever anybody said, which tended to discredit any informa- tion he had to impart. So, as a matter of course, the questions ceased, and when no more were asked him Curry’s conversation ceased also. It was rough going for the ox-wagons those first ten miles, and they made slow time of it along the base of the hills. According to our custom on the march the Colonel and the two cowboys, the [ 54 | In Africae picture department (composed of Kear- ton and Gobbet), and Ulyate (the white hunter) and myself rode in a widely extended line in front of the safar, sweeping the country for game. It was hot at the base of the hills —so hot that when your bridle hand dropped inadvertently to the pommel of the saddle, the brass mounting there seemed to burn you. Not a breath of air was stirring, and the sun shone down blaz- ing through the wisps of smoke haze, and the heat waves rose from the dead, parched veldt so that the distant south- ern volcano looked all quivering. Then from out the blurred vista in front little by little a clump of compara- tively large trees began to take definite shape. Another half mile farther, and we saw that something was moving among the trees as high up as the top- most branches. [ 55 | Lassoing Wild Animals “Giraffe,” said Ulyate, and no sooner had he spoken the word than the great towering animals wheeled and fled from their shelter with that long-legged gallop of theirs which looks so easy and slow, but which carries them over the ground as fast as a speedy horse can run. The Colonel and the two cowboys set off at a hand gallop in a vain attempt to round them up and drive them back to the cameras. The race was a hope- less one for the horsemen from the start. But, according to the general method of operations adopted by the Colonel from the very beginning, no chance of a cap- ture, however slim it might appear, was to remain untried so long as men and horses could endure. The two ruts of the wagon road led close by the grove of trees, and when the rest of us reached this spot and dis- mounted to await results, the three [ 56 | In Afriea leading horsemen had disappeared long ago into the scrub-grown country to the south. As noon approached, the heat became more and more oppressive. The cam- eras had been screwed to the tripods and covered with our coats to protect them from the sun. The horses grazed near by. Mac was sent up one of the trees to warn us of the approach of any- thing like a giraffe, and the rest of us sat on the ground round the bole in the small circle of thin shade and lazily watched the black ants always crawling and climbing and zigzagging back and forth over the network of fallen twigs and leaves. It was too hot to talk — it was too hot to sleep or think. And by and by the ox-wagons came up, and the oxen brought the flies. For a time then the only sounds were the slow crunching of the feeding horses and an occasional [ 57 | Lassoing Wild Animals inarticulate snarl from some one or other who foolishly tried to brush the flies away from his face. Eventually, after a long time had passed, Means rode into the grove of trees, unheralded by Mac and _ alone. The bay horse had fallen badly, wrench- ing his rider’s back where once he had been hurt before. Means took his sad- dle off, threw it on the ground, and sat on it. “He dropped into a pig hole,” he 6 explained, “an’ hopped out again as neat as could be. But in hoppin’ out he hopped into another, an’ that just naturally discouraged him an’ he come down with me.” No comments were made, nor did Means expect any. But evidently he had considered it only justice to the bay that the mishap should receive from him the proper explanation. [ 58 | In Africa Then Loveless returned, also alone. He made a few grumbling remarks about its being all nonsense to run the horses to death when there was no chance at all. But as his listeners showed not the slightest interest in the matter, he, too, relapsed into silence. The Colonel was the last to come in. He rode straight to the tree where the company were gathered, dismounted, and sat down. ‘Then he spoke to the world at large. “They must be about here some- where,” he said. “‘And being about here somewhere, we'll get ’em yet.” When the shadow beneath the tree began to lengthen toward the east, the safart shook itself together and prepared to move on once more. But this time, instead of occupying his customary posi- tion at the head of the column, the Colonel lagged behind. [ 59 | Lassoing Wild Animals Immediately after leaving the grove of trees, the road commenced to climb the first rises of the Mau escarpment. As we mounted higher up the hillside, the view behind us opened out into a grand panorama of the two valleys and their sentinel voleanoes, with the smoke haze hanging over all. For a_ time, those of us who were in front rode half sideways in the saddle, looking back over the way we had come and over the district we had grown to know so well. Then we crossed a small, level park that formed the crest of the first hill, and as we moved down the western slope the view behind us disappeared and the new country spread before us. Kearton was riding with his head sunk on his chest like a sick man. Gobbet asked if anything was wrong with him. “Nothing bad; too much heat this morning, likely.” [ 60 | in Ajriea “Want to hunt up a bit of shade and lie up awhile?”’ “No, Ill go on.” Gobbet shrugged his _ shoulders. “You're the judge,” he said. Hill after hill stretched away in front to the one upstanding kopje that marked the top of the Mau. The district was wooded with small, twisted trees, and the fire had crossed here, so that the ground was black and the air smelled stronger of burning. Presently Means stopped. “I’d_ bet- ter wait till the Colonel comes along,” he explained. “The Colonel don’t carry any weapons.” Loveless stopped with him, and, as Ulyate was somewhere behind with the ox-wagons and porters, this left Kear- ton, Gobbet, and myself to ride on by ourselves. For a mile or more the road lifted and dipped with monotonous reg- [ 61 | Lassoing Wild Animals ularity, and the burnt land was still on either hand, without a sign of life any- where to be seen. So when the sun really began to decline toward the west, Gobbet, who had once been assistant manager of the Alhambra Music Hall in Brighton, told the story of Harry Lauder and the liquid-air biscuits, and it seemed to do Kearton good. Kearton had just told Gobbet to quit his lying, when all three of us realized that for the last half minute we had been uncon- sciously listening to the beat of a gallop- ing horse on the road behind. The next instant Ulyate pulled up in a cloud of dust. “Colonel wants you,’ he - said. “They’ve rounded up a giraffe.”’ We wheeled the horses and started back on the run. “‘ About—three—miles! Left—of the —road!’’ Ulyate shouted after us. [ 62 | sATAVUID AHL dO MOUN HOIH AHL NO HSOON HHL ONIOVId NI GHGHHOOAS SSH THAOT,. wv : Pada > a 6 ‘ : hy: ‘ # 4 ss ~ “, A % A 5 yet mite’ om i ee as In Africa There were various reasons that called for haste. How long the ropers could keep the giraffe rounded up was espe- cially uncertain, and then, besides, it was near the end of the day and soon the light would be too far gone for a picture. We met the line of porters and they scattered right and left. Farther on, the ox-teams crowded one side to give us room. Then we came upon the four special porters with the cameras. Kear- ton took his machine on the saddle with him, and Gobbet caught up the tripod from another pair of outstretched arms. When we reached the bit of clearing and looked to the left of the road, we saw the long neck and head of a giraffe sharply outlined against the sky. The giraffe stood motionless. His feet were spread a little apart as though he was prepared to dash away again at the [ 63 | Lassoing Wild Animals first opportunity, and he gazed in a curi- ous way first at one, then at another of the three ropers that surrounded him and now sat their horses, waiting. There was still enough light left for a picture, but Kearton was nearly done. “Give him a minute’s breather,” said the Colonel. “‘We’ll hold the critter till he’s ready. We took Kearton off his horse and stretched him on the ground and poured the lukewarm water from a canteen on his head. Meanwhile Gobbet screwed the camera to the tripod and set it up. By the time Gobbet had_ finished, Kearton was on his feet again. From his position near by, Means ventured the opinion that it was too much excite- ment that had knocked him over, and Kearton swore back at him pleasantly and went to work. A high-pitched yell from the Colonel [ 64 | In Africa sent the giraffe away across the open with that clumsy-looking, powerful gal- lop that is all his own, and with his long neck plunging slowly back and forth. Loveless’s black, one of the fastest horses in the string, had hard work to gain on the giraffe, especially as the animal swerved quickly at the last mo- ment and fled down the eastern slope of the hill through the scrub where the going was none too good. It was a difficult throw — and a new one for a Western cowboy — to send the noose so far up into the air over the head perched high on the long, swaying neck. But at the first attempt Loveless suc- ceeded, and then reined in gently so as not to throw the beast, because a giraffe would fall heavily, and would very likely break his neck or a leg if tumbled over. Finally he was brought to a standstill, his feet spread apart as before, and for a [ 65 | Lassoing Wild Animals while the two stood facing each other — the cowboy and the towering giraffe, with the rope from the saddle horn lead- ing up at a considerable angle to the shoulders of the prize. The rest of the hunt soon gathered about them. Although the light was rapidly failing, Kearton finished what was left of his roll of film. The whir of the camera ended with a peculiar flapping sound. “'That’s all,’ said Kearton, and sank down on a near-by stone. But Loveless and the giraffe contin- ued to face each other undisturbed. “Well?” said Loveless, presently. “Well?” echoed the Colonel. ‘Well, how are we going to take this rope off him? We've got none to spare, you know.” “Get a ladder,” suggested Means. ““No, we won’t need a ladder,” said the Colonel seriously; “but we'll have [ 66 | «WIH AHO AdOU SIHL AMVL OL ONIOO HAM BUY MOH ‘TTGAM,, A, =p lr 2 ie lie fs wie iit, ee In Africa to throw him, after all. We can do it gently, I guess, without hurting him.” Accordingly Means roped the giraffe by one hind leg and pulled it out from under him, so that he sank easily to the ground and both the ropes were loosened and freed. The sun had set and the short twi- light was rapidly deepening. The ox- wagons and porters were several miles ahead. So we packed up the camera, coiled up the ropes, mounted, and rode away, and the giraffe raised himself on his haunches among the bushes and watched us go. We camped at a water hole that night, and started on again the next morning in the darkness before the dawn, with a porter ahead carrying a lantern to show the way. With ox-wagons it is a three- days’ journey from that water hole to the Guas Nyiro River at the border of the [ 67 | Lassoing Wild Animals Sotik. The country through which we passed continued to be the same as that of the Mau escarpment — a succession of low hills and shallow valleys covered with the small, twisted trees. And there was plenty of water on the way. But there was no game in the district. We had been told before starting that we need not expect to see anything on the way, because antelope, zebra, and such like animals avoid the wooded sec- tion so as not to be caught unaware by lions, and, since the prey seek the safety of the open plains, the lions are com- pelled to follow. In spite of this fact, and although the dense woods and broken ground generally forced the safari to keep to the road, the cowboys were always ready and the cam- eras always loaded with film. But the land on either side remained silent and deserted. [ 68 | In Africa And each day’s journey was the same as the one before; the start in the gray of the morning, the long, hot ride, with the road gently rising and falling over the hills, and the sudden cool of the evening when the sun went down. At times the camera department would take moving pictures of the wagons and por- ters crossing a river, where an especialy picturesque bit of scenery offered an attractive setting. Occasionally Means, as he rode along, would commence sing- ing one of the songs of our Western plains, verse after verse, seemingly with- out end, recounting in detail some local historical event, such as an Indian attack on an army post, a shooting affair at a dance, or a train-robber’s hanging. He would sing more to himself than to any- body else, and if this began to bore him at all, he would stop in the middle and leave the story untold. [ 69 ] Lassoing Wild Animals Then sometimes, when we outspanned for an hour at noon, the four special camera porters would give imitations of Kearton and Gobbet taking pictures, of Loveless shoeing horses, or of Means in the act of roping. And in the eve- nings, when the day’s march was done and the outpost fires had been lighted, the talk of the company would turn to our chances of finding luck in the Sotik country that lay ahead. In the afternoon of March 16 we reached Webb’s Farm, in the Guas Nyiro Valley, which lies at the edge of the big plains. In this_neighbor- hood there were three farms — Webb’s, Curry’s, and Agate’s — and on the even- ing of our arrival some of their men paid a visit to the camp. They had heard of the expedition, and each in turn examined the horses, the dogs, the ropes, and the saddles, and then, like the [ 70 ] «WIH QALIV ASHOH AHL GHDDVUd AH DAT GHdOU AHL HLIM«~ In Africa hunters at Nairobi, asked the inevitable question: “But how are you going to do it?” “Oh, we’ll do it somehow,” the Colonel replied good-naturedly. And the visitors shook their heads a little and smiled and changed the subject. But to attempt to rope a rhinoceros or a lion required fresh horses, and ever since we had left Nairobi, nearly a fortnight ago, we had worked our horses hard every day. Now that we had reached the land of the big game, the Colonel for the first time called a day of rest. So we loafed about camp from sunrise to sunset and by evening were heartily sick of it all. Perhaps we had expected too much of this Sotik country; perhaps the expedition was running, temporarily, in a streak of bad luck; but the fact remains that when we resumed hunting on March 18, disap- pointment only followed disappointment. [71] Lassoing Wild Animals As we had done in the Rift Valley, so here we adopted the method of sweeping the country with a widely extended line. The first day we rode far to the south- ward, to the Hot Springs and_ back, and found nothing, and an unreasoning depression settled upon the expedition. The next day we rode still farther, to the westward this time, and again found nothing, and so the depression deepened. Also on the afternoon of this day it rained heavily, and Curry agreed with Ulyate that this probably meant the be- ginning of the rainy season, which was already overdue. That night at the supper table the Colonel spoke his mind. The rain was dripping through the canvas fly over- head, and the Colonel wore his broad- brimmed hat to help keep the water off his plate. “There’s no use hanging round here [72 | In Africa any longer,” he said; “not a bit of use. We haven’t seen anything, nor a sign of anything. When the rains begin in ear- nest, this ground will soften fast an’ the horses will get bogged an’ we'll have to quit. So from now on we've got to work fast. Now Ulyate says there’s water about twelve miles from here to the north —called the Soda Swamp. We'll start for the Soda Swamp in the morning.” Again it was moving day. The morn- ing dawned fine after the rain, and the air was clear, and the country looked greener and fresher than it had ever looked before. By the time the sun rose, the first wagon was packed, so the safari set out on the journey, leaving the second wagon to load and follow our tracks, for there was no road to the Soda Swamp. At the last moment the Colonel de- [73 | Lassoing Wild Animals cided that he and the cowboys might just as well make a circuit to the west- ward of the line of march on the off chance of finding game. “We covered that district pretty thor- oughly yesterday,” he said. “But still, you never can tell.” Yet nobody thought it worth while for the camera department to go with them, and so Kearton and Gobbet and the four special porters trailed along with the slow, plodding wagon. In the first place, the wagons would follow the shortest route and the horses would be none the worse for an easy day; in the second, if by the remotest chance the Colonel flushed anything worth while, he could more easily find the cameras. Curry had remained behind to bring on the second load, and soon Ulyate left us to make a détour past Agate’s Farm to procure another sack of rice that was [ 74 ] VaaNvVoO §LHXdOD ADUVHOD OL LNOGV ONIN AHI LAL ALR Vea badly needed. Ours was a large safari, and the details of transportation re- quired close attention. The morning wore on. The sky re- mained clear and the heat became intense. The direction in which we were travel- ing led us along the border of the plains, through small green parks, scat- tered groves of trees, and scrub. So far as the mounted men were con- cerned, the march was a succession of rides and halts. The heavily laden ox- wagon traveled slowly, and it soon became our custom to dismount in a bit of shade and let the wagon pass ahead about a mile, when we would mount again and catch up with it and then repeat the process. At one of these places there was a grass-grown mound against which we sat, leaning comfortably, and_ specu- lated on the distance we had come [ 75 | Lassoing Wild Animals and the distance we had to go. When, after a while, it became evident that we should never agree in the matter, the conversation altered to a sort of spas- modie affair. “TI thought this district was so full of big game that you couldn’t sleep at night for the lions roaring around you,” Gobbet remarked lazily. “Wait till you get among them,”’ said Kearton. “Sazs, keep that horse far- ther away; he’ll be walking on us next.” “Well, I haven’t been kept awake any yet,” Gobbet replied. “IT wonder where that wagon’s got to,” and Kearton raised himself on one elbow and peered ahead from beneath the down-tilted brim of his helmet. Then he lay back again and shut his 99 eyes. “Means is coming,” he said. The announcement occasioned no sur- [ 76 | In Africa prise. Undoubtedly Means had some reason for returning over the trail, and when he reached the mound we should probably learn what he wanted. Means dismounted and sat down beside us. “‘We’ve found a rhino over in the next valley yonder,” he remarked, and nodded his head toward the west. “A rhino is no matter to joke about,” said Gobbet. ‘“‘Please remember that in the future.” “Tm not jokin’,” said Means. ‘‘Colo- nel’s watchin’ him. Loveless stopped half-way here, about three miles off. Colonel sent me to bring the rest of you and get the heavy rope.”’ “Is that right, Means?” Kearton asked sharply. “Sure.” “Come on, then.” In five minutes we had overtaken the wagon and stopped it, and while Means [77 | Lassoing Wild Animals clambered up on to the load to hunt for the heavy rope, Kearton collected the camera porters and started ahead with them in the direction Means pointed out. But Means could not find the rope he wanted. He threw off half the load without success. “It’s on the other wagon. ‘There’s where it is,” he finally concluded. ‘No time to wait now. Other wagon likely hasn’t started yet. We'll have to do with what we've got.” We rode on at an easy jog to keep the horses fresh, and at the end of half an hour we came upon Loveless waiting for us just beneath the crest of a rise. He had off-saddled his horse and had turned him loose to graze a bit before the com- ing work, and a few minutes were occu- pied while Loveless saddled up again and Kearton and Gobbet adjusted their cam- eras and took them on their horses. [ 78 | «ONIHY AHL NOW ‘NAMOUd “ONITONVG SAdOU AHL AO LSAW AHL—LAYT ANIT JO HLDNAT ANO,, oat acca oo ¢,* oe oi 0 In Africa Finally every one was ready, and we set forth once more on a wide détour to the north to approach the beast from down the wind. Loveless gave us the latest news: “The Colonel came over the rise a half hour ago and said the rhino was laying down resting quiet. The Colonel went back again at once to keep watch.”’ As we proceeded farther on the cir- cuit and began to ride down the gentle slope into the adjacent valley, we slowed down the pace to a cautious walk. No one spoke, and on the grass of the veldt the tread of the horses made scarcely any sound. Suddenly the Colonel appeared, walk- ing toward us, bent low. He had backed out of his hiding-place behind a clump of scrub. *““He’s laying down over there about a hundred yards away,” he whispered. [79 | Lassoing Wild Animals ““Now we want to catch the start of the show. You boys ready?” Means tightened his cinch, and shook his rope loose and coiled it up again. Loveless said he was ready. One of the saises produced the Colonel’s horse from behind another clump of scrub, and Kearton dismounted and began creep- ing forward with his camera. “Don’t start him up till I get my position,” he cautioned. “I'll wave my hand.” On account of the growth of low bushes we could not see the rhino, but in silence we watched Kearton tiptoeing farther and farther ahead toward the spot where the Colonel had said the beast was lying down. The time was approximately a little after noon. The wind that was blowing was light, and came to us hot over the sunny reaches of veldt. The sky was cloudless. [ 80 | In Africa Then the three ropers commenced ma- neuvering forward, swinging out a little to the right. Kearton stopped. He set up his camera and sighted it, and took out his handkerchief and carefully wiped the lens. When Kearton waved his hand, the Colonel’s yell shattered the stillness and the great beast heaved up out of the grass and tossed his head and sniffed the air, and snorted. The horsemen rode full tilt at him, and with surprising quickness the rhino wheeled and broke away south down the valley. For a good three miles the rhino ran straight and fast. Finally he came into more open country, which was dotted here and there with small thorn trees. Here, also, in one place there was a fair- sized pool of water, left over from the rains of the night before. The rhino selected this pool as a good position [ 81 | Lassoing Wild Animals from which to act on the defensive. He splashed into the water, stopped, and faced the horsemen. Then followed a few minutes’ respite for all concerned. The horses were pant- ing heavily after the sharp run, and the rhino’s position in the pool rendered it difficult to approach him for a chance to throw a rope. Evidently considering himself safe for the moment, the beast rolled once or twice in the water and then stood on guard as before, but me his black sides dripping. “We've got to get him out of that,” said the Colonel. “A horse wouldn’t stand a show there. Now when I get him to charge me, you boys stand by.” Before the Colonel finished speaking, he was already edging toward the pool. For fifteen yards the rhino watched him coming. Then with a great snort he charged out of the water, sending the [ 82 | «LSVI AdOU AHL AGVW SSHTAAOT GHAHM ‘AAUL V OL WIH GHDDVUC SHSUOH AHL MALS AG dULS,, In Africa white spray flying in every direction, and the Colonel had to ride hard to keep ahead of the tossing horn. But Means was after the rhino like a flash, and with a quick throw caught him round the neck. The big bay fell back on his haunches and the rope snapped like twine. “We'll miss that heavy rope to-day,” Means said. “We'll tie him up with what we’ve got,’ the Colonel replied. “‘Only we’ve got to tire him out some first. What we'll do is to make him charge us one after the other, so he’ll run three times to the horses’ running once.” It was a full half-hour before the next attempt was made to throw a rope. Time after time the rhino came plunging out of the water to charge the nearest horseman. Our Western horses proved to be only just a trifle faster than the [ 83 | Lassoing Wild Animals rhino, so that each time the beast nearly caught them. Besides, here and there the ground was bad with ant-bear holes, which had to be avoided, for a fall would mean disaster. But little by little it became apparent that the rhino’s con- tinual charging was beginning to produce an effect. In the meanwhile the rest of the chase was coming up. In the distance we could see them hurrying down the val- ley — horsemen and porters consider- ably scattered, as if each one followed a route of his own choosing. Kearton led on his big chestnut. He was carrying the heavy camera under his arm, the tripod over his shoulder. The reins were hang- ing loose over his saddle horn, his heels were thumping the horse’s sides, and the perspiration was streaming down his face. “We lost you,” he panted. ‘“‘How’s it going? What a picture!” [ 84 ] In Africa Mac, the Mohammedan, and Aro, the Masai warrior, took the apparatus from him, and he dismounted and went to work. At the second attempt to rope the beast, Loveless caught him by one hind leg, and the rhino decided to shift his base of operations to an ant-hill in the neighboring clearing. His mode of pro- gression was to walk on three legs and to drag the black horse after him with the other. He reached the ant-hill and demolished it and paused for a breathing spell. The chase followed after, and Kearton went into action on the north, and Gobbet on the south, near a small thorn tree, with a negro porter beside him. The rhino caught sight of Gobbet’s camera and charged. The porter went up the tree like a flash. Gobbet was bent over, looking through his view-finder, [ 85 J Lassoing Wild Animals which, of course, gave him no idea of how fast the beast was bearing down on him nor how close he had already come. “Look out!” yelled the Colonel. Gobbet glanced up over the top of the camera and made a jump for the tree. But the porter was already in the branches, and the tree was so small there was not room for two, and Gobbet had to run for it. The next second, with a powerful upward stroke of his horn, the rhino sent the apparatus flying. Then Means succeeded in attracting his atten- tion and he charged the horseman in- stead. Gobbet picked up the débris, found that the tripod-head was split clean in two as with an axe, found the camera itself undamaged, found there was enough head left to support the camera, quickly mounted his machine again, and was just in time to catch the end of the rhino’s chase after Means. [ 86 | «NO LNAUM LAHOI AHL NIVOV MOVE GNV AAUL-NYUOHL OL TIIH-LNVY WOWdd,, a ~ - art i; In Africa And all the while Kearton had his camera trained upon the scene in which his assistant was playing the conspicu- ous part. “T hope I got that good,” he said; “it'll make fine action — fine.” From one position to another, from ant-hill to thorn tree and back to ant- hill once more, the fight went on through the long, hot afternoon. Ropes were thrown and caught and broken, mended and thrown again. The horses were pulled, all standing, one way and an- other. Rolls of film were exposed and replaced by fresh ones. The rhino sulked and stormed and charged in turn. At the end of the fourth hour, Love- less had one short length of light line left. The rest of the ropes were dangling, broken, from the rhino’s legs and neck as he stood at bay over the ruins of the ant-hill. [ 87 ] Lassoing Wild Animals The sun was rapidly canting toward the west. The continual work in the intense heat, without food or water, was beginning to tell on both horses and men. The rhino was weakening faster. But only one hour of daylight remained, and if the beast could hold out till dark we should lose him. There was the dead stump of a tree with the roots protruding lying in the grass near by. The Colonel told Means to fasten the stump to the last piece of line, and Loveless rode toward Kear- ton’s machine, past the rhino, dragging the stump behind him. As the Colonel had foreseen, the beast charged at the stump, and the loose ropes hanging from him became entangled in the roots. So on they went at a run, first Love- less, then the stump, bounding over the ground, then the charging rhino, headed straight for Kearton’s camera. The [ 88 ] In Africa Masai warrior stood by the tripod with his long spear poised high, and Kearton turned the handle and shouted at Love- less: “How many times have I got to tell you not to come straight into the lens? Bring him on at an angle! ... I don’t want to be unreasonable,” he added, when the rhino stopped, “but you ought to have learned better by this time.” Then, by hauling in gently, Loveless succeeded in recovering two of the ropes, and they were pieced together and thrown again, catching the rhino by one hind leg. Both the cowboys put their horses to work pulling forward on the rope, and they lifted that one hind leg ahead. The tired beast shifted his great body after it, and thus step by step the horses dragged him up to a tree, where Loveless passed the end of the rope two turns around the bole and made it fast. [ 89 | Lassoing Wild Animals The rhino charged once just before the knot was tied, and Loveless had to jump into the branches through the thorns to escape. He charged again, rather feebly this time, trying to get free, but the rope held well and tripped him up. After that he stood quietly at the end of his tether, watching the cam- era in a sullen way while Kearton took his picture with the last few feet of film. By this time the light was almost gone, the films were finished, horses and men were nearly done, and, besides, it was moving day and high time we resumed the march. [ 90 ] ‘ ‘ ATHHHA NIVOV GHDUVHO GAH,, «WIH GaddIdL GNV TIHM GQTHH SHdOW AHL LOA PART THREE A 8) oh i PART THREE : | "HERE was no use trying to avoid the fact any longer. The lions, for the present, had left the Sotik country, and by remaining in camp at the Soda Swamp the Buffalo Jones Expedition was only wasting time. And time was precious then — was growing more precious every day — if we expected to finish the work before rains. The lion was the only big game we wanted now to complete the list of wild animals roped and tied, and the lion was the most important of all. The expe- dition had traveled the long journey to the Sotik country especially to find them. Yet ever since the capture of the rhi- noceros on the moving day of March 20th we had thoroughly swept the land [ 93 | Lassoing Wild Animals in the vicinity of the Soda Swamp with- out finding even a single spoor. It simply meant that the lions were not there. Some explanations were offered, some arguments arose as to the whys and wherefores of this state of affairs. A few maintained that the lions had always been found there before; it was strange they should have gone. A theory was advanced that the rains were late and the country was unusually dry, so that the game had shifted to better pastures. Perhaps some water hole they depended on had failed. There is generally some discussion on such occasions. We had counted so much on the Sotik to give us our chance that the truth was hard to realize at first. But no matter what the cause might be, we were finally forced to acknowledge the undeniable fact — the lions had left the district. On the evening of March 25 the expe- [ 94 | In Africa dition faced the situation. As_ usual, the night fell cold, and when supper was finished the company collected about the fire that was burning close to the horses. A light wind stirred in the leaves overhead and the sky was full of stars. Here and there a tired horse was already half asleep, and his head nodded gently in the firelight. From the darkness came the low talk of the savses, rolled in their blankets on the ground at the end of the picket line. Most of the men stood with their backs to the flames, gazing vacantly at the horses, the trees, or the stars. Fora while not a word was said. Means threw an- other log on the fire and then squatted on his heels and silently watched the flames catch the bark and flare up brightly. As the heat increased, Kearton took a step farther away and stood again. Every one knew that the Sotik had failed us [ 95 | Lassoing Wild Animals and that it was time for us to go, and so eventually when the Colonel spoke he only voiced the general conclusion. “We've got to go back,” he said, speaking straight in front of him at the nearest of the sleepy horses. ‘“‘We’ve got to go to-morrow and have a try from the water hole at the Rugged Rocks where we saw the two lions on the way out here. We may find one there and we may not. If we don’t, we’ve got to go on to Nairobi and start all over again — provided the rains don’t begin.” Accordingly, through the long hot days the safari plodded back over the way we had come—from the Soda Swamp to Agate’s, from Agate’s to the Honeybird River, and then on once more to the Last Water. The cameras were stowed away on the wagons, the ropes remained coiled on the saddles, for there was no probability of our find- [ 96 | In Ajpriesn ing lions on the way. And each man rode as his judgment decreed, because the business of the safari then was to get on over the road, and the ox-wagons behind came along as best they could. For the most part it was a silent jour- ney. The expedition had turned its back on the district that only a short week ago had held out such alluring prom- ises, and any day now the rains might commence effectually to put a stop to the work before it was done. Then, too — although this may seem to be a small matter, still it had weight with all of us —the white hunters of the coun- try had ridiculed the idea of our being able to rope a lion, and the prospect of returning and admitting defeat without having been given a proper chance was not pleasant to contemplate. At the Last Water we outspanned for the night and most of the succeeding [97 | Lassoing Wild Animals day. In view of the situation, the long halt was absolutely necessary to give the oxen a good rest and drink before setting forth on the twenty-four-hour journey without water to the Rugged Rocks. But throughout the dragging hours of the enforced rest always there loomed ahead of us the possibility of failure and the need of haste. No mention was made of this openly. The only sign of our underlying anxiety was a vague rest- lessness pervading the entire safare. Once on the march again, with the sun low in the west, the restlessness disap- peared. The night came dark, because the moon rose late, and the air was still, so that the dust that lifted from be- neath the feet of the oxen drifted along with the wagon. Now and again one of the wheels bumped over a rock in the road and the brake beam shook and rattled. At times the high-pitched cries [ 98 | In Africa of the native drivers pierced the still- ness. Ahead of us the bulk of the wagon- load loomed big against the stars. When the dying moon first showed red through the branches of the twisted trees, the safari crossed the top of the Mau and commenced the slow descent to the valley, and the wagons in front became lost in the darkness and the dust. When the morning star rose, we had come to the foothills of the escarpment, and the dawn wind sprang up cold, so that the men shivered a little in their saddles and buttoned up their coats and began to talk. “It was just about here that we caught the giraffe that day,” said Kear- ton. “Remember? And wasn’t it hot?” The talk drifted aimlessly, round and about, from the western ranches to Flicker Alley and the London Music Halls, only to return in the end, as it [ 99 | Lassoing Wild Animals naturally would, to the water hole at Rugged Rocks and our chances of find- ing lion. The discussion was lengthy on this point — it always was. By the time the sun came, the expe- dition had entered the plain of the Rift Valley, and with the rising of the sun the thirst began. Toward noon we halted for a couple of hours to allow the worst of the heat to pass over, gave the horses and the porters a little of the water that was carried on one of the wagons, and then inspanned again and went on. As the horsemen took the road the Colonel outlined his plan. “We'll give the horses a good rest to- night, for we ought to make camp early, and then start hunting the first thing in the morning. We’ve got enough horse- feed to last us three or four days if the water holds out that long. In that time we ought to get a lion if there’s [ 100 ] In Africa any there. Ill ride on now a bit and look for signs.” The Colonel’s horse was a faster walker than the others and slowly he forged ahead. Little by little the safari began to string out along the road until wide spaces grew between the ox-wagons, with the porters straggling after them a mile be- hind. A change had come over the valley since we had seen it last. The land was whiter beneath the blazing sunshine and the dust lay thicker in the road. Some- how it seemed deserted. The only move- ment was the shimmer of the heat waves. The camera department had the slow- est mounts, and as the march had be- come a plodding procession, in which the horses were allowed to choose their own paces, one by one the other members of the expedition passed us. Loveless came from behind and rode with us for half a mile or so. [ 101 ] Lassoing Wild Animals “T’ve been thinking this thing over,” he finally said, “and my idea is that after the dogs get the lion stopped, one of us can go by him, rope him, and keep on going, and then the other fellow can catch him by the hind legs and we’ve got him. If you keep on going fast enough, I don’t think he’ll have a chance to spring at you.” In the pause that followed the deliv- ery of this opinion on a matter that had been thrashed out a hundred times before, his horse gradually carried him farther ahead until he had gone beyond the range of talk. Ulyate, the white hunter, was the next. Kearton had just finished fill- ing his pipe and he silently reached out the bag of tobacco. But Ulyate shook his head. “Throat’s too dry,” he said. “But I want to be sure I understand what [ 102 | «GHOUVHO SSHNOIT AHL AONO LY TTy,, In Africa I’ve got to do. I’m to stand by to pro- tect the cameras and leave the Colonel and the two boys to look after them- selves. If the lion charges them I’m not to fire— only if he comes at the cameras.” “That’s right — only if he comes at the cameras.” “That’s what I thought, but I wanted It’s a likely place, this to make sure Rugged Rocks,” he continued over his shoulder. “We might easily find one to-morrow.” Means on his big bay borrowed a drink of water from Gobbet’s canteen, and rode on after the others. The march of the safari grew slower and slower. The road was flat, bending a little back and forth in long, sweeping curves, like a rope that had once been taut but was loosened. The native drivers no longer cried at the oxen, for the beasts knew by instinct that they were traveling [ 103 ] Lassoing Wild Animals to water, and could be relied upon to do their best; and the men rode with their heads hung down, watching the shadows of the horses on the road and hoping to see them lengthen. The Colonel, the two cowboys, and Ulyate reached the Rugged Rocks at least an hour ahead, and when the rest of us came straggling in we found them seated on the ground with their backs to the bole of a tree. None of them looked up as we halted there, dismounted, and turned the horses loose. Then Ulyate spoke. “Water hole has dried,” he said. There was nothing to be done about it. If the water hole had dried, it had dried. That was all. And we had to push on to Kiabe. Lions or no lions there was no appeal from that decree. So we sat down with the others and watched the progress of the far-off dust cloud that marked the approaching wag- [ 104 ] In Africa ons. Then, when darkness came again, the safarz resumed the march. But the Colonel refused to abandon his former plan entirely without making at least one more attempt. Together with the two cowboys and Kearton he remained behind to scout at dawn the district between the Rugged Rocks and the railway. “We might be able to tell if it’s worth while to come back here,” he explained. It was nearly noon of the following day before the scouting party rejoined the expedition on the platform of the Kijabe station. The party reported that near the base of Longernot, the northern volcano, a belt of lava rock rises perpen- dicularly from the plain. Close to the southern end of this belt they had flushed two lions, a male and a female, and had kept sight of them for fully an hour. It was the opinion of all in the party [105 ] Lassoing Wild Animals that the lions lived in the neighborhood, probably in the rocks. “Very likely,” said Ulyate; “no one has ever hunted that corner of the val- ley. There is no water there.” At first the Colonel was anxious to start back for them at once, hauling the water with us; but after a moment’s reflection he was compelled to concede that it was time to call a halt. Means had strained his back again and could no longer sit straight in the saddle. An old thorn wound in Loveless’s foot needed attention. Horses, dogs, and oxen were entirely fagged out. And besides, the camera department de- manded time to develop the earlier pic- tures, already too long kept in the rolls. Of course, as the Colonel maintained, the rains might come and the chance be lost. Also the lions might not live in [ 106 | In Africa the rocks, as we thought, and to-morrow they might be gone. “Better grab the opportunity while we have it,” he said. **Look at the horses,” said Means. The Colonel walked deliberately along the platform to where the horses were tethered among the trees, and stood there watching them for quite a while. “You’re right, Means,” he said, when he returned tous. “They'll need at least four or five days before we can put them at a lion — well, we’ve got to chance it.” The next five days were the longest in the history of the expedition. The Colonel, Means, and Ulyate remained at Kijabe with the outfit. The rest of us traveled down the line to Nairobi to procure more porters, more horse-feed, and more supplies; and every day we watched the weather closely and specu- lated on the probabilities of how long [107 ] Lassoing Wild Animals the lions would see fit to remain in the district. ‘The time was so short that all other plans had been abandoned to take advantage: of this one opportunity — the expedition was plunging, so to speak, on this final chance to succeed. But the weather held clear, and in the meanwhile the preparations for this last attempt were pushed with the utmost speed. The hunters at Nairobi, together with the storekeepers and farmers of the vicin- ity, had heard of the capture of the rhino. On occasions some of them spoke of it to us. They explained that they had thought all along that we could un- doubtedly rope a rhino. “But you haven’t got a lion yet, have you?” they said. On April 5 the preparations were nearly completed and Loveless’s foot was nearly well. So we started up the line to rejoin the outfit, leaving Gobbet [ 108 ] «ASOOT LAD OL HOAVAGNA OILLNVUA NI LAOAV ONISSOL UNV DONIONIMS,, ea - rok th io - = ~ @ EM 162 Y vo’ Inv Agriven at Nairobi to finish developing the films. We could not afford to spend more time in preparation. At Kijabe we found the horses thor- oughly rested and Means’s back much improved. He had refused to see a doctor, asserting that his back would just naturally get better of its own accord. He said he was ready to start. With one exception the dogs were in good condition — old John from Arizona with his scars of many battles, Rastus and The Rake, taken from a pack of English fox-hounds, and Simba, the ter- rier, and the collie, clipped like a lion, from the London pound. Sounder, the American bloodhound, still showed some effects of distemper. But none of the dogs was to be left behind on this jour- ney. That night the ox-wagons were loaded —one with provisions and camp bag- [109 ] Lassoing Wild Animals gage, the other with drums of water — and when the dawn first began to break over the top of the range the expedition set forth from the station. The crater on Longernot had already caught the first rays of the sun when we reached the bottom of the hill and started across the flat land of the valley. There was no road leading to where we were going, nor track, nor path of any kind. No safarz had ever gone there before. From the height of Kijabe sta- tion we had seen what looked to be a long, low mound in the distant veldt. The southern end of that long, low mound was our destination. The horsemen, as usual, spread out in a widely extended line and passed in front of the wagons and porters. As we penetrated farther into the valley the nature of the country altered. Open parks and stretches of scrub suc- [ 110 ] In Africa ceeded one another, with here and there a dry donga cutting deep into the ground. As we approached the mound it rapidly grew in height and the black rocks com- menced to appear beneath the covering of verdure. Among the settlers of the district this mound is called the Black Reef. It is the general opinion that the Black Reef is formed of lava that long ago flowed down into the plain from the crater of Longernot. The sides, which rise almost perpendicularly to a height of some two hundred feet, are composed of jagged blocks of stone, honeycombed with deep caves and caverns. The top is covered with thick scrub and creepers and tall, rank grasses. To the south- ward it ends abruptly, as though the lava flow had suddenly stopped and cooled. Under the shadow of the Black Reef [111 ] Lassoing Wild Animals the hunting party was divided into three parts. The day was too far ad- vanced for any real hunting to be done, but as long as the light lasted the Colonel wanted to make a personal survey of the ground in the immediate vicinity of the rocks. Accordingly he rode to the northern end of the reef, sending the two cowboys to the plains to the south, while the rest remained where we had halted, behind the southern shoulder, to wait for the arrival of the wagons and make camp. But the only incident of the afternoon was a thunder-cloud that rose up out of the north and hung there, and then gradually disappeared, as the twilight advanced. The others were late in coming in. The Colonel in the north had found tracks — innumerable tracks of differ- ent kinds of beasts — all excepting those of the lion. In the south the two cow- [112 ] UAH JO AYNS ANVW OL ANIT VULXA NV DNIAVI a ty ee ¢ “, erg \ ; SA vin ) | acy hag Rae NER 1% ¢ Pay) i. i * In Africa boys had found a large mixed herd of game; and Loveless had dismounted to shoot for meat, when out of the herd a rhino charged him and he had to kill it to save himself. “Well, so long as he’s dead we'll let him lie where he is,” said the Colonel. “Lions are mighty fond of rhino meat. They'll travel miles to get it. Day after to-morrow, say just at dawn, we ought to be able to pick up a fresh trail there. If we don’t, it will mean that the lions are no longer here, that’s all.” Loveless grunted some unintelligible comment. | “Might as well be cheerful,’ said Means. “We're not beat yet.” The first real hunting day commenced at daylight the next morning. Hour after hour the horsemen traveled the plains, back and forth, and across and around, and carefully searched the base of [113] Lassoing Wild Animals the Black Reef on every side. Only one spot was left untouched. The Colonel de- creed that no one should approach where the dead rhino lay, lest our presence there should arouse suspicion too soon. The rhino was a sort of special chance that was to be saved for the proper time. The day was unusually still and cloud- less. Here and there throughout the plains scattered herds of zebra, harte- beests, and gazelles grazed in_ peace. Not a spoor or a sign of lion was to be seen. For us the day was a blank, and toward evening the thunder-cloud rose again out of the north and again melted away into the twilight. The camp behind the shoulder of the Black Reef was a dry camp. Every drop of water had to be hauled in drums from Sewell’s Farm. The ox-wagon went in the morning and returned in the after- noon. In this way we could haul just [114] In Africa enough water to last the outfit twenty- four hours. Special rules were inaugu- rated. Horses and dogs were given the preference always, and one of the escaries was detailed to guard the drums. That night the wagon was long in re- turning from Sewell’s. When it finally arrived, the water in one of the drums had a strange taste. “It’s bad,”’ said Loveless. Immediately the affair assumed grave proportions. That particular drum be- came the most important object in camp. A feeling akin to personal animosity sprang up against it. For a time the merits and demerits of the case were seriously discussed, and some of the porters gathered there and stared stu- pidly at the wagon-load of water. “Tl tell you what it is,’ said Ul- yate; “it’s the weeds they’ve used as a stopper.” [115] Lassoing Wild Animals The weeds in question were inspected closely and various judgments passed, and some of the men were reminded of other times in other lands when the water had turned bad on their hands. Means drew a cupful and sipped delib- erately. “Tt might be the weeds,” he finally remarked. “It’s not really bad — only tastes bad.” So in the end we begged the question by setting the drum aside and deciding to use it only if we had to. But there were other matters to be determined that evening. In the Colonel’s opinion the time had come for us to try to find a trail at the eareass of the rhino, and the talk lasted far into the night. When finally evolved, the plan of campaign was simple. It was arranged that the Colonel, with the dogs, should go to the southeast, [116 ] HIAdL UH AHLIM AdOd AHL LOO OL ONIAUL—WOCHHUH WOH ATIOONULS LSVT WHH In Africa where the dead rhino lay, the two cow- boys should ride about two miles to the southwest and wait near the lower end of the big donga, and Kearton, Ulyate, and myself should scale the southern face of the Black Reef, where, with the aid of glasses, we could keep in touch with the Colonel and the boys on the plain below. Thus the men would be stationed at each corner of a vast tri- angle. If the Colonel flushed a_ lion, the animal would probably break for either the rocks or the donga, and so either the cowboys or the camera depart- ment could cut him off. Because the distances were so great, the customary signal of two revolver shots to “gather”’ could not be relied upon; the lighting of a fire would mean the same. The morning star was still bright in the eastern heavens when the expedi- tion rode out of camp in the early hours [117 ] Lassoing Wild Animals of April 8. At the end of half a mile the three parties gradually separated on slightly diverging lines and moved silently to their appointed _ stations. Leaving the horses and the camera por- ters at the base of the reef, the three of us of the center station climbed the rocks in the darkness and waited for the dawn. Slowly the first signs of day appeared over the hills and the morning star com- menced to fade. As the light strength- ened, the wide panorama of the plains and the far-off mountains unfolded and the individual patches of scrub and single trees began to stand out distinctly from the general blur of the darker reaches. For fully half an hour everything was still and the light steadily broadened. Then suddenly Ulyate pointed. In the plain to the southeast we could [118 ] In Africa see a black speck moving about in a strange manner — first one way, then another, then stopping and moving on again. “It’s the Colonel,” said Kearton, who had the glasses. “I think I can see the dogs. He’s up to something.” It was not many minutes before the Colonel’s actions took on a different trend. For a space he rode straight for the reef. There the smaller black specks of the dogs appeared on the plain in front. No doubt remained now of what the Colonel was up to. The dogs were on the trail of some animal —lion or hyena, there was no telling which — but the scent was hot and the hunt was coming strong. At one place the dogs made a big bend to the north toward our camp. So the beast, whatever it was, had come to have a look at us in the night. [119 ] Lassoing Wild Animals For the first time then, as they swung back for the rocks, we faintly heard a hound give tongue. It was the only sound in the stillness. Kearton began tearing up the dry grass that grew in the cracks between the rocks, and piled it in a heap. “Not yet,” said Ulyate; “wait tll we re sure.” On came the hunt, following close to the southern base of the reef. The hounds could be heard giving tongue in turn now. The Colonel rode behind, leaning forward and cheering on the dogs. “He’s made for the rocks all right — come on,” said Ulyate as, rifle in hand, he started down the cliff. Kearton touched a match to the pile of grass, and blew on it in his hurry, and as the small flame sprang into life he threw on some green stuff and in a thin [ 120 | «ASVA SVM LSHUY AHL, In Africa blue column the smoke rose up straight into the air. “That will fetch the boys all right,” he said, and we followed Ulyate down to the plain. Although the delay in bohtide the fire was brief, yet by the time we had reached the base and had mounted the horses, the Colonel, Ulyate, and the dogs had already passed out of sight beyond a farther out-jutting buttress of rock. We rounded the buttress only to find that the chase had vanished. The almost perpendicular wall of rocks was empty. There was a moment’s halt. Then two quick shots rang out, and at once there began a general chorus of baying, yelp- ing dogs, intermingled with the deep, heavy roar of a lion. The sounds came from somewhere in the thick growth on top of the Reef, so we. left the horses and climbed toward [121 ] Lassoing Wild Animals the sound. On the plateau the ground was covered with rugged lava _ blocks, and the scrub and creepers were so dense that when Kearton shouted Ulyate’s name the white hunter answered from not more than ten yards away. “It’s a lioness,” said Ulyate. “The dogs have got her bayed. Look out! She’s just on the other side of that bush. When I got here I found the Colone: seated on his horse, facing the beast and trying to rope her. He didn’t even have a knife on him. Why she didn’t charge him I don’t know. He couldn’t get away over this kind of ground. He told me to call the others and so I fired.” When the cowboys arrived from the distant donga, they came threading their way toward us through the brush, lead- ing their horses. A short consultation was held. “We've got to shift her,” said the Bees In Africa Colonel. “Can’t do anything with her here. Bring the firecrackers. Bring — there she goes!” ' The lioness had decided the issue and had bolted of her own accord. There was a streak of yellow through the bushes, a scrambling of dogs, wild, fright- ened cries from the approaching camera porters, and the hunt was on once more. The beast ran to an open cave at the edge of the plateau and crouched there facing the dogs. 'To maneuver the horses was absolutely out of the question, so the lioness had to be shifted again. For upward of two hours then, by means of the dogs, firecrackers, and lighting the grass, we drove her from one stronghold to another, from crevasse to crevasse, in trying to force her down off the reef. The sun rose and the heat commenced. The dogs were feeling the strain of the constant baying. One by one they would [ 123 ] Lassoing Wild Animals seek a spot of shade and lie panting there for a while and then return to the fray. Sounder, being weak from distemper, was the first to give out, but he had done his share of the work. Porters were sent back to camp to bring water. Because the ground was bad and the beast was on the defensive, photography was difficult, but Kearton managed to catch small bits of action here and there, with Ulyate standing by him. The day advanced and the dogs showed signs of tiring fast, yet the lioness still clung to the stronghold of the rocks. Every means at hand to drive her into the open had been tried time and again without avail. The task began to look hopeless. We had already reached the stage when we saw our resources coming to an end. “Get a pole,” said the Colonel, “and we'll poke a noose over her.” [124] GHIZZOW GNV GQNDNOd - Pat de =o ‘ 7. ¥ ; * ‘ S ; In Africa “Tt won't work,” said Loveless. “We've tried that often enough to show it won’t work.” “Just the same we'll try it again,” replied the Colonel. Loveless had just started to hunt for the pole when, without warning, the beast gave a quick, savage snarl, scat- tered the dogs from in front of her, and, dropping down the face of the reef to the plain below, ran straight for the dis- tant donga. Old John led the chase, with the rest of the dogs trailing along as best they could, and behind them the men and horses, camera porters, saises, and dog- boys went scrambling down the rocks in pursuit. On the bank of the donga the lioness stopped to fight the ropers. She had run far enough and meant business now, and the hunt came up and halted a [125] Lassoing Witd Animals short distance away for a_ breathing spell. The lioness had taken up her position at the end of a short tongue of land pro- jecting into the donga, so that she was partially protected on three sides. The yelping dogs had quickly surrounded her, but she paid little heed to them now. Crouched by the side of a small thorn- bush, she watched every move of the horsemen preparing to advance. Kearton mounted his camera at one side of the scene, selecting his position with care to obtain the best background and general composition. He _ shifted about two or three times before he was satisfied. “Of course there’s no telling which way she’s going to jump,” he explained. “But we might as well get the beginning of it right.” Means went first. Slowly he maneu- [ 126 | In Africa vered toward her for a chance to throw his rope, and the lioness, alert, opened her jaws and snarled at the horseman circling near. Closer and closer Means approached. Then all at once she charged. Means wheeled and spurred his horse to escape. For the first thirty yards of the race the lioness gained rapidly. Then the bay began to gather headway and _ slowly forged ahead. With a quick change of front the lion- ess turned and charged the Colonel, who was sitting on his horse near by. Again the lioness gained at first and again the horse drew away from her, and so, giv- ing up the charge, she returned to an- other thorn-bush, where she crouched down low and snarled and growled as before. And all the while Kearton, on foot with his tripod, was busy taking pictures of the show. [ 127] Lassoing Wild Animals This second position of hers gave the horsemen a better chance. There was now more room in which to get near her by a quick dash past the bush. While Means edged around on the northern side, the Colonel moved to the south, and by tossing his rope about and shout- ing he managed to attract and hold her attention. In fact, he nearly succeeded too well, for once she rose to the first spring of the charge and the Colonel half wheeled his horse for flight, but the beast sank back again and glared at him. Then from behind her Means darted forward on the run, swinging his rope free round and round his head. Kear- ton began shouting. “Wait — the camera’s jammed! Wait a bit — she’s jammed here!” But there was no stopping then, and before the lioness knew what he was up [ 128 | In Africa to, Means dashed by within a few feet of her and roped her round the neck. But a lioness’s neck is short and thick, and with a quick, catlike twist she slipped the noose over her ears. “Why can’t they wait?” complained Kearton. “Somebody tell them to wait till I fix this. It’s jammed. It must have got knocked on a rock somewhere. It never acted this way before.” And all the while he talked his fingers were busy ripping out the jammed piece of film and loading up afresh. When Kearton declared himself ready, Loveless, this time, had already taken up his position to the north. Again the Colonel waved his rope and shouted, and when the right moment came Loveless dashed past her and likewise roped her round the neck. Again the beast slipped the noose. Here a rather strange thing happened. [ 129 ] Lassoing Wild Animals We had been told on many occasions that in shooting lions the beast will give its attention to the man who has the rifle, as if the instinct of the animal told it which man to fear. Up to this mo- ment the lioness had held off the horse- men easily, but no sooner had she freed herself from Loveless’s rope than she fled into the donga and hid herself in a thicket of scrub and grass. For a time then it seemed that nothing would move her from out this scrub. The dogs were finished. Men and horses were becom- ing played out. Firecrackers and burn- ing grass were used without result. Eventually the Colonel fastened a forked stick to his rope and dragged it across her hiding-place to uncover her. This maneuver partly succeeded — succeeded enough, at least, for Loveless to throw his rope at her. And at the sight of the rope coming toward her through the air [ 130 ] YUAACTHOL GNNOUSD ONILNOH WHH ONIAVA'T Ry | Pi ey il a8 J On ‘Ay bade ee ee ® ee o 7 t. A ide au @4) A tes Pea y/ =1%y i ed mate a) ; He ie mda + rd p ‘ » isi a) J ty oly i ' re My " he ¥) iM : " ; oa? a eis vt * hy m4 = So LOOAL? .oa she hurled herself at him like a flash, so that it was only the side jump of his horse that saved him; then she turned and broke away along the donga. At once Means was after her, galloping hard, for without the dogs there was danger of our losing sight of her. But the lioness did not run far. Her next and last position was in the bed of a small gully about three feet deep in the bottom of the donga and thickly grown with grasses. Here the ropers held a brief consultation and planned a final attempt. Loveless made a throw and the noose landed fairly above the beast’s head, but the thick grasses held it up. Loveless passed the other end of his rope over the branch of a near-by tree and down to the horn of his saddle. The rest of us, with the cameras trained on the scene, had no knowledge [131 ] Lassoing Wild Animals of the plan. We had not the slightest idea what the Colonel intended to do. Still wondering, we watched him pro- cure a long pole and ride quietly along the edge of the ditch toward the place where the lioness crouched. For a moment there was intense si- lence. The Colonel stopped his horse. Then, leaning over from his saddle, he poked the noose down through the grass. With a roar the beast sprang at him — sprang through the loop — and at the other end of the rope Loveless yanked quickly and caught her by the last hind leg going through. Putting spurs to his horse, Loveless galloped away, hauling the lioness back across the gully and up into the tree, where she swung to and fro, dangling by the one hind foot and snapping upward at the rope she could not reach. [ 132 ] In Africa “Got her!”’ yelled the Colonel. ‘‘ Now the rains can come when they like.” The beast was furious. She was still swinging head down like a pendulum, from the limb of the tree, and was toss- ing her body about in frantic endeavor to get loose. Means approached close and deftly slipped a noose over one of the wildly gyrating fore legs. Leading his rope over the branch of another tree, he stretched her out in a helpless position parallel with the ground. “Now lower away on both lines,” said the Colonel. He dismounted and stood beneath her, directing affairs as methodically as the foreman of a construction gang. “Steady, Means — a little more, Love- less — now together — easy.” She came within his reach and with a quick grab he caught and held her two hind legs with both hands while Kear- [| £33, Lassoing Wild Animals ton bound them together with a piece of light line. The rest was easy. In less than five minutes she was bound securely and low- ered all the way to the ground to rest in the shade. It was nearly noon, and time to call a halt to let the heat of the day pass over before attempting to bring her back to camp. Porters were sent to fetch food and more water, horses were off-saddled and turned loose to graze, and one by one the dogs came straggling in. The men stretched themselves out on the ground where a bush or a tree afforded some protection from the sun. But the Colonel kept wandering over to the prize, to examine a knot, to arrange a better shade, or to pour the last drops of water from his canteen into her open mouth. Once he stood over her for a [134] «dIUL AHL JO UINHANDOS V,, SV (MHOA MAN “MUVd XNOUM) AWOH LV SSHNOIT AHL SARS oN oamnene rimtioaee ae ee My In Africa while, watching her vain attempts to cut the ropes with her teeth. “Yes, you're a beauty,” he finally said. “You're certainly a beauty. I guess we'll just have to take you home with us as a souvenir of the trip.” [ 135 ] eer e ay oy) OLE u Cony fet > wet Mite : oy vi ae ‘al tA y (2 Leet f pas a Al ‘ ie ‘ a ig a ay’, 7S y i yt He by, 7 . ee ea | : ee ele es. i : mi) Reed Bie: a! auiy alee! tA Nas se ah ue) Aevorsan ye sp | wie ‘uae m i a! : ; hk oy p ; Hea . re” 4, 7 4: vd : ‘A! 7 + = = NY , " A ve T : ° d A. ak . 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