The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1910-02-11
WILDBEASTHUNT
WITH A CAMERA
A. R. Ougmore's Description Of
His Adventures In Africa.
NARROW ESCAPE FROM LIONS

His Party Often Attacked by Infatuated
Buffaloes-Penetrated Wilds Roose-
Welt Expedition Could Not Enter.
Killed Beasts of Jungle Only to Pro-
tect Own Life and to Get Food.
Running portrait gallery for the
benefit Of lions that never heard of
the vegetarian theory, but are strong
on fetcherism. and trying to get
| peevish rhinoceros to hold pose
when he Is charging head-on at top
six cylinder speed may sound simple
that Is. 1t may sound so in phono-
graph-but when person is at the
mechanical end of camera and the
aforementioned models never did be.
lieve in procrastination ii sounds 9TH
erwise. At least A. Radcliffe Dug
more. who returned recently to New
York from 1000 mile trip through
the African wilds. says that it is likely
to make a person nervous.
Mr.. Dugmore has returned with q
collection Of nearly a thousand pho
tographs Of many varieties of Afri-
can animals. He traversed the same
ground that former President ROose-
welt has been over. besides many side
trips where the Roosevelt party could
not go owing to their heavy baggage.
Uses Rifle Only When Necessary.
Mr.. Dugmore is not like the ordinary
hunter. He hunts with camera
alone and uses his rife only when it
is to protect his life or to get food
for the camp. The only trophies he
brought back from Africa were photo
graphs. In speaking of his trip Mr..
Dugmore said:
There was lots Of adventure dur
ing the trip. but there was so much
to do that we didn't have time to
think that we were in danger There
was more fun taking the pictures in
the jungle than there ever could have
been shooting with rifle. There were
only two white men in our party-Mr.
James l.. Clark of the American Mu-
scum of Natural History and myself.
relied on our own knowledge for gen.
eral guiding We went from Nom
hasa to the heart of the jungle by the
Uganda railroad. but before we got
to the real starting point of our trip
we saw plenty of game.
"In the protected districts 1t was
common sight to see scores of hoof
animals. like antelope and deer, with
a couple Of herds Of zebras and gi-
RATES.. running away from the tracks,
and once bull buffalo disputed the
right Of way with the engine. but final
ly decided to move when we got with
in twenty feet Of him. Warthogs and
various other animals stood along the
tracks and paid no attention to the
train save to run after 1t had passed
them. Our first real camera hunting
began in the Yato plains. and from
there to the region along the Tana and
Thika rivers we had all the work we
could do. There were lions a-plenty
and all other kinds Of game.
One Marrow Escape.
Zone Of the narrowest escapes had
was while camping near the Tana riv.
er. One afternoon / was writing a
letter to my publishers when suddenly
l happened to look up and saw two
full grown lions coming toward me.
Ny first thought was to get my cam
era, but they were too near to be COM
Portable, and when l took hold Of my
rife l remembered that my cartridge
belt was In the tent.
II fred two shots, but both went too
high. and then in my dismay l saw
that the gun bearer had changed the
sights to $50 yards. 1t was only the
work Of q minute to lower them, and
1 fred the two remaining shots from
the gun as fast as l could. / got
both the lions, but they nearly got me.
Later found that a lioness had been
waiting for them and was only cou-
pie Of dozen yards away when fred"
Rhinoeeros Very Dangerous.
Mr.. Dugmore said that he had seen
several hundred antelopes, zebras, gil
RATES. and smaller mammals eating to-
gether on the same plain. Several
times the Dugmore party was attack
ed by Infatuated buffaloes for no 9TH
err reason than that the buffaloes had
"gone bad" and were on the warpath.
The only thing to do under these con-
ditions, he said. was to climb a tree
unless you wanted to kill the animal.
II don't know whether the buffalo,
the lion or the rhinoceros is the ugli-
est animal in Africa" said Mr.. Dug.
more. but they are all very nasty
propositions. The lion will attack a
man without provocation If he feels
like 1t, and so will buffalo, but a
rhinoceros always will. He just
charges on general principles.
81 never was in favor of using the
gun as an aid to nature study. but the
sooner the lions and rhinoceroses Of
Africa are thinned out little the bet
ter 1t will be for the travellers. Rhi-
noceroses do not know what fear
is. l got some pictures of them charg-
ing, but when l did had to be ready
to make quick getaway when made
the snap"
After his book, Camera Adventures