118 TRAPPING WILD ANIMALS 
ture and, once captured, so difficult to deliver. On 
account of homesickness and sensitiveness to cli- 
matic changes, they die quickly in captivity. A 
caged orang-outang loses his spirit immediately; he 
sits brooding over his capture and often refuses 
all food. On one occasion I shipped eighteen small 
and medium-sized orang-outangs to San Francisco, 
hoping to land two or three alive, but they all died 
before reaching port. If I had been able to deliver 
a good specimen in the United States, I could have 
sold it for $5,000. 
But here were two full-grown beasts, already 
located, and waiting for me to try my hand at cap- 
turing them. I was greatly interested in the story 
the two headmen had to tell, and I spent the entire 
afternoon in listening to them and asking them all 
manner of questions. They described the country 
where the orang-outangs made their home, and 
promised as many men as I needed. 
I impressed them with the fact that I was not 
anxious to make the trip, and I made them promise, 
as a first consideration, that they would use all 
their power to prevent the natives from killing the 
animals if I captured them. I feared that the resent- 
ment of the natives against the orang-outangs 
might lead them to kill the animals for revenge, 
even after I had them safely caged. They agreed 
to do as I requested and once again begged me to 
return with them. I told them to come back the 
next day and talk with me again. I had already 
