152 AFRICAN GAME ANIMALS 



additional killing of zebras, because under protection they 

 became too numerous, and in Uganda, the buffalo had to 

 be taken off the protected list, and in various places the 

 hippopotamus. Moreover, the assault on collecting ani- 

 mals for museums is so unspeakably silly that it is difficult 

 to accept it as being in good faith — or, at least, it would 

 be, if human capacity for folly were not infinite. There 

 should be no collecting excepting for an adequate and pub- 

 lic purpose, and if species are on the verge of extinction 

 there should usually be no collecting at all; and purpose- 

 less slaughter committed under the pretense of "collect- 

 ing'* should be rigorously punished. But, if these conditions 

 are fulfilled, it is as necessary to collect animals for museum 

 specimens as to kill sheep and chickens for food. It is, of 

 course, just as silly to object to killing wild game for 

 food or for scientific purposes, within reasonable limits, 

 as to object to killing tame animals for food or for 

 clothing. 



There are always wicked people eager and adroit in 

 turning the folly of foolish people to their own base pur- 

 poses. When we started out on our African trip, the edi- 

 tors of a foolish little philanthropic publication in Boston, 

 nominally devoted to the welfare of dumb creatures, started 

 an agitation which finally took the form of petitions in the 

 public schools against our going. The children who signed 

 these petitions knew nothing, and of course appreciated 

 nothing, of what they were doing; probably they would 

 have as readily signed a petition for the hanging either of the 

 editors of the paper in question or of ourselves. As regards 

 ourselves, the action had hardly the effect of exciting even 

 amusement. But it had a distinctly regrettable effect in 



