Semi-weekly herald., 1913-10-02
ROOSEVELT TELLS OF
LIONS NET IN AFRICA

Lovers of the hunt and all persons
interested in wild animal life will
be enthusiastic readers of Colonel
Roosevelt's descriptions of the hab-
its and manners of the beasts he en-
countered in the jungles of South
Africa. The first Of series of art
icles by him appears in the Septem-
ber Scribner's and is devoted to the
life history of the African lion. In
an Introductory note Colnonel Roose-
welt says the articles are based
mainly on first-hand observation, but
are also in part based ON the cumu-
lative observations of many other
men. In the space here permitted
all phases Of the subject cannot be
considered. On the mere matter of
noise there appears to be much of
interest for an observant writer.
Lions are noisy animals where
they have not been much molested,"
writes Colonel Roosevelt, "but for
some reason or other, if they are so
hunted that their numbers are much
thinned the survivors seem to roar
less frequently than formerly. The
roaring is done at night; but once in
the Lado heard lion roar after
sunrise. There is no grander sound
in nature than the roaring of troop
of lions. The old male begins and
the others chime in, at first with low
means, that grow louder and louder
until the full-lunged roaring can lit
orally be heard for miles; then the
roars gradually die away into gasp
ing grunts. The volume of sound
is extraordinary and cannot possibly
be mistaken for any other noise if
reasonably close; but of course if far
enough distant it becomes only part
tally audible, and may then resemble
the booming of an ostrich heard near
by; and in thick cover the grunt or
growl of a lion, indistinctly heard,
may be mistaken for the grunt of a
buffalo or the occasional growl-I
know no other word to describe the
sound-of an elephant, beast which
sometimes utters the queerest and
most unexpected NOISES.
ut has been asserted that the lion
never roars when hungry, because to
do so would frighten his prey, and
that his roaring is sign that he is
well fed; this sounds plausible; and
yet as matter of fact / doubt if ii
is true. Unquestionably after a sue
cessful chase lions roar freely;
have most often heard them between
midnight and morning. But / have
also heard regular roaring-not mere
moaning, or the painting noise occas-
ionally INDUCED in by a hungry
questing beast--soon after dark, and
this was persevered in at intervals
for an hour or so. am inclined To
think that generally lions are silent
until they have killed, but that oc-
casionally, whether as signals to one
another or from mere pride and over.
bearing insolence, they roar at in.
tervals on their way through ths
darkness from their resting place t.
the hunting field. OF course, wher
they reach the actual place wher,
they are to hunt they become quiet
unless they deliberately try to STAN
pede the animals by roaring or un
less several are hunting together
spread cut around herd of zebri
or antelope, when one may roar o.
grunt to scare the animals towar,
the others.
Ordinarily lions make no soun,
that can alarm their prey; yet evel
when actually hunting an occasions
hungry lion may utter = kind Of sigl
or moan-an ssris sound whsn hear,