-*> The Hippopotamus 



In 1896 I found the natives on the shores of the 

 Victoria Nyanza inlets in a state of great excitement 

 over the vast numbers of hippopotamuses, and not at all 

 afraid of them. It was very curious to see these natives 

 on their rafts busy fishing, while the hippopotamuses kept 

 coming up to the surface of the water all around them, and 

 great numbers of huge crocodiles lay basking on the 

 sand-banks in the sun. I was pleased to discover for 

 myself here what I have often observed elsewhere, and 

 which Dr. R. Kandt had assured me was the case in 

 certain parts of Central Africa, namely that these animals 

 are only ill-tempered and aggressive when they have 

 been pursued by men and several times wounded. 



In one book of travel I find it stated that the Askaris 

 in Government service were obliged to keep firing off 

 their guns at night to protect a camp from hippopotamuses. 

 It is curious that I myself have never had any cause for 

 alarm in regard to these animals. Many of my encamp- 

 ments were situated in the midst of swamps and on river- 

 banks, and within a few paces of my tent hippopotamuses 

 would come sniffing all round inquisitively in the water, 

 yet none of my men bothered about them, seeing their 

 master did not. 



In two cases, indeed, a hippopotamus walked right 

 into my camp at night time between my men's tents 

 without doing harm to any one. On one other 

 occasion my sentries did fire at a hippopotamus which 

 (as I satisfied myself afterwards) was actually rubbing 

 its nose inquisitively against the canvas of my tent. In 

 this instance I had had my own tent set up only a few 



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