The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1891-10-07
LIKE A HUMAN BEING.

LIKE a HUMAN BEING.
Poor Jack Semester had been dead
a dav. From going in to look at him.
with his hands folded upon his breast,
after the plaintive manner of the dead,
we sat down in the one other room of
the cabin and began to talk of similar
scenes and similar experiences. For
my own part felt bad, for l had set
the blast which knocked poor Jack out,
and, though / was not to blame any
more than babe, | wished that some
other hand than mine had been the in
nocent instrument of his undoing.
There were Whistling Bill, Harry
Handsome. Maj. Tokay, and myself.
Each man told his pathetic story of
some sad happening in the mines.
Gentlemen said the major, ''the
dead man in there was my friend. We
all saw him pass over the river and we
all took his last message to his old
mother back in the states. The man of
us who gets there first delivers it.
But, talking of sad deaths, / hope I do
not profane Jacks dumb clay when l
assert that the saddest death l ever
witnessed was that of baboon."
IA baboonr' exclaimed everybody
together.
S'Yes," answered the major, IAN
African baboon.''
Maj. Tokay was the Oldest man
among US. He was an Englishman of
the right sort. He had been an officer
in the British army. When our war
broke out in 1861 he came across the
water, joined a New York regiment,
and fought his way up from the ranks
to the grade and title by which we
knew him. He had been all over the
sEei:la elltl several times aud was gen
erous aud tenderhearted man. He was
as brave as any Englishman-and all
English blood is brave.
Sam Simpson and went to Zanzi-
bar in '69. We crossed over to Bogo-
moyo and struck out for the interior,
with the intention of shooting big
game. promised Sans sister. Tillie
Simpson, that we would bring her
home lions hide for rug for her
room. So we were after no less spoil
than the king of beasts. Poor Sam
was drowned in crossing one of those
turbulent streams of which the dark
continent is full. This happened
hundred weary miles from anywhere,
in the interior. among the niggers. |
buried Sam under a spreading palm,
rolled the largest stone / could find
onto his grave. and, fashioning kind
of chisel out of heavy knife carried.
l carved a rude inscription upon it.
Sometimes God listens to sinner, so
did the best / could toward sending
up prayer for poor Sans soul.
Looking up l saw a native woman.
She had baby baboon in her hands.
Will you believe itp There was some-
thing in the eye of that baboon that
touched my heart. Now don't think
I'm fool. He looked like Sam. The
woman held him out tonne. as if to
say that / could have him if / wanted
him. I stretched out my hands and
the little baby baboon sprang into
them as if he wished to belong to me.
The first thing he did was to put his
hairy arms around my neck and lay
his fuzzy head against my cheek.
Gentlemen, / have been affected in
my time. but never before nor since as
| was then. The more / wept the
tighter the creature clung.
Il got out of that country as soon
The lion whose hide was to take back
to Tillie Simpson is still wearing it
and rubbing off the hair among the
underground in the jungIes-for gave
up lion-hunting and arrived at Bogo-
moyo after many days of wearing
marching. Gentlemen, many of you
have seen lonely times on these noun
tain-sides, and you can imagine how
began to love that baboon, the only
living thing around me except the
snakes and wild beasts. When we
slept he curied up against my breast,
and in the morning he awakened me
by his antics-a way of jumping up
and down he had-and by tapping my
cheeks with his little hands, as like a
child'S as any you ever saw. When l
got back to Zanzibar with my baboon,
but not Sam. man l knew said to
me:
What have you done with your
mateP'
''The baboon was afraid of this man.
He wound his little arms around my
neck tight and laid his hairy head
against my cheek. For all 1 could dc
l couldn't keep the tears back, so
said:
This is all the mate 1 have,
shall call him Sam. after my dead
friend, who is lying under spreading
palm 100 miles inland among the mig
gers
'.The man laughed, as if l were de-
grading poor Sam by naming baboon
after him. But had no such thought
/ loved Sam, and the way this creature
had come to me at his very grave, as il
his spirit was in its body and was try
ing to speak. made me think / was
right. / think so yet, after lapse Of
more than twenty years.
LAS / neared, England Sam, the ba
boon, clung to me closer still. A good
many people on shipboard would have
liked to pet him, but he wouldn't have
it. He would come to nobody but me
and as the northern breezes began to
strike him he clung closer than ever,
and shivered with the cold. l showed
him to Tillie Simpson in her English
home and told her all. But she didn't
like the idea of my calling the baboon
by her brothers. name. That made nc
difference to me, for his memory was
as closely connected with my little
companion as his own whitey-brown
fuzz.
'One day." the majors voice dropped
little, 81 came home to my lodgings
in the London suburbs. and Sam lay in
his little box. He did not jump up into
my arms and lay his head against my