GORILLAS— PITMAN 261 



But, around the male gorilla, on account of its enormous size and 

 strength, coupled in recent years with frequent lapses from grace 

 provoked by unnecessary and undue interference, there has been 

 woven, and unfortunately published, a fantasy of inaccuracy and 

 exaggeration, so much so that the very homely old male is visualized 

 as an object of dread. The male gorilla, as the family head, is most 

 solicitous for the welfare of his wives and children — a very human 

 trait, and on the threat of danger unheeding of his own safety accepts 

 full responsibility for the well-being of his charges. Can he be 

 blamed ? 



If the danger is real the females and young are sent off, while 

 father waits to take on all comers until satisfied that the remainder 

 of the band are out of harm's way. Sometimes, when the danger 

 is sudden and overwhelming, the youngsters are sent up trees to hide 

 till the trouble is over. It is strangely reminiscent of the records of 

 some of the early A.f rican explorers relative to tribal customs. When 

 the womenfolk were to be seen busily engaged in their usual vocation 

 in the precincts of a village or kraal, all was well, and no hostility 

 contemplated on the part of the local inhabitants. But an absence 

 of women and children was interpreted as unfavorable, signifying 

 that they had been removed to a safe place in order to enable the 

 warriors to fight unhampered. And so it is with the old male gorilla, 

 for as soon as he bids his family seek safety, he is out for mischief, 

 though without direct provocation is unlikely to attack. There are 

 black sheep in each fold, and exceptions to every rule, and solitary 

 examples, both male and female, which have probably been outlawed 

 for a very good reason, have been known to be abnormally aggressive. 



The father of a band is liable to be most demonstrative when it 

 contains very small juveniles. The demonstration must be truly 

 fearsome and nerve-racking, and I am thanl^f ul I have not yet experi- 

 enced it. Eye-witnesses, who have had the strength of mind and 

 temerity to stand firm to a so-called charge and refrain from shoot- 

 ing, have described to me how the gorilla suddenly pulls up to stand 

 upright and seemingly towers above the intruder. A pause — he turns 

 and shuffles away. Graphic and thrilling accounts of these demon- 

 strations, some faithfully perpetuated in picture, will be found in 

 Du Chaillu's "Equatorial Africa", descriptive of many journeys of 

 exploration in West Africa between 1856-59. I never tire of read- 

 ing these fascinating narratives, but what has ever filled me with 

 unbounded admiration is the fearlessness and pluck of this well- 

 known explorer-naturalist who, armed with a single-barreled muzzle- 

 loader, habitually refrained from firing at the demonstrating male, 

 allowing him time and again to arrive almost within grasping 

 distance. 



