﻿AND 
  BIG 
  GAME 
  IN 
  S. 
  RHODESIA. 
  103 
  

  

  district 
  coloured 
  green 
  in 
  Map 
  I 
  includes 
  all 
  localities 
  where 
  cases 
  of 
  trypanosomiasis 
  

   have 
  occurred 
  during 
  the 
  past 
  five 
  years, 
  whilst 
  in 
  other 
  parts 
  of 
  the 
  territory 
  only 
  

   areas 
  in 
  which 
  tsetse 
  have 
  been 
  actually 
  seen 
  have 
  been 
  marked. 
  One 
  might 
  live 
  for 
  

   months 
  within 
  certain 
  parts 
  of 
  this 
  green 
  area 
  and 
  never 
  see 
  a 
  tsetse-fly, 
  in 
  fact 
  the 
  only 
  

   place 
  where 
  specimens 
  can 
  be 
  expected 
  is 
  in 
  the 
  heart 
  of 
  the 
  belt, 
  which 
  is 
  coloured 
  

   red. 
  In 
  spite 
  of 
  farming 
  and 
  mining 
  operations, 
  however, 
  there 
  was, 
  until 
  early 
  last 
  

   year 
  (1913), 
  an 
  area 
  about 
  150 
  square 
  miles 
  in 
  extent 
  in 
  which 
  the 
  only 
  change 
  from 
  

   natural 
  conditions 
  due 
  to 
  human 
  agency 
  had 
  been 
  the 
  destruction 
  and 
  driving 
  away 
  

   of 
  the 
  game. 
  During 
  the 
  past 
  few 
  months 
  a 
  light 
  railway 
  has 
  been 
  run 
  down 
  to 
  the 
  

   heart 
  of 
  the 
  belt 
  to 
  supply 
  timber 
  for 
  certain 
  mines 
  near 
  Gatooma, 
  and, 
  according 
  to 
  

   information 
  received, 
  the 
  destruction 
  of 
  the 
  forest 
  has 
  been 
  very 
  considerable. 
  Events 
  

   subsequent 
  to 
  1913, 
  therefore, 
  have 
  no 
  bearing 
  on 
  the 
  question 
  of 
  fly 
  and 
  game. 
  

  

  An 
  area 
  embracing 
  the 
  fly-belts 
  in 
  the 
  Hartley 
  district 
  was 
  first 
  thrown 
  open 
  to 
  free 
  

   shooting 
  for 
  three 
  months 
  in 
  the 
  year 
  1901, 
  but 
  this 
  period 
  was 
  not 
  extended. 
  Later, 
  

   in 
  1905, 
  the 
  Game 
  Laws 
  were 
  again 
  suspended 
  in 
  respect 
  to 
  this 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  country, 
  

   zebra, 
  elephant, 
  rhinoceros, 
  hippopotamus 
  and 
  ostrich 
  being 
  excluded, 
  however, 
  from 
  

   the 
  scope 
  of 
  the 
  notice. 
  The 
  open 
  area 
  was 
  maintained 
  until 
  1908, 
  but 
  in 
  that 
  year 
  

   was 
  closed 
  again, 
  only 
  to 
  be 
  reopened 
  in 
  1909 
  on 
  account 
  of 
  heavy 
  losses 
  amongst 
  

   cattle. 
  Since 
  that 
  time 
  the 
  Game 
  Laws 
  have 
  remained 
  suspended 
  with 
  respect 
  to 
  the 
  

   fly-infested 
  portion 
  of 
  the 
  district. 
  

  

  The 
  basin 
  of 
  the 
  Suri-suri 
  River, 
  being 
  easy 
  of 
  access, 
  was 
  shot 
  over 
  to 
  a 
  great 
  extent 
  

   by 
  residents 
  in 
  the 
  district, 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  by 
  professional 
  hunters, 
  and 
  between 
  1905 
  and 
  

   1908 
  a 
  considerable 
  reduction 
  of 
  the 
  game 
  took 
  place. 
  But 
  even 
  in 
  1909 
  there 
  were 
  

   still 
  small 
  herds 
  of 
  eland, 
  sable, 
  zebra 
  and 
  other 
  buck 
  to 
  be 
  met 
  with, 
  as 
  the 
  writer 
  is 
  

   able 
  to 
  testify. 
  The 
  destruction 
  has 
  continued 
  since 
  then, 
  and 
  at 
  the 
  present 
  time 
  

   the 
  basin 
  of 
  the 
  river, 
  once 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  more 
  prolific 
  hunting 
  grounds 
  in 
  the 
  territory, 
  

   is 
  almost 
  destitute 
  of 
  the 
  larger 
  fauna, 
  although 
  until 
  last 
  year 
  a 
  few 
  still 
  lingered, 
  

   and 
  small 
  herds 
  were 
  liable 
  to 
  pass 
  through 
  at 
  certain 
  seasons. 
  A 
  few 
  warthog 
  and 
  

   small 
  buck 
  were 
  usually 
  to 
  be 
  found. 
  The 
  writer 
  visited 
  this 
  part 
  first 
  in 
  August 
  1909, 
  

   and 
  there 
  was 
  considerably 
  more 
  evidence 
  of 
  big 
  game 
  at 
  that 
  time 
  than 
  in 
  the 
  years 
  

   following. 
  

  

  The 
  last 
  instance 
  of 
  tsetse 
  having 
  been 
  met 
  with 
  in 
  considerable 
  numbers 
  in 
  the 
  

   Suri-suri 
  belt 
  occurred 
  in 
  1908, 
  when 
  Dr. 
  Alex. 
  Mackenzie, 
  of 
  Hartley, 
  found 
  the 
  pest 
  

   sufficiently 
  thick 
  to 
  constitute 
  a 
  serious 
  personal 
  nuisance, 
  and 
  his 
  statement 
  is 
  borne 
  

   out 
  by 
  Mr. 
  L. 
  E. 
  W. 
  Bevan, 
  Veterinary 
  Bacteriologist, 
  who 
  was 
  with 
  him 
  at 
  the 
  time. 
  

   Other 
  testimony 
  from 
  both 
  European 
  and 
  native 
  sources 
  agrees 
  on 
  the 
  point 
  that 
  the 
  

   fly 
  was 
  more 
  numerous 
  previous 
  to 
  1909 
  than 
  afterwards. 
  In 
  1910, 
  a 
  Cape 
  boy 
  who 
  

   drove 
  the 
  writer 
  to 
  the 
  point 
  where 
  the 
  little-used 
  road 
  from 
  Hartley 
  to 
  the 
  Golden 
  

   Valley 
  Mine 
  crosses 
  the 
  Suri-suri 
  River 
  near 
  its 
  head- 
  waters 
  volunteered 
  the 
  statement 
  

   that 
  a 
  few 
  years 
  previously 
  the 
  mules 
  would 
  have 
  been 
  attacked 
  by 
  a 
  swarm 
  of 
  tsetse 
  

   at 
  this 
  point. 
  The 
  very 
  considerable 
  losses 
  of 
  cattle 
  from 
  trypanosomiasis 
  at 
  the 
  

   end 
  of 
  1908 
  and 
  the 
  beginning 
  of 
  1909 
  were, 
  as 
  stated 
  above, 
  largely 
  the 
  cause 
  of 
  the 
  

   area 
  being 
  again 
  thrown 
  open 
  to 
  free 
  shooting 
  in 
  March 
  of 
  the 
  latter 
  year. 
  

  

  The 
  writer 
  paid 
  almost 
  monthly 
  visits 
  to 
  the 
  Suri-suri 
  belt 
  after 
  August 
  1909, 
  and 
  

   throughout 
  1910, 
  and 
  never 
  on 
  any 
  occasion 
  met 
  with 
  the 
  pest 
  in 
  numbers. 
  The 
  

   greatest 
  number 
  seen 
  in 
  one 
  day 
  was 
  in 
  October 
  1909, 
  when 
  the 
  total 
  was 
  nine. 
  Usually 
  

  

  