Journeys Through Bookland, Vol. 7Sylvester, Charles Herbert
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Journeys Through Bookland, Vol. 7
Sylvester, Charles Herbert
Children's literature; Literature -- Collections
The wounded female died in the course of the next day; her moanings were
more frequent in the morning, and they gradually became weaker as her
life ebbed out. Her death was like that of a human being, and afflicted
me more than I could have thought possible. Her child clung to her to
the last, and tried to obtain milk from her breast after she was dead. I
photographed them both when the young one was resting in its dead
mother's lap. I kept the young one alive for three days after its
mother's death. It moaned at night most piteously. I fed it on goat's
milk, for it was too young to eat berries. It died the fourth day,
having taken an unconquerable dislike to the milk. It had, I think,
begun to know me a little. As to the male, I made at least a dozen
attempts to photograph the irascible little demon, but all in vain. The
pointing of the camera towards him threw him into a perfect rage, and I
was almost provoked to give him a sound thrashing. The day after,
however, I succeeded with him, taking two views, not very perfect, but
sufficient for my object.
I must now relate how these three animals were caught, premising that
the capture of the female was the first instance of an adult gorilla
being taken alive. The place where they were found was on the left bank
of the Fernand Vaz, about thirty miles above my village. At this part a
narrow promontory projects into the river. It was the place where I had
intended to take the distinguished traveler, Captain Burton, to show him
a live gorilla, if he had paid me a visit, as I had expected, for I had
written to invite him whilst he was on a tour from his consulate at
Fernando Po to several points on the West African coast.
A woman, belonging to a neighboring village, had told her people that
she had seen two squads of female gorillas, some of them accompanied by
their young ones, in her plantain field. The men resolved to go in chase
of them, so they armed themselves with guns, axes, and spears, and
sallied forth.
The situation was very favorable for the hunters; they formed a line
across the narrow strip of land and pressed forward, driving the animals
to the edge of the water. When they came in sight of them, they made all
the noise in their power, and thus bewildered the gorillas, who were
shot or beaten down in their endeavors to escape. There were eight
adult females altogether, but not a single male. The negroes thought the
males were in concealment in the adjoining woods, having probably been
frightened away by the noise.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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