The Vinita daily chieftain. [volume] (Vinita, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1902-1913, 1909-03-18
BEAUTIFUL LAND
FULL OF HORRORS
Uganda, the Goal of Mr. Roosevelt's
Hunting Trip, Teeming With
Subtle Foes.
BY Associated Press.

BY Associated Press
New York, Mar. 1S- The account
given by the Right Hon Winson Spen-
Ger Churchill, British Minister of Col
onies, of his expedition in British east
Africa traces almost step by step the
route to be followed by the Roosevelt
party. During his trip Mr.. Churchilrs
English servant succumbed to mys-
terious and swiftly fatal fever, but, the
who accompanied him suffered no ill
effects from their equatorial journey.
According to Mr.. Churchill's obser-
vations, it would seem that by far the
most interesting portion of the
Roosevelt trip will be through the
Uganda Protectorate, where travel is
by foot bicycle, or caravan, unless
one elects to ride upon a seat borne
on the shoulders of natives. The Ug
anda railroad contrary to the sugges
tion of its name, does not penetrate
Uganda, but only reaches to it, its
inland terminus being at Port Flor
ence, on Lake Victoria Not until the
railroad has been left behind and the
party enters Uganda proper. the gar
den of flowers and butterflies, will the
supremest possibilities Of the explora-
tion be realized. Sinister beasts there
are without number, but the forests
that conceal them are of surprising
grandeur and the foliage of indescrib-
able beauty. The natives are friendly
gentle of manner and Of considerable
intelligence. he air is soft and cool.
Yet the contrast between appearances
and reality is striking, for this en-
chanted land is cursed with maligant
attributes. Every white man seems to
feel sense of undefnable oppression
and Mr.. Churchill says that it will
never be white mans country "A
cut will not heal; a scratch Testers
In the third year of residence even
small wound becomes a running sore
One day a man feels perfectly well; 4;
the next, for no apparent cause, he
IS prostarate with malaria, and with
malaria of a peculiarly persistent
kind, turning often in the third or
fourth attack of blackwater fever A
daily dose of ten grains of quinine
served to ward off malaria in the case
of the Churchill party.
The impression gained from Mr..
Churchills writings is that the travel
Ter has less to fear from the ferocious
beasts that inhabit the alluring beaut-
iful fastness than from the fever trans
mitted by the tsetse-hy, which, when
infested in manner yet undertermln-
ed by scientists, becomes a deadly
assassin. But the zone of the tsetse-
fly. is known; his home is in the trees
and bushes and near the water, and
ne may be avoided. Thus danger
from this source. broadly speaking,
may be said to be proportionate with
the risk which the exporer voluntar-
lily assumes in the pursuit of his ex-
plorations, allowance being made al
ways for bad judgment and the un-
expected fortunes of the hunt Then
there are leg-boots, gloves that reach
to the elbow and wells to completely
protect the head and neck. Mosquito
netting incloses the camper at night,
and in the morning he habitually en-
p+ies his boots of any undesirable ten
ant that may have wiggled in under
cover of darkness. In the case OF the
Roosevelt party Major Edgar A. Means
will be always at hand with his anti
septics.
But. however handicapped the tse-
tse-fy may be in the future pursuit
of his nefarious calling, his assassina-
tions of the past are worthy of record
According to mr Churchill. this dead
" insect first appeared in the King
dom of Uganda in the summer of 1901.
and within five years had killed two
out of three Of all the inhabitants
no less than 100000 persons dying
from the poison which he spread. 1t
might have been expected" wrote