The Morris County chronicle. [volume] (Morristown, N.J.) 1877-1915, 1910-02-01
CAPTURING WILD BEASTS.


CAPTURING WILD BEASTS.
In st. Nicholas, A. w. Rolker
writes interestingly of the capture of
wild animals in Africa for the menag-
ierie. The easiest victims of the wild
lanimal trapper are specimens of the
most ferocious type-the lion, tiger,
panther, jaguar and the leopard, for
it is simply a matter of stealing the
cubs. The hunter goes to the heart
of the darkest, most impenetrable
thicket, where the lion mother lies
with her four to six cubs, golden puff
balls, scrambling over her great yell
low body, which none on earth, save
those defenseless kittens, may come
near. Says the trapper, mature her.
self renders these babies defenseless
lof hunger, ventures forth to hunt and
ITO eat. Accompanied by two Kaffirs,
the hunter steals upon the unprotect-
led little cubs, the hunter, rifle in
hand, loaded with the heaviest bullet.
Quickly the Kafirs work, for should
the lioness return, nothing but bull
let, accurately aimed, could save
them from instant death. With the
capture of the cubs, which are thrown
into bag, hasty flight is made.
Capturing these cubs, however, is
child's play compared with capturing
those numbering, colossal animals of
the pig tribe, the rhinoceros and the,
lhippopotamus There is hardly a
wild animal in existence more dan
gerous than this rarest of menagerie
captives. Awkward as the great beast
appears when at rest, once aroused
the ''rhino" dashes through a thicket
with the irresistible speed of an ex-
press train. The hunters make their
way into the interior of unexplored
territory in Africa, searching for
lrhinoceros COW with calf old enough
ito capture, and which is not so large
but that it can be transported back
TO civilization. Frequently months
elapse before the search is rewarded
with success. This how the capture
ds made:
Noiselessly and from we'll to lee
ward the trapper and his men grad
Eually steal nearer until the COW and
the calf are Enclosed in circle From
ahead, out of the maze of cane and
creeper, sounds the uneasy stamping
of the cow With half snort, half
grunt, in an instant the rhiroceros is
all attention. Head raised and nos
ltrils smiling, she searches the air
steadily. At sight of one of the saw
ages the COW dashes with the speed
of a racehorse at the man, charging
the human decoy, and at that instant
the trapper's rifle is heard. and her
furious charge is over, provided the
bullet reaches the heart by striking
Just behind the left foreleg-the only
Vulnerable point in the inch-thick ar
NOR with which the beast is clad. Now
and then it happens that the hunter
fails to kill in time-his gun may
miss fire, intervening trees may in
Iterfere, or the marksman may miss
his aim. Then the life Of the decoy
depends on his own agility. To run
Ito one side before the rhinoceros is
almost on top of him would be fatal,
for the swift brute would overtake
him within few bounds. His only
hope is to wait until the deadly horn
is almost at his feet, and then, with
the swiftness of a mongoose lodging
the aim of cobra, to leap to one
side while the ponderous creature,
unable to turn short in time, dashes
onward under its own impetus.
Twice, three times, a clever native
hunter will dodge in this way, giving
the trapper ample time to bring down
the rhinoceros.
After the death of the mother COW
it is easy to track the frightened calf,
which is soon pushed. prodded and
showed up a bridge of long skids into
the cage of bullock cart, after which
Z the weary march to market begins
While the 'rhoino" is more savage to
deal with than the hippopotamus, still
the greatest peril lies with the latter,
for. as says the writer:
1.-THE trapper hunts the 'rhino ON
land and brings it down at compar-
atively safe distance, whereas in the
case Of the hippopotamus he must
fight in the same primitive fashion
that savages have used for ages. Hand
ito nav, as it were, he must engage
this two-ton monster while standing
in the bow of frail canoe. For the
fhippopotamus, as its name. the river
horse means, is land-and-water an
imal, and must be harpooned and
brought ashore before it expires, 9TH
erwise is would sink at once to the
bottom of the river, the coveted calf
escaping among the other hippopota-
mi instead of following the stricken
cow to shore, so that the youngster
maybe caught"
PLAYHOUSES.
There have been much hustle ana