The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1875-07-08
AN AFRICAN NIMROD.
CAPTURING WILD BEASTS
ALIVE.
MANNER OF SUPPLYING MENACE


/ RIES.
ADVENTURES OF GEORGE sCHMUTzER-IN
THE DEsERT-CAPTURE AND TRANSITIONAL
TON OF ANIMALs-METHoD OF DEALING
WITH OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES OF THE PEo-
PIE WITH WHOM HE DEALS.
There was gentleman in this city few
DAYS ago, says the Cincinnati Enquirer,
whose Iife-yarn is more romantic than that
of Sinbad the sailor. But, unlike the great
hero of the nursery, the history of his life
and his experience in desert lands is not
NEUROLOGICAL. We have reference to George
SchmutZer, the celebrated animal hunter
and trader of Genital Africa, to whom we
alluded last Monday. This remarkable
man has been IN the perilous business for
seventeen years; much of which time has been
passed by him in the wilderness regions OF the
Upper Nile and its tributaries. During The
year Just passed Mr.. SchmutZer has been
employed by the great Snowman, Uncle
John Robinson. We had the pleasure, last
Sunday evening, of meeting the gentleman
and listening for several hours to the won
derful and inexhaustible narratives of his
experience, during almost score OF years,
in the strange country of Bedouin and the
! home of wild and ferocious animals. AS
we listened to the stories told by this great
traveller, we ceased to wonder at the spell
which came upon the princess OF Arabian
/
after night to the wonderful sto-
ries of her prisoner. Mr.. Schmutzer is
| a German Hungarian, about 40 years
| old. His English is Ineligible to the at
/ tentive listener, but not very smooth, owing
to the fact that much of his life was spent
among an uncivilized people. One can
readily perceive by the gentleman's CONVEX
sation that he is intelligent aud we'll educa-
| ted beyond what would be expected of
man in his business. His build is heavy
and his manner rather nervous fact not
| to be wondered at when we think of the life
of almost constant danger which he lives.
1t was impossible for Mr.. Schmutzer to re-
main standing for more than few minutes
while talking with us. Every now and
then he would Jump from his chair and
stride hastily up and down the room as If
| anxious to get back to the jungles of Africa
once more. He has evidently inspired
much of
THE ROAMING NATURE
of the wild animals he has so long hunted.
His face is chubby, jolly and full of express
sion, although as brown as cake of choca-
late from enduring exposure to the rays ola
tropical sun. In 1859 he made his first trip
to Africa with the great traveller Cassinobe.
Since then the larger part of his time has
| been spent there and on his way hither and
| thither. Hagenbek, of Hamburg, the noted
geological trader, who supplies all the 20
illogical gardens and meuageries of the Old
and New World, has had Mr.. Schmutzer in
his employ until Uncle John Robinson,
by a more nunificent offer, secured
was agent for Hagenbek he
made five trips to Africa, and returned to
Hamburg with large numbers of wild AMI
mails and birds. Mr.. Schmutzer started from
New York on the 14th Of last October and
went directly to Southampton, England,
hNrr -
Suez via the Suez canal. AT the latter place
he shipped in an Egyptian government ves-
sci bound down the Gulf of SueZ and the
Red Sea. His landing place was Soukin, on
the coast of Nubia, not far from the north
ern boundary of Abyssinia. Suakin is the
on each trip. At this point he
leaves civilization behind bin, and
turns his face toward the jungles of
ksssela and Hamoran. Yet so much
of this animal traders life has been spent
throughout this region that it can hardly be
said that be is a stranger in a strange land.
Indeed, he says be is more at home with the
untutored sons of Africa than with civilized
Cincinnatians. At Suakin he hires six or
seven csmels and as many servants, and
having laid in supply of provisions
sufficient to last a month or more, begins his
journey across the country in southwest
ern direction. 1--WE now use the present
tense, because a description of one of his
trips is the same as that of all the rest.) The
first objective point is the settlement OF
Kassela, on the river GAIA, $50 miles from
| the coast. This journey is by no means a
sinecure, inasmuch as the major part OF it
lies through the
HEART OF THE NUBIAN DESERT.
The servants and csmels necessary for this
trip are hired from Schek Egel who is the
great chief OF Nubia. At Kassela the SER
|
set belonging to the Schek Mosel, the ruling
magnate of the country lying beyond Kass-
ella. 1t would not be permitted the servants
or camels of one of these chiefs to pass
through the territory of the other. The next
sage of the journey is to Hamoran, nearly
200 miles further toward the southwest.
| Here is the first place where the first halt is
made to hunt animals. The little village OF
Doka is the headquarters of Mr.. Schmutzer
while in this country. This is the
land of the giraffe, large herds
| of which roana through the
neighboring county. Another journey to-
ward the setting sun brings him to the
Chebel Gsllas Mountains, the home OF the
finest specimen of antelopes in the world.
They are called the horse antelope, and are
very hard to keep alive after they are once
captured. During the last trip his servants
trapped twenty-five ofthe beautiful animals,
all but one of which died before they were
gotten out of the country. Mr.. Schmutzer
has thirty-five natives constantly in his en-
ploy in different sections of this country.
So that even while he was absent on one OF
his periodical trips with a cargo OF beasts to
America and Europe, his men are busily en-
gagged hunting for new supply: After an
animal is captured it is confined for year
or more to tame before an attempt is made
to remove it by journey to the coast.
The natives who are in his employ captur-
| ing the animals each receive 50 month,
which is considered "big money" over there.
Besides this they received fixed premium
| on every animal they capture and bring
into camp. For giraffe they receive 800,
| for an elephant $50, and for rninoceros ?oO.
| Mr. Scbmutzer when he left last spring,
promised his men $40 each for every rhinoc-
eros they caught in his absence, which they
| would be compelled to keep over three