The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1900-11-27
CHICAGO MANS TRAMPS IN
AFRICA.
Gets Along Famousiy win the Natives
and Is Never sick.
(From the New York SUM-

The Chicago friends OF William Stamps
Cherry have received word Of his arrival
in Paris, from the Congo Free state.
tropical Africa, ana he has lived there
now seven years, though he Is only 81
years OF age. He has had more adven-
lures than often fall TO the lot Of Young
men. He seems to be born for the sort OF
work he has been doing In Africa, and
his story Is Interesting ana almost
unique. Early In the last decade Cherry
decided to go to Africa for while and
see the country and its people for HIM
self He took passage for the Congo
without great deal OF money and not
SO much as letter OF Introduction to
anybody in Africa. He had good health,
he wanted adventure, and was willing to
rough Ii, and SO hs simply took his
chances. AS LUCK would have 1t, he
speedily obtained employment in the ser
vice of the big Dutch trading company
on the upper Congo. and for Yearly three
years ne was engaged in travelling up and
down the tributaries of the river buying
ivory and rubber for his company. He
spent n great deal of his time on the
Sanga river, which joins the Congo from
the north and Is one of its largest afflu-
snts.
A remarkable thing about Cherry was
that all the time he was In Africa he had
scarcely a single days illness. In fact,
he enjoyed excellent health. He took no
medicine at all tn ough he lived In a re-
gion where white men dose themselves
with quinine and arsenic to kill fever
germs; and what Is more. he lived chiefly
on native food, and liked 1t. Manioe,
bananas, maize, chickens ana goats were
his staple articles of food. 1t is a great
adva ptsge to be able to dispense as
Cherry has done, with nearly all civilized
comforts and ways of living. If he could
not have done this he Jwoula not have
been able to live in Africa for seven
years, where he saw little but the wholly
unreclaimed wilderness and it barbarous
Inhabitants,
In the last week In May, 1895. Cherry
started from New York for his second So
journ In Africa, from which he has just
returned as far as Paris on his way home.
The night before he sailed he spent an
hour with o member of the SUMS staff,
and unfoided very interesting scheme.
81 know how TO deal with the natives"
he said, land l believe l could go
through Africa almost alone and in
safety. / am going back to the upper
Sanga river anu my main purpose Is to
live there until / have thoroughly solved
the question OF the domestioation OF the
African elephant Ii this animal, which
is still very numerous In the Congo basin,
can be trained for transport and draft
purposes, like the Indian elephant, ft viii
be a great boonsto white enterprises in
Africa. There are men of much African
experiences who believe this can be done.
/ am of this opinion also. But the ex-
pertinent has nev5r BEEN tried by white
men In way that promised success. l
propose TO employ the methods OF the
Sanga river natives in catching elephants
l shall attempt to tame and train them
and shall keep up my experiments I'M
til have succeeded or convinced myself
that success Is impossible.
81 am not taking very much capital
with me, and do not need a great deal.
l shall have boat fitted tor sails and
oars, and when travel l shall have 10 or
IL men In my party. l shall live wholly
on native food and my expenses will be
very small. My equipment in the way of
trade goods Will be somewhat unique.
1t consists chiefly OF spring traps, some
OF them large and powerful l know
they win be very highly priced by the
natives In their pursuit OF game. can
dispose OF them to the best ad vantage.
"a friend Is going out with ms. L
have told him as fully as possible all the
hard conditions he will meet, and shall
take a small supply of food for his uss
until he has accustomed himself to the
native diet; then he Will have to rough
IL, as l shall do. ] do not expect TO
come back until l have solved the ques-
ton, to my own satisfaction at least,
whether or not theselephant can tie made
useful to white men for anything except
his ivory
It is to be hoped that Cherry has had
an excellent opportunity TO solve this
question What bis success has been
may not be known until ha returns
home. IL is already known that he spent
q long time on the Sanga river, Desides
making trip to Fashoda, on the Nile,
as the leader of one OF the French expe-
ditions that followed Marohand down the
Nile. He returned later to the Congo
state, and is said to have added largely
90 the collection OF curios which he maize
onlhis fret trip, and to have tikea gre t
many photographs OF this natives. Inis
was also O part of the plan which he de-
ecribed to the SUMS man.
81 wfsh,'; he said s.to make an eth
biological study Of the natives and bring