Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-11-14
THE FIRST GORILLA.
NV PATTI, MI CHAILLU.

BY PAUL DU CHAILLU.
tPaul Belloni du Chaillu, Isss-i0os, was .
Franco American traveller and author; hi
works include Explorations and Adventure,
AshanSosiand." The Land Of the Midnight
SUM-, The Viking Age" etc)
One day, during my African explora-
tions, when snake had been eaten, and
/, the only empty stomached individual
of the company, had sufficiently reflect
ed on the disadvantages of being bred
in a civilized country, we began to look
about the ruins of the village near
which we sat.
A degenerate kind of sugar cane was
growing on the very spot where the
houses had formerly Stood and made
haste to pluck some OF this and chew
it for the little sweetness it had. But,
as we were plucking, my men perceived
what instantly threw us all into the
greatest excitement. Here and there
the cane was beaten down, torn up by
the roots and lying about in fragments
which had evidently been chewed.
I knew that these we're tracks OF the
gorilla, and JOY filled my heart. NY
men looked at each other in silence,
and muttered "Nguyla." which is as
much as to say Mpongwe, "Ngina," or
as we say, gorilla.
We followed these traces. and pres
emily came to the footprint OF the So
long desired animal 1t was the first
time I had ever seen these footprints
and my sensations we're indescribable.
Here / was now, 1t seemed. on the point
of meeting face to face that monster of
whose ferocity, strength and cunning
the natives had told me so much: an
animal scarce known to the civilized
world, and which no white man before
had hunted. My heart beat till I
feared its loud pulsations, and my feel
ings we're really existed to a painful
degree.
BY the tracks it was easy to know
gorillaS in company. We prepared at
once to follow them.
We could easily see that there we're
four or five of them; though none
appeared very large. We saw where
they had run along on all fourS, the
usual mode of progression of these
animals; and where, from time to time,
they had seated themselves to chew
the canes they had borne off. The
chase began to be very exciting.
We had agreed to return to the
women and their guards, and consult
upon final operations, when We should
have discovered their probable cause;
and this was now done. To make sure
of not alarming our prey, we moved
the whole party forward little way to
where some leafy hutS, built by pass
ing traders, served for shelter and con-
cealment. And having here slowed the
women, we prepared once more to set
out In chase, this time hopeful to get
q shot.
Looking once more to our guns, we
started off. I confess that had never
been more excited in my life. I had
-. - a~E Alvss III - H..
of its vast strength, its fierce courage,
II, unhappily, only wounded by shot
I knew that We were about to pit our
selves against an animal which even
the leopard Of these mountains fears.
Slowly we pressed on through the
dense brush, fearing almost to breathe
lest we should alarm the beasts Ma
kinda was 70 go to the right of the
rock, while took to the left. Unfor-
tlmately, he circled 1t at too great
distance. The watchful animals saw
him.
Suddenly ] was startled by o strange,
discordant, half-human, devilish cry,
and beheld four young gorillaS run
ming toward the deep forests. We fired,
but hit nothing.
Then we rushed on in pursuit: but
they knew the woods better than we.
Once I caught a glimpse of one of the
animals again, but an intervening tree
spoiled my aim, and I did not fire. We
ran till we were exhausted, but in
vain. The alert beasts made good their
escape. When we could pursue no more
we returned slowly to our camp, where
the women were anxiously expecting us.
AS saw the gorillaS running-on
their hind legs-they looked fearfully
like hairy men; their heads down, their
bodies inclined forward, their whole
appearance was like men running for
their lives. Take with this their awful
cry, which, fierce and animal as It is,
has yet something human in its dis
cordance, and you will cease TO wonder
that the natives have the widest super
stitions about these wild men of the
woods"
We started early on the next trip,