The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1912-07-12

Nyanza and on the banks of the Nile did not les
sen my regard for them as men Pertains their
calling as elephaut-poaChers may not have been
regular in the eyes OF the law but then there was
such an element OF danger connected with their
work that the oTenSes of which they were guilty
paled before all other considerations and one is
forced to concede TO them the possession Of the
acme Of pluck. The freebooter or soldier of for.
tune is ever picturesque figure and the Congo
poachers amply fill this role.
had marched one hundred and sxty-fve miles
across the dreary, swelter!ngly hot Uganda coun-
try. and It was with feelings Of extreme relief
that I the shimmering expanse of the waters
OF the Albert Nyanza from the rugged hill-tops
overlooking Butaba. the small port on the sandy
shore of the lake
pitched camp on the site of the recent Roose-
Welt encampment within one hundred feet of the
lake.
had heard from natives that one of the Congo
poachers was in camp at Butaba, but none of
them seemed TO know his name and | was at
loss to know who he might be- l remembered that
there number of men whom knew init
matey poaching in this district, and | wondered
whether perchance | to be given opportu-
nifty of renewing my acquaintance with of
them Perhaps it might be John Boyes, nick
named King of the Kikuyu;" or "karomoja"
Bell the mightest of elephant-hunters; the Hon
orable Rupert Craven brother OF Earl Craven;
young Quentin Grogan brother of Captain Fwart
>.
noted elephant-hunter; Bennett. ex-engineer of
the Nile launches; w. Buckley, a partner Of Pick
erfng's; or Pearson. to say nothing OF many 9th
ers whom | had met from time to time. ! men
ton them by their correct names for they made
no secret of their calling and l feel sure that |
am not committing any indiscretion by so doing
Each one of these men has a history, and each
and every one Of them can tell thrilling tales Of
his experiences not only in the Congo but also in
every other part of Africa.
NV interested conjectures to who the man
At Butiaba might be soon set at rest. 1t IS
the custom for all white men in Africa to call on
any other white who may camp in their VI
cinity and so 1t not long before the 'poacher
came TO my camp to see 1t proved to be
Bennett the exengineer Of the Uganda Nile fleet
who had abandoned his professional calling for the
more thrilling and lucrative work Of shooting ele-
phants for their ivory For many years he had
been in charge OF the small steam launch plying
between Butiaba and Minute on the Nile, and dur
ing these years he had done much shooting on
the banks of the river. His haul Of ivory added
each year to his small income a launch engi-
neer so that IL was a bad year indeed when he
do not double. nay treble, his paltry salary He
had been with Winston Churchill when the lat
Ter made his trip up the Nile on the government
fotilla when inspecting East Africa and Uganda
IN his official capacity IS under secretary o. state
for the colonies
This is the story OF man, told to ME on
my first nigh in camp at Butiaba, sitting n my
tent beating of the attack OF greedy mosquitoes
while entertaining Bennett with the aid of my lin
tied supply OF whisky. The story was so startling
that often had to pinch myself during its recital
10 satisfy myself that I not dreaming Ct the
DAYS of Emin Pasha and Stanley as the result OF
the association of my surroundings.
noticed that his hands were badly lace ated.
In fact in a fearful state and all the time
conversed about generalities I was wondering
what had been the cause Presently the cGnver-
sation turned to the subject of eephant-sho1tne.
and asked him how he was progressing VITA his
quest for ivory I had got him interested now
and leaned back in my easy campchair to listen.