HYENAS, MONKEYS, AND PIGS 



me of what had happened. Unfortunately, the bush was 

 too thick to allow any photographs to be taken of the live 

 beast, which both Mr. Lang and I studied for several 

 minutes before I dispatched it with a heart shot. As soon 

 as we two white men arrived, the hyena seemed to turn 

 all its attention toward us, and, displaying its big, snow- 

 white teeth, it growled defiance. Yet it was not cour- 

 ageous enough to attempt an attack, which a leopard or 

 lion, for instance, or even a smaller representative of the 

 cat family, would have done under similar circumstances 

 without a moment's hesitation. 



That hyenas often attack and kill old and feeble natives, 

 and drag little children away from the villages to devour 

 them in the jungle, is not so much to wonder at, for the 

 hyena is not the only carnivorous animal which, once 

 having tasted human flesh, prefers it to any other meat. 

 The natives themselves are to blame for the hyena's par- 

 tiality to human flesh, for, as previously remarked, a good 

 many of the tribes do not bury their dead, but throw their 

 bodies, as well as, in many cases, old, sick people, whom 

 they think may be dying, out into the bush for the very 

 purpose of having them eaten by hyenas and other car- 

 nivorous animals. 



The hyenas often go together in packs of from four to 

 eight and possibly more, particularly in localities where 

 there is plenty of game. It has been remarked by some 

 old and experienced sportsmen that in certain districts 

 the hyenas have greatly increased after the regions have 

 been visited regularly by hunting parties. The reason for 

 this is probably that a great many animals, which had been 

 perhaps only slightly wounded, and not followed up by 



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