The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1894-05-24
HUNTING THE LION.

was at Cairo, Egypt, when re
ceived letter from the great Ham
burg dealer in wild animals which
/ sent me off down the Red Sea at &
/ days notice. 1t was to drop the hunt
! for certain curiOsities | was after IL
that direction and run down the Afri-
can coast and fill an order for lions
1t seems rather queer that the man
aoer Of a geological garden or the
proprietor of museum should sit
down and write: Dear Sir:-Please
ship me three full grown lions, males
OIL females, at your earliest conven-
lence. African lions preferred | en-
close you draft on -o Of London
for elOO. Draw sight draft for the
balance when you ship" And it seems
still more queer that the recipient of
the above should write to one of his
agents thousands of miles away: Il
have orders now for twelve African
hons. Please fill as soon as possible
As soon as | could get my traps to
.gether | took the steamer for Berbera.
on the south coast of the gulf, and up
on my arrival there at once set about
organizing an expedition into the
lion country to the south. That thumb
Of the African coast running out to
the gulf and ending at cape Guarda-
fui IS called SumalI Land and is down
on the maps as an uneXplored region.
Its area Is as large as the state of New
York. ana the surface consists of
mountains, valleys, sandy plains.
scrub forests. and extensive thickets.
1t Is watered by three or four large
rivers and scores of creeks. and is still
the paradise of the hunter who seeks
noble game. My outfit consisted OF
sixteen natives who were classed as
hunters, and eight others who were to
do any camp work required Of them
| had two saddle horses, and our
camp equipage was packed upon the
backs of oxen and COWS. All the
work along the coast uD to Suakin Is
done by these animals, the COWS being
to drag the plough or carry
burdens the same as the OK, and they
are used under the saddle in place Of
horses. The hunters engaged with
me at seven cents day and the others
for four. The animals were hired
from their owners at the rate OF seven
cents per day, with contract to pay
So for any OK and 81 for any COW
which was not returned. The horses
| purchased at $50 per head. [ rented
twenty muskets at 81 apiece for the
trip, and purchased the ammunition
In case any native was kill
ed while in the line of duty | was to
pay his relatives any wages due him
and bonus Of IS. We took with us
flour, meat, tea, coffee, medicines,
cooking utensils, spare clothing. am
cloth, beads, wire, looking
glasses, and lot of other stuff, enough
to make up pack for each man and
beast, and one morning headed away
to the south, along the right bank of /
the Gapoli river We had to go ten
miles to leave every trace of civiliza-
tion behind us, and on the forenoon
Of the second day we saw a lion run
across our path. At the end Of the
third day, being then forty miles from
the coast, we found signs so plenty
that we made permanent camp. 1t
was III grove on the bank Of the
stream, and to the west of us was a /
sandy plain, with here and there a
grove of scrub, and to the east a sandy, /
broken country, with rocky ledges /
out at intervals. /
1t would have been a waste of |
words TO ask If we had reached the
lion country Hyenas We're to be seen
on every hand, sure sign that the /.
king Of beasts was not far off, and I
while we We're eating supper lions
were heard roaring IN three different I.
There wasn't an hour from !
lark to daylight in which their voices /
were not sounding IN our ears, and /
vice they made such a determined .
atfort to get hold Of our cattle that we
lad to turn out and fire yolley to I
scare them away. The first thing to .
couple of cages. These are made Of .
If stout canes, growing along the I
banks of the river. and after the man /
ler of a crockery crate We also had .
our goods TO unpack, and 1t was two .
lays before we got around to the
business in hand. Then | rode along
he river for two miles and found a
.ording place. 1t was in the dry sea
son. ana at a particular spot there
we're several large rocks in the bed of .
he stream which We're bare, and man .
II animal could pass over dry shod. /
To the east was plain and scrub, with !
he skeleton of many water bucks,
.oan antelopes, and heartebeets, lying
lbout to prove that the lions had good .
picking. | also saw two or three skele +
ons with bones so large that / knew .
hey must have been butfaloes or wild /
,attle.