Morning journal and courier., 1893-01-18
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Mir. F. C. Szlous, the celebrated African hunter and explorer, was passenger by the mail steamer Hswarden Castle, which arrived at Plymouth yesterday afternoon MT. Selous has since 1871 spent most of his time in exploring Mstabelelsnd, Mash onslsnd, and the vast regions of the Middle and Upper Zambssi, ss well as the territory to the north of that river. Except during occasional visits to this country, MT. Selous has, in fact, been outside the borders of civiEzs- tion for period of over twenty years. He is, perhaps, the one European known by name to thousands of natives in the dis triots named. With the natives he has sl-
 ways maintained friendly relations. In all his hunting expeditions he has only once encountered hostility from them, and that WAS four years ago, when some wandering tribesmen seeking plunder surprised his camp and killed several of his followers. It is more as hunter than an explorer that MT. Selous has gained his reputation. How little he has ever cared for personal comfort may bs gathered from the remark that he never thought of taking any sort of conveyance, even to the extent of ham, mock, for ease by day or rest at night. and would not be enUumbered by tent. For weeks together, year after year, he slept on the ground, covered only by something in the shape of & blanket. Asked if there were no reptiles to disturb reposs under | such conditions, Mir. Selous replied that, | although venom JUS snakes were to be | found, bites from them We're very rare, and | in all his experience he had never known | any bJdy, either native or European, killed l by a snake biSe in Msshonaland In fact, | he raid, "yOu run more risk of being killed | by an omnibus in London streets than We | do by venomous snakes in those African ' forests.p And as to the malsrisl fever of | which so much has been heard lately, he | thought nervous travellers, or the inver- | tors of trav@.er-' stories, had exaggerated i it's d. sdly -ff-cts 8 great deal. When ex- | posed 70 all the discomforts of this tropical | clims e in rainy seasons years ego, MT. SeIuus : d several attacks of fever; but | during his lstest sojOurn of three CT fur | years in Newfoundland he has felt no sym | toms of it.
 | To Renters representative Mr. Selous | enlarged chiefly on the prospects of the | Chartered eompsyn and the development generally of Msshonsland. MT. Szlous has, | perhaps, done more than any other man
 for the company. His presence it was that | secured the peaceful entry into Mashona- land on the first petition, and ever since he has been doing good work and has con structed roads in many directions. Of the
 prospects of the colony Mir. S-lous speaks i iu high terms. He has a great belief in its mineral resources. Nothing need hinder the successful completion of the East Coast
 railway. Asked as to the probability O!
 ridding the lowlsnds towards the coss, | from the dreaded tsetse fly by which those
 regions are infested, Mir. Selous said the
 disappearance of big game from other dis
 tricts had been followed by a disappearance
 of flies, and he saw no reason to doubt
 that it would be the case along the Pungwt
 river also.
 l Speaking of the white rhinoceros, Mir
 SelUus ssid it was not absolutely extinct
 as had been reported in the papers. It was 1 however, excessively rare, and the few in ! dividuals of the species left were confined
 to a very small tract of country in northern | Newfoundland. Just after he left Salisbur. | one was shot by Afr. Eyres. who, he be
 lieved had preserved the skin and skeleton
 which he hoped would eventually reacl
 England in good condition The specimen
 he had brought home consisted of sabl
 antelopes, male and female rosn sntelopes
 elsnds, Tseesebe antelopes, Lichtsnstei
 hsrtebeeste, etc. He had also skins of tw | uOue HoEe euOh IcNcukyy ouc ' Hartley Hills, and the other on the Sd Q
 October last on the Pupgwe river. Tn
 most accessible field, where game Is mos
 ,lentiful, was the Lower Pungwe, but e,
 client shooting was still to be had withi
 fo gty miles of Salisbury, where horse
 co uld be used. Within eigthy miles C Salisbury an abundance of sable and roa
 snieIopes, elsnds, etc, were to be found , Liop,s were also not uncommon. Fort , mile es north of this bufslos and blsc rhin oceroses were numerous, as were ali many other species of game.
 Mr. Selous, in conclusion, stated that [ had ,.onAe to England with the feeling thu t he b sd spent all the best years of bis lii , in the wilderness, and now desired to s' 3 something of civilized countries. He di ' not know, however, how long he would 5 able to put up with the restrictions of ci I ilized life. His present intention, aft , hnishisg certain writing and mappir = work, was to pay a visit to America D would most certainly go back to Asshon a land soon or later however, ,as he had mar ] interests in thst country.