Arizona republican., 1892-06-23
Professor Garner and tho Apes.


 ners preparations for his visit to the Congo country is itself an epitome of the achievements of modern science. He goes 800 miles up the Congo river, to the region inhabited by the gorillas, in order that in their native wilds he may study the speech of the apes which most resemble man in physical confor- nation.
 To protect himself from wild animals and hostile natives, Professor Garner has made an iron cage into which he can lock himself securely, The cage can be taken down and set up like tent. It can be locked fast to trees, so that any attempt to dislodge it would be vain. The cage will contain the professors camping outfit and supplies. It will contain, besides telephone, phono- graph, photographic apparatus and an electrical battery. The battery arrange ment is the most ingenious of all. Be- sides working phonographs and tel ephone, it will be a protection more safe than half a regiment of soldiers. Pro lessor Garner charges the wires of his cage with current of 800 volts. If ser pents crawl upon the wires, if some of the gorillas whose friendship Mir. Garner seeks desire to eat him because they love him so; if, again, any of the natives have hostile designs on him in the cage or seek to meddle with its contents while he is absent, the first touch upon it's electric wires will make them feel like the civilized citizen when an electric light wire drops upon him in the street. Professor Garner will always carry buckled under his arm canteen filled with strong ammonia water. A touch of metal ring upon his finger to the nozzle of the canteen will on the instant send terrible spray of ammonia into the eyes of any wild beast that attacks him. He has also chloroform to quietly stifie the life out of specimens" which he wishes to secure without disfiguring them. If he wishes to shoot animals at Q distance he will use for the purpose a powerful spring gun. The instrument | of death will not be a bullet, for the noise of exploding powder would fright | en away the animals he most wished to get. But the spring gun will noiseless- | ly drive into the creatures brain hol- | low steel arrow, containing fifteen drops | of prussic acid. Death will be painless and almost instantaneous.
 Thus equipped, MT. Garner will have his cage conveyed into the forest and | there study his favorite science of | monkey and ape talk. While he him self is properly insulated by rubber | blankets inside of his cage, its electrical wire meshes will repel outside attacks | at close hand. In the heart of the Afri- 1 can jungle he will seek to pluck the heart out of the mystery of monkey i talk. He will listen us no man ever had ] opportunity to listen before to the sounds made by anthropoid apes in the free | wild state, unterrifed and undisturbed. ! He believes these man monkeys have a real language and that ho can phono- | graph and translate it. For years the idea has been present with him, and | after reading his letter in The North American Review, one is more than half inclined to admit that it seems reason able one. He says; ''l am not fanatic on whom the thought has suddenly dawned, for l have consistently sought for years for that one great secret-the first form of speech"
 For many years the professor has studied the sounds made by the smaller monkeys in captivity. He believes he has madeprogress toward understanding them. At any rate, he will bring back from his African journey valuable con tributions to the knowledge of the Con- go country.