Semi-weekly herald., 1910-01-17

ut was necessary to be very care
full also. so as to have the crates as
substantial and secure as they could
possibly be made and Mt the same
time avoid unnecessary weight. be.
cause they had to be carried on the
shoulders OF men whenever they we're
moved Seven OF the crates, for five
lions. leopard and wart-hog. had
to be lined with iron sheeting and
fitted with steel gratings, so that the
animals could not rip them to pieces
and break out. The lions are very
savage, especially two females little
more than 2 years old. All five OF
the lions were confined in stone
house 40 by so feet In size. which
was built for them by Mr.. Mcmillan
ard 1t was divided into two rooms.
"It was a good deal of a job to
coax them into the cages, but at my
request the attendants did not give
them any food for three days and kept
them shut up in the larger room. We
backed one of the cages up against the
door OF this room and opened the port
Then we hung chunk of meat on the
iron grating where the animals could
see 1t, but It was half day before
any one of them was willing TO yield
even 10 that temptation. However. as
soon as he went into the cage we
| closed the door on him and had him
where we wanted him. Then we
showed another cage up against the
door and got another lion few hours
later. It was six hours before we got
a third. and 1t took two entire days
to transfer the five. The leopard was
easy. We got him safely into his crate
In less than an hour
There was only one animal in each
cage. The cages were six feet long,
four feet high and four feet deep, and
they weighed about S25 pounds each.
The lions averaged about $50 pounds
each, two of them, splendid females,
| about 2S months old. and the other
| three about % months old. The leo
pard Is 2 years old. All of them have
| been raised from cubs on the Nc
MILAN farm, and have had the very
| best Of care and plenty of food, so
| that they are in perfect physical form
They are the most superb lions you
ever saw; undoubtedly the finest that
| ever we're brought into this country
There were seven other animals
eleven altogether---and four birds, all
OF them. excepting the lions and the
leopards, being entirely new to this
country, the cheetah. long-legged
species Of leopard. which is trained
and used for hunting by the Sonth
Africans, being the most notable
There is very fine specimen of an
eagle also.
There was a haul of twenty-three
miles from the plantation to the rail
way station. and l made a contract
with Boer farmer to do the job
His wagons were enormous great We
hicles called African trolleys,' and
carry two or three tons each when
drawn by team of fourteen oxen.
We put the Ave lions and the leopard
on one wagon and fastened the cages
together with hoop iron nailed fast to
the body OF the vehicle so that they
could not be shaken off under any
circumstances, but II anything went
wrong 1t would be unanimous. There
were several very bad places on the
road, fording streams and crossing ra.
vines or drifts, as they call them over
there, but we got through all right
We left Juja farm at noon and reach.
ed Nairobi in the evening of the next
day
"A shed near the railway station
belonging to the veterinary quarantine
was assigned to our use. and the ami.
mails were placed there; but one of
the cheetahs died very suddenly and
without apparent cause. We could not
find out what was the matter. 1t was
all right at 9;45 at night when made
my last inspection. but the next morn
ing 1t was stone dead. Another chee.
tab died at the farm In similar man
ner,a few days before arrived there
Il sent out boxes for the zebra and
antelopes l had bought of Tarleton
and they were brought in the day be
fore we left.
Everything was shipped safely
There was no accident of any kind
although the cages were heavy and
difficult to handle. and had to be car
ried on the shoulders of natives from
the shed to the cars. had great trou
BILE In getting forage. That part of
Africa is suffering from two years OF
drought and food is very scarce.
sent up far into the country where
there had been rain and bought car
load of alfalfa and grass hay and some
green oats, but they were very hard
to obt1in.
THE train left Nairobi on the morn.
ing Of Oct. 26. and we ran along all
right until s o'clock one morning, when
we were sixteen miles from Mombasa,
when the engine and the first two
cars went into the ditch 1t appears
that there had been a heavy rain