Part 22

PITCHING CAMP WITH A VIEW TO A LONG STAY.]

My camp at times was like a little kingdom. Many of my people went out for weeks together to barter for fruits and vegetables with agrarian tribes. With the rest, I spent my days out in the open, hunting, collecting, and observing. My zoological collection increased daily, time flew by with all the many jobs there were to be done--drying, preserving, preparing, sorting, labelling, and sending off specimens. The primitive camp life was full of interest in spite of its seeming monotony. It was like ruling and ordering a little State. I thoroughly enjoyed this simple existence, in which I seemed to forget the artificial worries of civilisation and to be able to give myself up to my love for nature.

Then I learned to appreciate the natives. Of course they are not to be judged from a European standpoint as regards habits and customs, but I shall always remember with pleasure certain strong and good characters among my followers.

Nomadic hunters--shy and suspicious as the animals they hunted--sometimes paid us passing visits, whilst the whole world of beasts and birds thronged around our “outpost of civilisation,” so suddenly planted in their midst.

My goods and chattels were stowed away in a hut which I had put up myself, and which was protected from wind, rain, and sun by masses of reeds and velt grasses. This hut was of the simplest construction, but I was very proud of it. It was useful not only for protecting zoological collections from the all-pervading rays of the sun, and from rain and cold, but also from the numerous little fiends of insects against which continual warfare has to be waged. The destructive activity of ants is a constant source of annoyance to travellers and collectors; I remember how my one-time fellow-traveller Prince Johannes Löwenstein had the flag on his tent destroyed by them in a single night. In one night also these ants bit through the ticket-threads by which my specimens were classified; in one night, again, the tiny fiends destroyed the bottoms of several trunks which had been carelessly put away!

One has to wage constant warfare against destroyers of every kind.

My cow, which was very valuable to me, not only as giving milk to my people, but also for nourishing young wild animals, was penned at night-time within a thick thorn hedge. My people made themselves more or less skilfully constructed shelters under the bushes and trees. Thus a miniature village grew up, of which I was the despotic ruler. The native hunters who visited us would sometimes accompany me on long expeditions.

C. G. Schillings, phot.

TERMITEN ANT-HILLS.]

For me there are no “savages.” When an intelligent man comes across a tribe hitherto unknown to him he will carefully study their seemingly strange habits, and thus will soon recognise that they have their own customs and laws which they regard as sacred and immutable, and which order their whole existence. He will no longer desire the natives to adopt the manners and customs of the white man, for which they are absolutely unsuited.

But by the time I got friendly with these nomads they were off again. It is against their habits to stay long in one place, and they do not willingly enter into close relations with a European--or indeed with any one. Suddenly one fine morning we find their sleeping quarters empty; they have disappeared, never to return. No obligation, no command, would ever bind these wanderers to one place. Children of the moment, children of the wilderness, their lives are spent in constant roaming.

I hardly ever had a leisure hour, for there was much to arrange and see to in my camp. I had many functions to perform. I was my own commissioner of public safety; I looked after the commissariat; I was doctor and judge. I supervised all the other offices and pursued a number of handicrafts. Like Hans Sach I followed with pride the avocations of shoemaker, tailor, joiner, and smith, my very scanty acquaintance with all these various trades being put to astonishingly good use. I was like the one-eyed man among the blind.

What judgments of Solomon have I not given! Once two of my best people quarrelled, an Askari and his wife. The serious character of the quarrel could be estimated from the noise of weeping and the sound of blows that had proceeded from their tent. The man wished to separate from his wife.

“Why did you beat your wife last night?”

The Askari (who has served under both German and English masters) stands to attention.

“Because she was badly behaved--I will not keep her any more--I am sending her away.”

“But why--rafiki yangu?--my friend? Such things will happen at times, but it is not always so bad--see? Who will look after you? who will prepare your meals? Look at her once more; she is very pretty--don’t you think so? And she cooks very well” (both parties, as well as the bystanders, are smiling by now). “Go along, then, and make friends.”

And they go and make friends.

A deputation of the Waparis come to the camp. They crouch down near my tent and beg for a “rain charm” to bring down showers upon their fields. It is somewhat difficult to help them. I take the gifts which they bring to pay for the charm and make them a more valuable return, and by means of the barometer I am able to foretell rain. They gaze at the wizard and his charm wonderingly, and come again later to see them both.

AN UNUSUALLY LARGE ANT-HILL. INSIDE THIS STRONGHOLD THE “QUEEN” ANT IS TO BE FOUND WALLED UP IN A SMALL CELL. SHE IS CONSIDERABLY LARGER THAN THE OTHER ANTS AND DEVOTES HERSELF EXCLUSIVELY TO HER TASK OF LAYING EGGS. THE KING ON THE OTHER HAND, NOT MUCH LARGER THAN THE REST, IS IN COMMAND OF THE “WORKERS” AND THE SOLDIERS.]

Countless similar events succeed one another, and ever the everyday monotony of the simple camp life has its delights.

THE ANT-HILLS ARE SO STRONGLY BUILT AND SO HARD THAT THEY OFFER AN EXTRAORDINARILY STRONG RESISTANCE TO ALL EFFORTS TO DESTROY THEM BY PICK AND SHOVEL.]

Day by day my menagerie increases. To-day it is a young lion I add to it, to-morrow a hyena, a jackal, a monkey, a marabou, geese, and other velt-dwellers, all of which I instal as members of my little community and try to become friends with. My efforts have sometimes been amply rewarded. Once during the early morning hours we discovered a large troop of baboons. It was cool: the cold, damp morning mist grew into a drizzling rain; the animals huddled up closely together for the sake of warmth. Later they came down to seek their food. Cautiously we posted ourselves as if we had not noticed the monkeys. But remembering their long sight, I organised a battue, which succeeded admirably and secured me several young ones. At first the comical creatures obstinately withstood all efforts to tame them. Soon, however, they got to recognise their attendant, and became attached to him. Unlike other species of monkeys, baboons are full of character. Like some dogs, they are devoted to their masters but antagonistic to other people. They show their dislike for strangers very clearly. I was always much touched, when I came back from a long tramp on the velt, to be met with outbursts of joy by my chained-up baboons. They recognised their master in the far distance, reared themselves on their hind legs, and gave demonstrations of joy in every possible way as they saw him approaching.

Sometimes, too, other inmates of my camp evinced their pleasure at my appearance. This was especially the case with a marabou which I had caught when fully grown. As he had been slightly hurt in the process of capture, I tended him myself most carefully, and experienced great satisfaction on his restoration to health. From the time of his recovery the bird was faithful to me, and did not leave the camp any more, although he was only caged at night-time! He attached himself to my headman, and tried to bite both men and beasts whom he considered as not to be trusted, and generally sat very solemnly in the vicinity of my camp and greeted me on my home-comings by wagging his head and flapping his wings. Such a clatter he made as he gravely rushed backwards and forwards! Not until I caressed him would he be quiet. After a time he began to build himself a nest under the shade of a bush quite close to my tent. The dimensions of this nest gradually increased in an extraordinary manner. This eyrie he defended to the utmost, and would not allow my blacks to go near it, or any of his animal companions. Great battles took place, but he always made his opponents take to their heels, and even the poor old donkey, if it happened to come his way. On the other hand, he was very friendly with my young rhinoceros. It was an extraordinary sight to see the rhinoceros with its friends, the goats and the solemn bird. Two fine Colobus monkeys, three young lions, young ostriches, geese, and various other creatures made up my little zoological garden. They all were good friends among themselves and with my tame hens, which used to prefer to lay their eggs in my tent and in those of the bearers. Sometimes I used to entrust some francolin eggs to these hens. (Hardly any of the many beautiful East African species of francolins have so far been brought alive to Europe.) Once I had for weeks the pleasure of seeing some beautiful yellow-throated francolins (Pternistes leucosepus infuscatus, Cab.) running about perfectly tame among the other animals in camp.

C. G. Schillings, phot.

ONE OF MY MARABOUS, NOW IN THE BERLIN ZOOLOGICAL GARDENS, BUILT A GREAT NEST IN MY CAMP.]

C. G. Schillings, phot.

TWO DENIZENS OF THE VELT WHO BECAME MEMBERS OF MY CAMP AND ARE NOW IN THE BERLIN ZOOLOGICAL GARDENS.]