156 THE ODYSSEY OF AN ANIMAL COLLECTOR 
that they might like to dip their hands in the water “just for 
fun”! “Quite harmless,” I said reassuringly, but funking it myself. 
After much tittering and hesitation one summoned up enough 
courage to put her hand in the water, but immediately let out a 
loud scream. She was cured—if of nothing else—of her curiosity. 
Electric Catfish in the wild state, it seems, have a partiality for 
predigested food, so what could be simpler; they just nose up 
alongside a friendly fish, the bigger the better, and switch on the 
current. This causes the poor fish to vomit—thus providing the 
catfish with his lunch. 
The coastal climate of the Cameroons is hot and extremely 
humid, with heavy rainfall. However, Duala is a busy and very 
prosperous town, being the export center for the produce of the 
hinterland. This is naturally rich, yielding palm-nuts and palm-oil 
in tremendous quantity. Before the commencement of the 1914- 
1918 war the Germans ruled the whole of the Cameroons and 
started many palm-oil plantations. Then it was split up, and with 
typical generosity and lack of foresight the British handed over 
the most productive zone to the French, retaining the rest. In those 
days, of course, there was no shortage of fats and oils, and all that 
mattered was the entente cordiale. 
Getting my luggage cleared at Duala was quite an experience, 
or rather I should say getting it from the customs sheds to the 
hotel. At the customs crowds of natives stood waiting to act as 
porters and were quite uncontrollable. I arranged with a lorry 
driver for him to take my luggage to the hotel, but having seen 
the forthcoming mélée I told him that I was going to pay six boys 
only to put my baggage on the lorry. This idea he conveyed to 
the boys. The signal went and the battle was on; an avalanche of 
black humanity descended on my baggage. At least fifty madmen 
were fighting and pushing one another to get their hands to a 
piece of baggage. Each box was like a ball buried under a rugby 
scrum, and when each one was shot into the lorry, no one knew 
who had scored. At first, owing to the discomfort of the humid 
heat, I found this rather trying, but after a while, as the battle 
continued, I began to see the humor of it. As I climbed into the 
front seat beside the driver, the entire fifty surged round and 
demanded cadeau. Having already delegated this difficult part to 
