230 IN BRIGHTEST AFRICA 
spine. Like all of the others he displayed no signs of 
ageressiveness. He was intent only on getting away, 
He had not made a single sound at any time. 
As he lay at the base of the tree, it took all one’s 
scientific ardour to keep from feeling like a murderer. 
He was a magnificent creature with the face of an 
amiable giant who would do no harm except perhaps 
in self-defence or in defense of his friends. 
From twenty feet above him on the slope where 
we settled down with our kit to make pictures, notes, 
and studies, we had a view of Mikeno and the sur- 
rounding country which IJ then thought, and still 
remember, as the most beautiful view I have ever seen; 
and I believe my companions, one and all, quite 
agree with me. The motion-picture camera was 
directly behind us up the slope where we had deserted 
it. It was sent for and a panorama was made from 
over the body of the dead gorilla. Mikeno was at 
her best; she had thrown aside her veil of cloud; her 
whole summit was sharply outlined against the blue 
of the tropical sky. The warm greens and browns 
of the moss-covered cliffs suggested a drapery of 
lovely oriental weave. From the summit well down 
the wonderful line of the western slope the eye was 
arrested by old Nyamlagira smouldering lazily and 
sending her column of smoke and steam to join the 
hovering cloudbank above—then on again the eye 
swept over a scene of marvellous opalescent colour 
in which were dimly seen distant mountain ranges; 
suggestions of shimmering lakes, and mysterious 
forests—then around to Chaninagongo, looming dark 
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