The Tipton advertiser. [volume] (Tipton, Cedar Co., Iowa) 1856-1962, 1868-04-30
Wild 06me in Africa.

Wild Game in Africa.
Let the sportsman imagine stalking
herd Of girafIes, possibly more than 4
hundred in number, with extraordinary
power Of vision, scent like that of stays,
aud superior speed, and flesh which Sir.
Baker, who has eaten most things, from
blubber to pates De foie, gras declares II
to be the best hs ever tasted; or har-
pooning the hippopotamus, brute
which, II excited, can crunch his assail-
ant in two, which can run till no man
may escape, which will go up . preci-
pitous ravine, and does not fear . clear
dive from q point twenty feet above the
water. He is worth bagging apparent
ly, even ifhe did not yield, as he does,
hundreds of pounds of highly edible
meat 200 pounds Of fat, coorbatches or
whips to the number of 200 per hide.
and teeth which are eagerly purchased
by dentists, because the ivory will not
discolor. Crocodiles are not nice to eat,
though natives eat them but there is
something in shooting or harpooning a
scaled yellow-green monster, who can
swallow human being at a bite, which
appeals strongly to the imagination.--
OF smaller game there appears to be no
end, the most plentiful Of all being the
gazelle, Of which Sir s Baker relates
one extremely amusing story, to us per.
fectly new The Arabs course them
with dogs, relying upon mental pecu.
liarity, without analogy, we imagine, in
the animal Kingdom. The gazelle runs
away and beats the dogs completely
but becomes SO proudof the feat, so vain.
glorious of its speed, that it stops and
executes kind of war dance bounding
and ganlboling with cxultatlon, until it
exhausts its strength, and it is ut last
run down. There is something almost
human in that absurdity, as strange tu
say, there is in one of the tricks of the
crocodile. Wecould hardly quote bet
ter specimen of Sir s. Bakers style as
naturalist and sportsman than this
charming little description:
"Few creatures are SO sly and wary as
the crocodile. ! watch them continu-
ally as they attack the dense flocks of
small birds that throng tire bushes at the
waters edge. These birds are aware of
the danger, aud they fly from the attack
II possible. The crocodile then quietly
and innocently lies upon the surface, as
though it had appeared quite by acci-
dent, it thus attracts the attention of the
birds, and it slowly sails away to con-
siderable distance, exposed to their view.
The birds thus beguiled by the deceiver,
believe that the danger is removed, and
they again flock to the bush, and once
more dip their thirsty beaks into the
stream. Thus absorbed in shaking their
thirst, they do not observe that their en-
emy is no more on the surface. A sud.
den splash, followed by huge pair of
jaws beneath the bush that engulfs some
dozens Of victims, is the signal unex-
pectedly given Of the crccodile's return
who has thus silly dived, aud hasten ed
under water to his victims. have seen
the crocodiles repeat this mannuvre
constantly they deceive by a feigned
retreat, and then attack from below.
A PATRIOTIC BEQUEsr. -- Twenty
thousand dollars to help pay off the
national debt, the legacy Of Ralph S.
Fritz, benevolent citizen of San Fran
cisco, recently deceased, has been de-
posted in the Sub-Treasury at New
York. The testator, in his last will and
testament, says, that as he was unable,
by reason of age and physical ailment,
to serve his country during the recent
rebellion, he desired to leave behind
him, in that form, an humble testimon-
ial of the gratitude he felt for those
whose virtues and valor preserved what
he regarded as the best government
mankind were ever permitted to enjoy.
A seedy looking fellow once rushed
up to a gentleman on the street and said,
with great solemnity: "For the love of
God! give me half crown, or shall
do deed my soul abhors =" Touched
with his seeming earnestness, the gem
tleman gave the money, and then from
natural curiosity said, "Well, now my
poor man, tell me the deed from the
of which / have Just de-
livered you?" Said the fellow, with
polite bow, "But for this half-crown,
should have had to go to work, your
honor!'
Jas. S. Payne, who has just been in.
augurated fourth President of the Re-
public Of Liberia, was born a slave in
Kentucky, and sent by his mistress to
Africe, in 1910. He has been a Meth
odist presiding elder, and a writer on
political economy. He is now the civil
head OF republic containing two hun
ired thousand inhabitants.
Patrick was in charge of a ferrv-
boat. A lady passenger being frighten-
I'd by the waves, asked him il people
we're ever lost by these boats. He gave
he encouraging reply: mot often