Hunting Trips in Northern Rhodesia
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UC-NRLF \ \ ! 1 I '' h ' >• ' < ; ^'-/^m' u ' }r: ! ,\' ' '"// ( I' I s K 'I < > ' " ^ '. ' ' ' ! 1 V ; ^ 1 / r .'d;*-:*..''^'; ^i-\Ci ,-v?J* ^Vyhr^'^,.0i:i ^.v:.-^#-^;.• THE LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA PRESENTED BY PROF. CHARLES A. KOFOID AND MRS. PRUDENCE W. KOFOID W^M^'^^y^Mp'. -fK HUNTING TRIPS IN NORTHERN RHODESIA. d HUNTING TRIPS IN NORTHERN RHODESIA WITH ACCOUNTS OF SPORT AND TRAVEL IN NYASALAND AND PORTUGUESE EAST AFRICA, AND ALSO NOTES ON THE GAME ANIMALS AND THEIR DISTRIBUTION. BY D.^. LYELL, F.Z,S. 11 " (Joint Author of Central African Game and Its Spoor.' ILLUSTRATED WITH PHOTOGRAPHS AND DRAWINGS, HORACE COX, Field" Office, Windsor House, Bream's Buildings, E.C. 1 910. " " BREAM's BUILDINGS, LONDON, E.C. PRINTED BY HORACE COX, FIELD OFFICE, WINDSOR HOUSE, TO MY BEST FRIENDS, MY FATHER AND MOTHER, 1 DEDICATE THIS ACCOUNT OF SOME OF MY WANDERINGS. jvi373058 PREFACE In the following pages I give an account of some of my experiences with the big game of Northern Rhodesia (or South Central Africa). Although the book is mainly about shooting in that country, I have also included a few chapters on sport and travel in Nyasaland and Portuguese East Africa. Sporting literature on this part of Africa is not so common as that on countries such as Southern Africa, British East Africa, Uganda, Somaliland, and the Nile regions. Perhaps to many people this book may seem superfluous, as so much has already been written on African but in are shooting ; big-game hunters, my opinion, always ready to read about sport in countries so little known as this part of Africa, and where they have not been themselves. Since I have lived in this country I have kept diaries of my hunting trips and shooting experiences, but I have found it very difficult to prevent repetition, for to the general reader accounts of shooting must have a sameness that may bore him. To prevent this repetition as much as possible, I have picked out the accounts of certain trips, and have not given a description of all the experiences I have had with game while in the country. I have no hairbreadth escapes to relate, although I have had a few exciting experiences, which are the interesting part of big-game shooting. The game in this country is increasing rapidly, due to stringent game regulations and preservation, and there is here a splendid field for the hunter- naturalist. The free life in the bush is very fascinating to the lover of Nature in all her wild forms, and a man always longs to return to such a country, teeming with game, again and again. If these pages are of interest, or can give the slightest information to any sportsman, I shall be amply recompensed for the trouble of writing them. Their shortcomings are many; but I have written nothing that is not fact, and I would always prefer to be busy with the rifle than with the pen. I apologise for the frequent use of the personal pronoun, but this is a fault that is almost unavoidable in relating one's personal experiences. P REFA CE. My thanks are due to my friend Mr. George Garden, who has kindly given me permission to use some of his splendid photographs of game, all the animals illustrated having been shot by himself. The smaller photographs were taken by myself of game I have shot, and there are also a few by Mr. T. A. Barns, F.Z.S. I am also obliged to the editor of the Field newspaper for allowing me to make use of various articles I wrote for his paper at different times. These I have altered slightly to suit their appearance in book form If some of my remarks (about the natives, for instance,) do not meet with the approval of others, I can only say that they are the ideas of a single individual, although many men in this country have similar opinions. In all cases I have only mentioned facts, and everyone knows that some facts are disagreeable; but that is no reason why they should be kept back or hidden. Many men give their theoretical views in newspapers, magazines, and books on African affairs without having had personal experience of their subject, and in some cases they do not state the truth. It is absurd that men living in the British Isles, who have never put foot in Africa, should judge things that they are ignorant of, and send broadcast through the newspapers, etc., opinions which are not only erroneous, but misleading. The MS. of this book reached England from North-Eastern Rhodesia some " months before my friend Capt. C. H. Stigand's book, entitled The Game of British East Africa," was published, a work for which I made some drawings of spoors. If any similarity is to be found on certain points it can only result from the fact that our observations are based on the same lines. I have tried not to repeat " matter that appeared in our Central African Game and Its Spoor," My share in that book consisted of the drawings of spoors and droppings of the game, and other subjects; a fair amount of the letterpress; besides persuading Mr. C. F. Selous to give us an introduction, and getting Mr. T. A. Barns and Mr. George Garden to allow us the use of their photographs of game. I need not, therefore, make any excuses for having given a few reduced spoors in this volume also. D. D. L. Kapundi Stream, via Fort Jameson, N.-E. Rhodesia, November, 1909. CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. p^o. The Game Country and Game Hunter ... ... ... .., ... ... i CHAPTER II. 1. The Game (Antelopes) ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 8 CHAPTER III. 2. The Game {Carnivora, Pachydermata, etc.) ... ... ... ... ... i6 CHAPTER IV. A Hunting Trip to Lake Chiuta ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 24 CHAPTER V. Hippo in the Shire River ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 29 CHAPTER VI. After Roan Antelope ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 33 CHAPTER VII. My First Elephant, and .\nother ... ... ... ... ... 37 CHAPTER VIII. More Elephants and Other Game ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 43 CHAPTER IX. A Tough Rhino... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 49 CHAPTER X. A Boat Voyage on the Zambesi ... ... 53 CHAPTER XI. From Tete to Fort Jameson 58 CHAPTER XII. Remarks on the African Elephant and its Tusks 63 CHAPTER XIII. Hunting the Kudu and Sable ... 68 b CONTENTS. CHAPTER XIV. ,..0. Sport on the Rukusi Stream ... ... ... ... ... 74 CHAPTER XV. A Hot Trip to the Luangwa River ... ... 8i CHAPTER XVI. Evening Strolls with a Rifle ... ... ... ... ... 90 CHAPTER XVn. Some Native Traits ... ... ... ... ... ... 97 CHAPTER XVIII. Notes on Equipment, Travel E.xpenses, etc ... ... ... ... ... 102 Appendix—Native Names of the Game, etc.... ... 109 Index ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ii^; ERRATA. Pref.ace.— Fourth last line, Mr. C. F. Selous should be Mr. F. C. Selous. Index of Illustrations.—Red letchwe should be Red lechwe. Alph.\betical List of Illustrations.— Letchwe iAouW Ae' Lechwe. Page 30.—Fourteenth last line, chickotis should be chikotis. Page 43.—Second last line, Litchtenstein should be Lichtenstein. Page 69.— First line, Mr. C. F. Selous should be Mr. F. C. Selous. Page 71.— Fifth last line, Malelembos should be Malelembo's. Page 89.— Third line from top, maribou should be marabou. Page 100. —Fifteenth line from bottom, word east should be west. — " " " " " Page 100. Seventh last line, add word as between words so and long." Native Names of the Game.— Baboon Ngoni (Zulu) Chiro-Cheutowa iAox/rf A*' Chiro-Chentowa. Vocabulary of Native Words.—Bag—Tumbra should be Tumba. Index.—Chickotis should be Chikotis. Index.—Game of Northern Rhodesia, Letchwe should be Lechwe. Index.— Hills in Northern Rhodesia .sAou/ti be in and E. Africi. — Nyasaland Portuguese Index. Lakes, Lake Bangweola should be Lake Bangweolo. Index.—Letchwe should be Lechwe. Index.—Natives of Northern Rhodesia, Akimda should be Akunda, Index.—Natives of Northern Rhodesia, Asemba should be Asimba. Index.—Places mentioned, Susare should be Sasare. Index.— Villages mentioned, M'pondi's should be Mponda's. Index.—Villages mentioned, Wandanka's should be Wandauka's. \ THE AUTHOR IN HUNTING DRESS. HUNTING TRIPS IN NORTHERN RHODESIA. CHAPTER I. THE GAME COUNTRY AND GAME HUNTER. RHODESIA (North-Eastern and North-Western) is a huge NORTHERNterritory, having an area of perhaps 300,000 square miles, so it can be imagined how the conformation of the country varies, and what a wealth of big game haunts its wilderness of forest, mountain, and plain. North-Eastern Rhodesia, about which this book mainly deals, is bounded on the north-east by German East Africa, on the north-west by the Congo Free State, on the east by Nyasaland, on the west by North-Western Rhodesia, on the south-east by Portuguese East Africa, and on the south by Southern Rhodesia. As the territory of North-Eastern Rhodesia stretches farther to the north than the north-western section, I have called the country "Northern Rhodesia" for the purpose of abbreviation. The best shooting time is the dry season from May to December, the rains taking place between December and April. During the rainy season little game can be for found, water is so plentiful that all the game has scattered. The grass and vegetation are so rank and thick at this time of year that it is also a difficult matter the to add to the discomforts of getting through country ; and, this, shooting in the wet are so great that few men start out before May. annual little The grass fires take place about the month of July, sometimes a sooner if the rains to stop early. Shortly afterwards the fresh green grass begins spring up, when the game collect to eat it and to lick the ashes for the salt that is found in them.