The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1888-11-10
A LITTLE CONGO HERO.
story of n Boy who Rescued His Mothers
Body From n Crocodile.


story of n Boy who Rescued His Mothers
Body From n Crocodile.
On the Congo, near the equator, live
the Ba-Ngala, with whom the explorer,
Stanley. had his hardest battle when
he floated down the great river. They
are the most powerful and intelligent
of the Upper Congo natives, and since
Captain Coquilhat, four years ago, es-
tablished station in their country
they have become good friends of the
whites. A while ago, an exciting event
occurred in one of their many villages,
| and Essalaka, the chief, went to Cap
tain Coquilhat to tell him about it.
"You know the big island near my
town." he said. "Well, yesterday, soon
after the sun came up, one of my women
and our little boy started for the island
in canoe. The boy is some dozens of
moons old. [Captain Coquilhat says
about twelve years old.1 He says that
while his mother was padding she saw
something in the water, and leaned
over to look at it. Then he saw
crocodile seize his mother and drag her
out of the canoe. Then the crocodile
and the woman sank out of sight.
"'The paddle was lying in the canoe
The boy picked it up to paddle back to
the village. Then he thought %, if
| could only scare the crocodile and
get my mother bacls!' He could tell by
the moving water where the crocodile
was. He was swimming just under the
l tD, ,al t1,a
boy followed the crocodile just as fast
as he could paddle. Very soon the
crocodile reached the island and went
out on land. He laid the woman's body
on the ground. Then he went back
into the river and swan away. You
know why he did this. He wanted his
mate, and he started out to find her.
"Then the little boy padded fast to
where his mother was lying. He
jumped out of the boat and ran to her.
There was big wound in her breast.
Her eyes were shut. He felt sure she
was dead. He is strong, but he could
not lift her. He dragged her body to
the canoe. He knew the crocodile
might come back at any moment and
kill him, too. He used all his strength.
Little by little he got his mothers body
into the canoe. Then he pushed away
from the shore and started home.
1--WE had not seen the boy and his
mother at nil. Suddenly we heard
shouting on the river, and we saw the
boy padding as hard as he could.
Every two or three strokes he would
look behind him. Then we saw
crocodile swimming fast towards the
canoe. If he reached it you know
what he would do. He would upset it
with Il blow, and both the boy and his
mother would be lost. Eight or nine
of us jumped into canoes and started
for the boy. The crocodile had nearly
overtaken the canoe, but we reached
it in time. We scared the crocodile
away, and brought the canoe to the
shore. The boy stepped out on the
ground and fell down, he was so
frightened and tired. We carried him
into one of my huts, and took his
mothers body in there, too. We
thought she was dead.
"But after little while she opened
her eyes. She could whisper only two
or three words. She asked for the
boy. We laid him beside her on her
arm. She stroked him two or three
times with her hand. But she was
hurt so badly. Then she shut her eyes
and did not open them nor speak again.
o, how the little boy cried! But he
had saved his mothers body from the
crocodile"
AS Essalaka told this story the tears
coursed down his cheeks. II have
seen in this savage tribe" writes Cap
tain Coquilhat, "men and their wives
who really love each other, and verita-
BILE honeymoons among young couples.
The child feels for his father the fear
and respect which his authority in
spires, but he truly loves his mother,
and has tender interest in her even
after he becomes q man.-N y Sun.