Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1919-06-05

well. We had five hours there IN
which to do the town, provided 1t did
not do as much for us, and the rea-
son that was not the case was that
we were Yankees and had been out
before. The town has broad. well
laid out streets and is In every way
a growing place and had any
money to invest, here Is where II
could be put, provided il was not
needed for ten years or so.
The museum afforded for me the
most interest of all the different at
fractions shown and widely adver-
tised. Meteorites, too there were
many by the way Africa Is the
greatest place for meteorites in the
world. In Cape Town museum,
there are 50 many meteorltes, |
have not seen even in the British
museum in London anything to
compare with them. Then, last but
not least. there were the snakes.
Snakes for which Africa In general,
and Rhodesia In particular, is fam
Gus. Some so deadly that bite Is
certain and instant death.
But again on train at p. m, we
are again headed northwards in a
general general way, re-
mark, for In Africa, one has to be
quite satisfied If he or she arrives
sin general way" at any place
have Travelled some 1000 miles
In Africa by native pOrterage and
caravan. and | can assure my read
ers, have not always arrived, even
in "a general way" but have had to
sleep in the bush and in the forest,
where the lullaby was the roar of the
lion and the waul of the hyena, not
to mention the snarl Of the leopard.
Northwards from Buluwayo the
country is pretty much Africa And
when that Is said, one who knows
Africa as I do, knows that means
bush, bush alone and nothing but
bushl BY "bush" we mean, in Afri-
ca, timber from forty to eighty feet
high, and generally so crooked, the
devil long ago gave it up as useless
and hopeless
There is, know, for even have
seen some straight timber in Africa.
But it Is as rare, comparatively
speaking az an honest man, for ex-
ample An honest native? l never
met one in my life. That is, one
that had not taken after some one
of the many foreign hercsies some
times disseminated by some few OF
the missionaries. l say "some few
quite advisedly! For even the vast
majority of the missionaries in Afri-
ca soon take after, not only the tim.
Der but the paths also, for I challen-
&c any traveller in Africa to show OF
produce one straight path that was
not surveyed or in some way was tht
result Of white trash" influence!
Another remarkable feature Of al
east and Central Africa excepting thu
Great Congo forest is that nin'
tenths, and often there are districts
in which this proportion is exceeded
Is thorn brush, or falling bush limb
err, whose thorns are sometimes tire,
inches in length and so sharp that
have sometimes, for want of an awl
used an acacia thorn for the purpose
After two more days and nights
more or less as the particular clocl
time might differ-a matter of n
importance in Africa--We arrived a
IL n. m, at the great Zambesi river
Africa will some day become famou
for her rivers. This river does no
make much pretense, but 1t Is NOR
than a mile wide, thousand yard
above where the railway crosses
and that is its natural gait too, bu
to accommodate the white man som
unknown ages ago 1t undertook t
outdo Niagara, and Africa like,
] did it without making any history o
> the subject. Which is the only, o
at least principal reason, that scare
any of my readers will know eve
that such a thing as Victoria Fall
exist.
But the Victoria Falls do exist an
that in such fashion that almost an
tourist, stepping into Cook & Co
tourist office in Cape Town, win B
stared out Of face by the posters ar
nouncing in phlegmatic colors tbs
he can go and see them for som
real money and Cooks Will do tn
rest And they do! Victoria Fail
are a wonder of the first magnitude
I'm n way they are almost a dupl