The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1880-04-17 00:00:00

THE PERILS OF AFRICAN EXPLOR-

ATION.

Mr. F. Falkner Carter, in charge of the elephants attached
to the Royal Belgian Expedition into Africa, gives the fol-
lowing exciting account of a sudden encounter which he had
with lionkat Kerima, Central Africa, at which place he and
hisaravan of 180 men had arrived. In a letter receii-ed
from him by the last mail, dated from that station, he+men-
tions the difficulties he had experienced in procuring animal
food for his men.

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"Our only food," he says "consists of Indian corn
pounded between two stones, with a good share of
sand, and only salt with it. It is well to have even
this, but still men accustomed all their lives to good
animal food cannot live on such poor fare, and so I go
out every second or third day with my gun and kill a,
zebra, eland, water buck, &c. One of any of these ena-
bles us to live in clover for a single day. A recent expe-
dition of this kind, however, nearly cost me my life.
I felt that I must go in search of food as there
was not at the time a moreel in Our camp, and so forth
I sallied. My first shot was at a giraffe, into Nv.horn I
put two bullets, and then followed hini..over hill and
dale until noon, when heat, thirst, and want of
.food
obliged me to give up the chase. Allyn' smoking a
pipe and taking some rest, I was off again, got a shot
at a zebra but missed him. The zebra, I iliould men-
tion, is the best meat in Africa. Rather disheartened,
and grieving for the poor hollow-eyed fellows I should
meet on my return for whom I had nothing in the
shape of food, I turned tinvards camp, and just at
3.30 p.m. a fine boarrdashed past me. Ivsent a bullet
through him at once, but on he went. I knew how-
ever we should find him dead a few hundred yards
ahead by the quantity of blood in the long grass, so I
followed, but just then sighted three zebras—so dropped
piggie's trail and went off to; try and stalk the zebras.
In about ten minutes after I heard a fearful row. and
my two gun-bearers said it was a rhinoceros. I laid
hold of my No. 10-bore, handing ng " express " to my
bearer, telling him and the man carrying the
smooth bore to keep close to me, I glided silently
through the grass, over six feet high, until close to the
spot; then I knew if it were a rhinoceros that he was
lying down, as I could not see a alsign of him, so I de-
cided it must be two wild boars fighting. Something
told me they could not make such a horrible noise,
which actually seemed to shake the ground and rend
the very aiat around me. Strange to say, it never
struck me that the noise. might have proceeded from
lidns, although the place is full of them, so I advanced.
boldly, dividing the grass with my rifle. I then dis-
covered three lions devouring the pig I had shot, and in
that short time had finished half of it. The two nearest
were within two feet of me, and the furthest 31- feet.
The brutes' beards, chests, and claws were covered
with blood. Though startled at first, I was perfectly
cool, and yet felt perfectly certain that I must be
killed, as even a tame lion is savage when eating
his food. The lion opposite caught sight of me at
once, curled his lips, lashed his sides with his tail, but
what the others were doing I cannot say, as my friend
was in the act of springing, and I dare not take my
eye off him for a second. At last he crouched for
the spring, and I let drive in his face, retreating a
step to give me a chance with the other barrel at one
of the remaining two, determined to sell my life
dearly, but to my great delight these two sprang over
the grass in opposite directions. I gave a sort of sigh
of relief, looked round for my gun bearers, and there
they were, fifty yards off, trembling with fear and blue
with fright. The rascals had run away, and I had
no gun to fall back upon. I returned to pick up my
dead lion, but found he had crept away with a bullet
through him. I followed his trail until the jungle got
too thick, and it being nearly dark, and I a long way
from camp, I gave up the search.