Oct. 28, \ 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
S4S 
Great Dane, There seems to be quite a difference in the 
ideas of a good many old-timers regarding the feasibility 
of raising sled dogs with either long or short tails. With- 
out t^ils, when you have a team of seven dogs you can 
hitch them much nearer together and they are thus much 
nearer the sled and consequently can pull the sled much 
easier. On the other hand, in extreme cold weather both 
the regular Malamoot and the Siwash dogs sleep with 
their noses covered up with their tails, thus affording them 
quite a protection. 
I have owned dogs sent in from the States and also 
native dogs. Dogs sent in from the States are all right 
for short distances. Most of them are stout and hardy 
and look as if they could stand most anything, hut at the 
same time if you are going 'to take a trip of 600 miles, 
never take the "outside" dog; always take the native, as 
they can stand hardship much better than the other. A 
native dog will kill a dog from the States on a long 
trip. Their feet never get sore and even when the ther- 
mometer is 70 degrees below zero they never freeze. We 
feed the dogs once a day, along toward night, always 
carrying a dog kettle to cook the feed in, on all our 
trips. We generally use bacon and flour for feed, pre- 
paring it as follows: We cut the bacon in small pieces, 
cook for an hour, then stir in the flour and cook for 
twenty minutes, then let it cool for one-half hour and 
then feed. We keep up the wolf strain in our dogs by 
catching a wolf pup in the spring and breeding them next 
spring to the bitches. In this way we keep up the wolf 
stock, and have dogs that can stand the cold climate and 
the terrible hardships required on a long trip. 
I would say to the readers of the Forest and Stream 
that Alaska is not all alike, but the different parts of the 
country differ as much as Key West and the North 
Woods of Maine in the United States. One thing i have 
been informed of which always seems rather curious is, 
that taking the extreme Western coast of Alaska at the 
Straits, with Asiatic Siberia only twenty-six miles across, 
as the Western boundary of the United States, the center 
of the United States would lie 200 miles west of San 
Francisco, or in the Pacific Ocean. C. Jay. 
which I obtained on each trip; therefore I was com- 
pelled to hire those belonging to Boers to assist me in 
transporting them down to the coast, where they gen- 
erally succeeded in getting return loads for some store 
located in their neighborhood. Consequently, my train 
of wagons on my return trips frequently amounted to 
six or eiglit, creating quite an excitement as they passed 
through the various villages in the vicinity of the coast. 
I will endeavor to relate some of the incidents which 
occurred during my various trips up into the interior. 
My little place at Durban was but a short distance from 
the target range, and one afternoon on hearing the roar 
of elephant guns in that direction I determined to in- 
troduce my W^inchester rifle, the first one ever taken to 
I 
I 
South Africa, to the notice of the old hunters who I 
suspected were practicing at the targets. On my arrival 
at the grounds I found my surmise to be correct, and 
joining in the sport I was so fortunate as to make the 
best score. During the practice I carefully kept the 
rifle as much out of sight as possible, but at the con- 
clusion there was a general desire shown to inspect the 
gun which had surpassed the old regular standbys of 
the crowd. After a critical examination, the sweeping 
verdict was that it was simply a Yankee gimcrack, fit 
only for small game, and so valueless for killing hip- 
popotami, elephants, etc. Whereupon I immediately 
offered to wager the champagne for the party that I 
would kill the first hippopotamus at which I might fire. 
The bet was immediately accepted, and one of the party 
suggested that we at once adjourn to the hotel and have 
the wine, as the result was inevitable. I protested, and 
finally succeeded in getting a grudging assent given to 
f 
serve the entire head, T had the flesh and muscles re- 
moved, keeping the skull only. Suddenly it flashed across 
my mind that there was no mark of the bullet to show 
how the animal had been killed, as he had been wounded 
merely in the muscular portion of the nose, all of which 
had been cut away. I felt much disappointed, but de- 
termined to try and get another chance. The vagrant 
oxen were found that afternoon, and I told the Kaffir 
contingent that I would remain in camp a short time 
longer if they would find me another hippopotamus. 
On the second afternoon, they brought the news of an- 
other find, when I carefully fired, so that the ball would 
pass through that portion of the skull between the eyes 
and the nostrils, which might be closed, but the water 
Avould pass behind them info the nasal passages and 
from thence into the lungs. My surmise proved correct, 
and the skull was carefully packed in Guinea grass and 
lashed to one of the wagons for transportation down to 
the coast. On the night after my arrival at headquar- 
ters I had the Kaflirs carry it into town to the hotel where 
the hunters were accustomed to spend their evenings, and 
unpacking it they instantly saw how they had been out- 
witted, and unanimously pronounced it ''a cursed Yankee 
trick." However, they called for the wine, and just as 
the fun was at its height there was a rap on the door, 
and on opening it a Kafiir's head was thrust in, with the 
remark, "It is very cold for naked men to be waiting on 
the outside for their boss, and couldn't they have a bot- 
tle of rum to raise their corporeal temperature?" One 
was passed out to them, and a short time subsequently 
I started for home, and after proceeding but a short 
distance came across my native contingent on their way 
to the lock-up in charge of a policeman. On inquiry 
I found that they had managed to get into a fight with 
some of their countrymen; but when I told the officer 
the cause of their inebriety and offered to become surety 
for their good behavior he laughingly released them, and 
I hurried them home. 
The first hippopotamus ever brought to the United 
States came in charge of a party of the name of Gush- 
ing, who purchased it in London. On its arrival in New 
York it was stored in a building at the southeast corner 
of Broadway and I.ispenard street. On the next corner 
above stood the Florence Hotel, which was headquarters 
for showmen. Of course, the arrival of such a rare 
.-loological specimen caused quite a stir among the man- 
agers of the different traveling shows, and Gushing had 
but little trouble in securing an engagement at a good 
percentage of the receipts. I was a frequent visitor to 
the basement, and on one occasion took an artist friend 
with me, who wished to make a sketch of the animal 
and its Egyptian keeper, who had taken care of it from 
its capture. Very naturally he plied him with divers 
questions, and I was much amused with the answer to 
the following: "How large was this animal when if was 
captured?" "Leetle, so, keg beer," holding his hands 
about as far apart as the distance between the two heads 
of a keg. After experiences proved that Ali's estimate 
was very nearly correct, as I frequently encountered 
them riding on the backs of their swimming mothers. 
Near the mouth of the Umgeni River, but a short dis- 
tance from Durban, there was pair of hippopotami which 
bad been preserved by the sugar planters of that vicinity 
in spite of their destruction of the cane. It so happened 
that one of the community received a visit from a friend 
fresh from England, who, as soon as he saw the 
hippopotami, was frantic to have a shot at them. As 
his sole weapon was a common fowling piece, the planter 
laughingly consented^ chuckling at the verdancy of his 
Collecting Menagerie Animals. 
lU — ^AmoDg the Boers, 
(Conchtded from ^age 828.) 
On my arrival in Durban, Natal, I rented a small place 
on the outskirts of town, built some sheds, purchased 
wagons and oxen, and made all my preparations for a 
trip to the interior. As it was necessary that I should 
take up the country all the lumber required, I was forced 
to buy Baltic deals— equivalent to our joist— and have 
them sawn into boards, etc., suitable for makmg the 
cages. I never started on a trip with less than two 
wagon loads, and as a Gape wagon is a huge affair, drawn 
by fourteen oxen, and constructed to transport 5,ooolbs. 
of wool, one can easily imagine that my lumber bills 
amounted to quite a figure, besides the amount mvested 
in rod and hoop iron, nails, etc. I always took two 
carpenters in addition to my keepers, teamsters, etc., 
so that my outfit and traveling expenses each trip made 
quite a sum. 
My first trip had convinced me that I could not make 
a success by simply wandering about and trusting to the 
chances of picking up specimens from the Boers, who had 
captured them while voung on their huntmg trips. I 
therefore managed to get the addresses of parties who 
kept stores in the vicinity of the game regions, and for- 
warded them lists of animals, wi*i the prices affixed, 
which I would pav at their doors. They would then 
communicate with their customers, giving them the sums 
they would allow in barter, which is the mode of con- 
ductino- all mercantile business in the interior. The 
principal articles obtained from the Boers are wool and 
skins, which once a year they take to the nearest store 
and trade for all the commodities needed for the next 
twelve months. One can imagine the profit in the busi- 
ness from the following transaction: At one store I had 
a^^reed to take five white-tailed gnus, which a Boer 
b?ou^ht in, and for which I was to pay £5 per head. 
While I was busy securing them in temporary quarters 
the Boer passed into the store, completed his bartering 
and came out with the proceeds in a small bundle, which 
he carried under his arm. ,i • t 
Of course, my wagons could not carry all the animals 
THE ANIMAL WAGON'S AT DURBAN. 
defer the settlement of the wager until a trial was made. 
It so happened that nearly two years passed before I 
had an opportunity of testing my conceit. I was up 
among the branches of the Limpopo River, when my 
oxen went astray, and lying under one of my wagons, 
puUing at a pipe, I was anxiously awaiting the return of 
my teamsters, who had gone oft" hunting them, when one 
of a party of Kaflirs, who were following my party for 
the purpose of getting the refuse of the carcasses that I 
killed for my own men, came running up and shouting, 
■'Lumvubu, n'kos," which translated simply meant, "Hip- 
popotamus, boss." On questioning him, I learned that 
he had found one in a pool but a short distance frora 
my camp. Taking the Winchester, I followed him to the 
stream, where he pointed out the spot where he had seen 
the animal rise in order to breathe. Stepping back so 
as to conceal myself among the bushes, I found a con- 
venient fork for a rest and sighted the rifle for the center 
of the pool. I had but a short time to wait before the 
hippopotamus' nose was "raised above the surface of the 
water, when he received a shot directly through his nos- 
trils, which prevented him from again closing them. 
After some terrific floundering the animal slowly sank to 
the bottom, and I went back to the wagons, after giving 
the Kaffirs orders to notify me as soon as the body rose 
to the surface, I had hot long to wait, and quickly had 
the body drawn to the bank and the head cut off, giving 
the remains to the hungry Kaffirs. As I could not pre- 
visitor. But it happened that he was so closely concealed 
that the female passed within a few feet of the muzzle of 
his gun, so that when he fired a single shot reached the 
brain and dropped the animal in lier tracks. The ex- 
ultation of the "tenderfoot" was dampened by the de- 
jection of his host and neighbors, while the newly made 
widower became as mad as a March hare, and furious- 
ly charged everything that crossed his path. After sev- 
eral days of such violent behavior he suddenly disap- 
peared, and a short time afterward reappeared, ac- 
companied by a fresh frau, to the great delight 
of the whole neighborhood. To accomplish this remark- 
able feat he had had to ascend the river some fifty or sixty 
miles or descend to its mouth and then pass up the 
coast to St. Lucia Bay, at either of which points were 
herds of hippopotami in their native state. I have al- 
ways been puzzled how he made a success in so short 
a space of time. Did he vanquish some unlucky spouse 
and ruthlessly seize dn to his better half, or did he happen 
to meet one of the opposite sex who had not yet entered 
into the "holv bonds of matrimony"? In fine, how did 
he manage to convey to his newly acquired bride the 
impression that his hearthstone was bare? 
When I first arrived in South Africa I was quite 
anxious to procure some Gape ant-bears, traces of which 
could be seen very frequently; but the parties to whom I 
applied said that it was impossible to dig them out of 
their holes, as they always made their lairs in sandy soil, 
