Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1913-02-12

III land of Zanzibar on the way,
writes Sir Henry Seton-Karr,
G. NJ g.. big game hunter.
This island deserves longer Wis
it and a fuller account than
had time to pay or am able to give
But ten-mile motor drive and short
days visit afforded glimpse OF It's
luxuriant cocoanut and Glove planta-
lions, it's beautiful vegetation, its mar
row eastern streets and brass
studded doors, and it's Heterogeneous
colored population.
Mombasa. or rather Kilindin1 (Mom-
hasa being the town., is fine har-
Dor, the best of shelter, fairly ca 7
of access, and with good anchorage
Moreover, it is an Increasingly busy
port, and standing witness to the
foresight of the late Lord Salisbury
when he faced the responsibility of
the Uganda railway, of which it Is the
terminus and the outlet.
My immediate objective in visiting
the newest English colony was
months safari from Nairobi and some
big-game hunting. So left Mombasa
by the first available train, and in TWEEN
ty-four hours had assembled 5000 feet,
through palm grove, tropical jungle,
thorn and grass-covered plain and
mountain ranges, to the high table
land that makes British East Africa
possible as a white mans colony and
another cradle for our race. Of this
tableland Nairobi is the capital, and
the social anil political center. Incl
dentally was informed that 200 young
British wives in and around Nairobi
had produced among them during the
last two or three years no fewer than
40 bonnie white babies-120 bundles
of possibilities" for the furtherance
and future extension of British do
ninion and Anglo-Saxon civilization.
Great Variety of Sport.
Never have / seen anything like
the quantity of big game in any part
of the world such as now exist in their
thousands In British East Africa.
Even Western America thirty years
ago hal nothing like this wealth of
wild fauna. / rather doubt if South
America In it's pioneer days equaled
it in this respect. For some hours be-
fore reaching Nairobi thousands of
zebra, hartebeeste (kongonD, gazelle
of various kinds (''Grant's" and tom
mies') can be seen from the railway
carriage windows dotting the plains
and grass-covered, tree-sprinkled hill
sides through which the railway runs.
.erds of wildebeeste are almost al
ways in sight; also other varieties
of buck or antelope, such as impala
and oribi. Also an occasional rhino,
and frequently herd of giraffe.
One has heard so much of hunting
parties visiting Nairobi of late years
and returning in every case laden
with spoils and trophies of the chase,
that I had sort of feeling before
hand that the game would soon be all
killed, unless one hurried up and went
soon. But now the mystery was
solved The country Is so fertile, pas
torai and extensive, and the climate
so equable. that it is capable of main
tanning an almost incredible amount
of game.
The game is there, and has not been
recklessly slaughtered and sduandered
in the past. 1t is now only slot in
sportsmanlike manner, under strict
regulation as to numberg and locality
some rarer kinds being absolutely
protected-and only on payment of
substantial license fee; and so the con-
sequence is that, if anything, the game
is increasing in numbers, not dimin-
ishing. In fact, the boot is on the
other leg. The question is whether,
in some districts, the commoner
kinds of game are too numerous and
should not, In the interests of settlers
and their fencing and crops be great
~ reduced in numbers or even alto
gether killed of.
So far as my own hunting expert
ences are concerned, enjoyed a most
delightful and productive three weeks
safari. during the course of which I
shot about forty head of big game
either for meat or for trophies includ-
ing eighteen different varieties. among
them great python sixteen feet long
| am bound to confess, in my view.
that there is no great sporting merit
in obtaining the ordinary common big
game trophies of East Africa. such
as wildebeeste. hartebeeste, the yari-
Gus kinds of gazelle and smaller an
telope. zebra and warthog, all of
which are to be found on the open
plains and outside long grass and jun
gle. 1t Is merely question of how
long one stays out and how many car.
tridges one uses
Poor Opinion of Lion.
There are. however, other varieties
of big game much harder to find and
shoot. and In the hunting OF which
some woodcraft and intelligence. as
veil as straight shooting. are required