The World and Its People Part 39

They furnish a great contrast to the delicately feathered mimosas of the more fertile sections of the continent. Among all the lovely children of Flora, the G.o.ddess of flowers, none can rival these plants in the beauty of their foliage.

One can gain but a faint idea of the beauty these plants attain under a tropical sun. In most species the branches extend horizontally, or are umbrella-shaped, and the deep blue sky, shining through the light green foliage, has a very picturesque effect.

CHAPTER LIII.

VIEWS OF ANIMAL LIFE.

As we study the animal life of Africa, we can but notice the great variety in its species. We find not only those kinds with which we are most familiar, and those which have become known to us through our study of other continents, but many new and strange ones, characteristic of Africa alone.

Here are found the lion, leopard, jackal, hyena, and other carnivora of the cat and dog families. Varieties of the thick-skinned animals are numerous; for we find a species of elephant somewhat different from the elephant of Asia, several varieties of the rhinoceros, the hippopotamus, the wart hog, and boar, all ugly, unwieldy and clumsy in their form and movements.

In the tropics are found great varieties of monkeys, chattering wildly as they spring among the branches of the trees. The fierce gorilla haunts the dense forests, to the terror of the natives and travelers.

Du Chaillu, the explorer, had an encounter with gorillas while crossing the Sierra del Crystal to reach the Fan country. During the journey he had occasion to scale a range of granite hills and to traverse an elevated table-land. Here he found the temperature quite cold at night.

As he climbed a second range of hills he came upon the Ntambounay Falls.

These he declared to be one of the grandest sights he ever beheld, and adds:--

"It was not a waterfall, but an immense mountain torrent, dashing downhill at an angle of twenty-five or thirty degrees, for not less than a mile right before us, like a vast, seething, billowy sea.

"The river course was full of the huge granite boulders which lie about here as though the t.i.tans had been playing at skittles in this country; and against these the angry waters dashed as though they would carry all before them, and breaking up, threw the milky spray up to the very tops of the trees which grew along the edge.

"Where we stood, at the foot of the rapids, the stream took a winding turn up the mountains; but we had the whole mile of foaming rapids before us, seemingly pouring its ma.s.s of waters down on our heads."

It was just above these falls that Du Chaillu shot an immense serpent.

One can imagine the feeling of repulsion with which he saw his men cut off its head and divide the body into pieces, which they roasted and ate with relish.

A short distance beyond the spot, he came upon the footprints of what the natives declared to be gorillas. These footprints were so fresh that it was decided to give chase to the creatures which had made them. The gorillas were, however, very agile, and soon escaped into the forest depths.

Du Chaillu, in speaking of his experience, says: "I protest I felt almost like a murderer when I saw the gorillas the first time. As they ran, on their hind legs, they looked fearfully like hairy men, their heads down, their bodies inclined forward, their whole appearance like men running for their lives.

"Take this with their awful cry, which, fierce and animal as it is, has something human in its discordance, and you will cease to wonder that the natives have the wildest superst.i.tions about these 'wild men of the woods.'"

One of the superst.i.tions, common wherever the gorilla is to be found, is that the spirits of certain departed negroes have entered the bodies of a particular species of gorilla. The gorillas of this species can never be caught or killed, since they bear a charmed life. The natives claim, too, that these gorillas show more shrewdness and sense than ordinary animals. In a word, they combine the intelligence of man and the strength and fierceness of the brute creation.

In further description of a gorilla hunt Du Chaillu continues: "I noticed, ahead of us seemingly, a noise as of some one breaking down branches or twigs of trees. This was the gorilla, I knew at once by the eager and satisfied looks of the men.

"They looked once more carefully at their guns, to see if by chance the powder had fallen out of the pans; I also examined mine, to make sure that all was right, and then we marched on cautiously. The singular noise of the breaking of the branches continued. We walked with the greatest care, making no noise at all.

"The countenances of the men showed that they thought themselves engaged in a very serious undertaking; but we pushed on, until finally we thought we saw through the thick woods the moving of the branches and small trees which the great beast was tearing down, probably to get from them the berries and fruits he lives on.

"Suddenly, as we were yet creeping along, in a silence which made a heavy breath seem loud and distinct, the woods were at once filled with the tremendous barking roar of the gorilla.

"Then the underbrush swayed rapidly just ahead, and presently before us stood an immense male gorilla. He had gone through the jungle on all fours, but when he saw our party he erected himself and looked us boldly in the face.

"He stood about a dozen yards from us, and was a sight, I think, never to forget. Nearly six feet high, with immense body, huge chest, and great muscular arms, with fiercely glaring, large, deep-gray eyes and a malignant expression of face, which seemed to me like some nightmare vision,--thus before us stood the king of the African forests.

"He was not afraid of us. He stood there and beat his breast with his huge fists till it sounded like an immense ba.s.s drum, which is their mode of offering defiance, meantime giving vent to roar after roar.

"The roar of the gorilla is the most singular and awful noise heard in these African woods. It begins with a sharp bark, like an angry dog, then glides into a deep ba.s.s roll, which literally and closely resembles the roll of distant thunder along the sky, for which I have sometimes been tempted to take it where I did not see the animal. So deep is it that it seems to proceed less from the mouth and throat than from the deep chest of the creature.

"His eyes began to flash fiercer fire as we stood motionless on the defensive, and the crest of short hair which stands on his forehead began to twitch rapidly up and down, while his powerful fangs were shown as he again sent forth a thunderous roar.

"And now he truly reminded me of nothing but some horrible dream creature,--a being of that hideous order, half man, half beast, which we find pictured by old artists in some representations of the lower regions.

"He advanced a few steps, then stopped to utter that hideous roar again, advanced again, and finally stopped when at a distance of about six yards from us. And here, as he began another of his roars, and beating his breast in rage, we fired, and killed him. With a groan which had something terribly human in it, and yet was full of brutishness, he fell forward on his face."

As soon as the great beast was dead, the men cut up the carca.s.s and divided it in portions to be cooked. The brains were carefully preserved as charms. When prepared in one way, the charm gives the wearer a mighty arm for the chase; when in another, it renders the possessor popular and a favorite in savage society.

CHAPTER LIV.

THE ANTELOPE FAMILY.

In place of the deer, so familiar to us in the study of other countries, we find numerous specimens of the great family of antelopes. Some writers have named as many as twenty varieties.

Among the antelope family the gnu, or horned horse, is perhaps the most curious specimen. In size it is about as large as an a.s.s. In form it has the body, neck, mane, and tail, like those of a horse, while the legs and horns are like those of the antelope.

The gnu is very spirited, and full of gambols. Its sense of smell is acute, and its sight very keen. It may be seen in herds on the plains which border upon the Orange River, where its free and varied movements, full of grace, can but attract the attention and awaken the interest of the observer.

The gazelle is the fleetest of the antelopes of Africa. It is usually quite small. One variety is no larger than a hare. Other varieties are as large as a deer. It is famed for the beauty of its eyes and the grace of its movements.

The eland is another species which abounds in South Africa wherever fertile planes or low hills exist. In the parts of Cape Colony which have been longest settled, however, it has been so hunted that specimens are rarely seen.

Livingstone describes the eland as the most magnificent of the antelopes. It belongs to the variety called bovine antelope, from the fact that it has some of the characteristics of the ox tribe. In spite of these peculiarities of structure, the eland is not only a very beautiful, but a very graceful animal. It is about the size of a horse.

It stand fully five feet high at the shoulders, and weighs from seven to nine hundred pounds.

The horns of the eland are almost straight, turning backwards and inwards. They are quite pointed at the ends. They are very strong, and their great strength is increased by the peculiar spiral formation. They remind one vividly of the old-fashioned paper lamp-lighters used when matches were not so common and the large open fireplaces were found in every home.

The eland has quite a swelling, or protuberance, of the larynx, similar to that found in the elk. Its tail resembles that of the ox, and has a tuft of long black hair at the end. It may be termed a gregarious animal, since it is always found in herds, which are often very large.

These animals are generally very plump and well filled out in all parts.

As they are gentle and not difficult to capture, they furnish sport for the hunters who pursue them. The flesh is much prized. The muscles of the thighs are considered the finest parts. These are dried like tongues.

It is rather a matter of surprise that no attempt has been made to domesticate the eland, possessing, as it does, so many excellent qualities and serving so many useful purposes.

Livingstone describes a species which he found north of Cape Colony as having a very marked bovine form to the body, more so than in the common species, marked with narrow transverse bands of white.

The springbok is another variety of antelope. It is one of the most beautiful and graceful, as well as one of the most numerous, species to be found in South Africa. It is found in immense herds of a thousand or more when the season arrives for it to migrate to the north or when the weather is suitable for it to return to the south.

The springbok derives its name from the habit it has of leaping as it runs. Its leaps are often from fifteen to twenty-five feet. It is extremely beautiful, with its graceful form and fine colors. In size it is larger than the roebuck. Its neck and limbs are not only longer but much more slender.