The Washington times., 1923-02-08
CONGO JUNGLES
LURE GIRL
HUNTER
Miss Martha Miller Eager to
Return to Scene Of Earlier
Conquests.
BY MARGERY REX.


NEW YORK, Feb. 8.-Central
Africa is a great rolling country,
much like Wisconsin, for example.
And an elephant grazing on Congo
meadows is no more strange to the
view than an amiable Holstein do
ing the same thing in Waukesha
county. The pachyderm, like any
other creature, Is neither preposter-
GUS nor awe-inspiring, "chez lui,"
that Is, in his native element, with
all his props" about him.
Yet even the stuffed ones at New
York's Museum of Natural History
always make our timfd heart turn.
around once or twice for luck;
while on the several occasions that
we have done stories about the
circus we have been at great pains
not to write anything unfavorable
about the elephants, for they are
supposed never to forget.
Africa, though, has a tremendous
lure, one variety of which Cynthia
Stockley has often indicated in her
fascinating stories about events on
the veldts. Aside from that, it is
able to call back from the luxuries
of such civilization as Manhattan
affords a girl huntress of twenty
three, who has brought down her
elephant, her lion, and two speci-
mems Of antelope.
Natural and Pleasant
Miss Martha Miller testifies that
Africa is wholly beautiful and sell
dom uncomfortable. It is nearly
twelve months since she returned
with the Carl Akeley gorilla expe-
dition, so enamored of that land
that she declared she would go
back before another year elapsed.
That period of time is nearly up
and we wanted to know If the
Ethiopian country had completely
alienated her affections.
after two weeks in the jungle
it seems the natural, pleasant way
to live" Miss Miller explained. 1T
always appealed to my tmagina-
ton. was never afraid OF any
thing, having had six brothers and
no sister, and doing whatever the
boys did.
elephants may seem terrible
creatures when you see them alive
in the zoo or stuffed in the mu-
scum, but in their natural sur
roundipgs they simply fit in, and
you just marvel at them.
Sees Only Pretty Side.
''If you are determined to see the
pretty side of place the unpleasant
features of it will not impress YOU,
the young Diana explained her atti-
tude toward travel.
When we asked about the proper
mental attitude in which to APP
proach the Staying of a large and
wild animal, Miss Miller. said:
Never worry about the next mo-
7ment. Take each one as 1t comes.
people who go out looking for
danger bump into It.
Going along as an extra gun"
with the Akeleys, Mrs. Mary Has
tings Bradley and her small daugh-
brought down the first elephant
that fell for the expedition. These
intrepid hunters not only slew the
giants of the animal kingdom, but
ate of them. Elephant steak and
chopped lions heart were features
of the jungle table d'hote.
Elephant steak has rich,
'gamey' TASTE" said Miss Miller.
1.-The natives smoked it over bon
fire of green branches and danced
around it like a barbecue. 1t had
to be eaten right away after the ele.
plant was killed-there was no way
to keep 1t longer.
Lions heart could have been
Anything, judging from the taste.
We tried that just to say we had
sampled it,"
Wears Leopard Coat.
Miss Miller wore a fashionable
coat of leopard skin and little tur-
ban trimmed with the same fur.
We rudely inquired whether or not
she had shot her coat in addition
to her other trophies.
mo, but the skins came from
Africa-a native got them for me.
had it made up here" she re-
piled.
For the present Miss Miller is
giving some lectures on her ex-
periences, astounding enough for
any one, let alone a girl. Though
she doesn't like snakes, the hunt
ress says she was too proud to pay
any attention to weird tales, told
by teasing persons they encoun.
tered on the trip, that bold reptiles
crawled into ones blankets during
jungle nights.
II wouldn't look as matter of
PRIDE" Miss Miller told us.
All of which sounds almost in
conceivably courageous to us this
story of a girl who stalked an ele-
plant and looked a lion in the eye
in broad daylight, while so many
of us are too cowardly to kill a
lyric cat at midnight.