GORILLA ALMOST MAN? 245 
I did not see a gorilla in infancy, but there are two 
interesting accounts of travellers in this region who 
have seen them. Reichenow says: 
I was successful on the hunt to capture an animal only a few 
days old. It weighed only 2 kg., therefore considerably less 
than a newborn human child, while an old gorilla considerably 
exceeds an outgrown man in weight. The whole body of the 
little gorilla was sparsely covered with hair so that it almost 
appeared naked; only on the crown of its head there arose 
straight up a tuft of long brown hairs. This manner of hair 
growth gave the little ape a particularly human appearance. 
When one saw the little being, which flourished beautifully 
at the breast of a Negro nurse, in its helplessness, one had to 
become convinced that the gorilla nursling needs the greatest 
care and attention on the part of its mother. On the soft high 
bed the mother can well cover with her body the tiny young one 
which is in great need of warmth, without its running a chance of 
being crushed by her heavy body. 
Late in 1919 I received a letter from an English 
hunter, Mr. C. D. Foster, which contained the follow- 
ing paragraphs concerning a gorilla hunt on Mt. 
Mikeno: 
I noticed that the nearest gorilla was holding a very small one 
in her arms. I shot and wounded her and she came toward 
me still holding the young one. I shot again and she dropped. 
The rest, by this time, were just disappearing, and having shot 
two good specimens I did not try to follow them. 
I approached the female gorilla and found her lying stomach 
down resting on her elbows and still clasping the young one. 
She was evidently nearly dead and I took a photo of her in this 
position. I then waited for her to die which she did within a few 
minutes, so I went up to her and took away the baby gorilla 
which was quite uninjured and apparently was not more than 
24 hours old. . . . The baby gorilla (a female) is now two 
