jbec. 6, 15)02.1 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
446 
execute a war dance, exclaiming, "That's it," when I 
suggested the propriety of keeping quietj or his mission 
would be revealed. He instantly saw the cogency of mj 
advice, and after talking the matter over we concluded to 
take the landlord into our confidence, with the hope that 
he would suggest some way by which the specimens could 
be secured at a reasonable price, without exciting any 
suspicion of their real value and destination. Luckily, he 
suggested a scheme, which was worked out successfully, 
without any one conjecturing the true issue. He proposed 
that he should be the only person who should appear in 
the transaction to the natives whom he would employ 
to collect the plants. The affair ended in his engaging 
three Malays to bring him three hundred plants similar to 
the one shown them, at thirty cents each. Now, as it tabes 
two and a half or their cents to make one of ours, it was 
a mystery to me how much the contractors really paid 
for the plants as they delivered them in forty-eight hours ; 
having evidently gone out to the neighboring villages 
and and hired the inhabitants to collect for them. Hap- 
pily the agent got away with the three hundred plants, 
nicely packed in bamboo crates, without exciting any sus- 
picion, and I have often wondered how much they brought 
on their arrival in London. 
In the meanwhile, the scouts returned, and one of thera 
reported the discovery of a female rhinoceros and young 
one in a locality favorable for capture. We immediately 
began preparations for departure, when Ferrari suggested 
the propriety of visiting the Rajah of the district, in 
which we proposed to hunt, and solicit his good offices 
in directing his subjects to give us all the assistance pos- 
sible in our undertaking. Of course, I saw the wisdom 
of the move, and we made a trip to Bandong, where the 
?.ajah of the Preanger District resided. We arrived in 
town early in the morning, and immediately after break- 
fast Ferrari started for the Rajah's palace, in order to 
have an hour appointed for my reception. He returned in 
a short time, and from his looks 1 divined that he was 
the bearer of ill tidings. He informed me that on his 
arrival at the palace he was told that the Rajah was unable 
to receive visitors, as he was undergoing a period of 
mourning for the death of a relative, and the Mahometan 
religion forbade the reception of visitors during its period. 
Very naturally thinking that our scheme had failed, we 
were anxious to return to Buitenzorg as soon as possible, 
but found that we should be compelled to wait until the 
departure of the afternoon train. In order to kill time 
we started out for a stroll through the town, which final- 
ly brought us to its outskirts, where my attention was 
attracted by a handsome space, beautifully laid out with 
walks, ornamental trees, shrubs, flowers, etc., which Fer- . 
rari informed me were the grounds surrounding the pal- 
ace, and proposed that we should ramble through them. 
On my acquiescence, we wandered about for about half 
an hour, when we found ourselves in front of a pavilion, 
which we entered and found that it contained a couple of 
fine billiard tables. We were no sooner inside than the 
keeper, who recognized Ferrari, invited us to try our 
liands at a game; placing the balls on a table and point- 
ing out the cue racks. So soon as we commenced playing 
he passed out of doors, and in a short time returned, bear- 
ing a waiter, which held a bottle of claret, glasses and a 
bundle of cheroots. In a short time every window in the 
"building was filled with the heads of a crowd of natives, 
who seemed to highly enjoy the fluctuations of the game. 
Suddenly every one of them fell on his knees, and imme- 
diately after the Rajah and attendants passed into the 
door. Ferrari introduced me and acted as interpreter dur- 
ing our interview. The substance of the rajah's remarks 
was that he felt so much complimented by my visit for 
the purpose of asking his permission to hunt in a portion 
of the territory governed by himself, that he could not 
resist the temptation of breaking one of the most rigid of 
his religion's decrees and granting the requested interview. 
That he would cause it to be known that I traveled as 
his guest, and consequently must be treated with special 
courtesy. He positively refused to listen to my thanks 
for his great kindness, and wishing me every success 
kindly bade me farewell and hastily left the building. 
Thus, contrary to our expectations, the purport of our 
visit to Bandong was successfully consummated. 
That afternoon we returned to Buitenzorg ; hastily made 
preparations for our hunting trip, and hurried off to the 
Preanger District. On our third day out we were sur- 
prised by being joined by two of the Rajah's servants, 
with a pair of horses for our especial conveyance. One 
of the men looked after them and the ot'^er never let me 
get out of his sight, except when I was i deep. I laugh- 
ingly requested that he would not be so /igilant, but he 
refused, and said that he had no fears of my suffering 
from personal violence, but I might unwittingly meet 
with some accident and then he would be held accountable 
for it. 
The horses were never used and were simply led from 
one camp to another, whenever we made a change of 
base. We proceeded by easy jojrneys toward Sagranten, 
near which the rhinoceros hi been seen, always spend- 
ing our nights at one of the intermediate villages, where 
we occupied the rest-house, which had been built for the 
especial accommodation of the Dutch officials in making 
their tours through the country. During the afternoon a 
runner was sent ahead to notify the headman of the vil- 
lage of our purpose to spend the night in his hamlet, and 
on our arrival we would find everything prepared for our 
accommodation. On reaching Sagr nten we found that 
the Raden Sastra Soedibdja had mado especial efforts to 
render our sojourn under his roof as pleasant as possible. 
As several days elapsed before we received notice from 
the scouts regarding our presence in their immediate vi- 
cinity, I passed the interval in wandering about the neigh- 
borhood, trying to gain some insight into Malay life. In 
one of my rambles I had a narrow escape from four na- 
tive buffaloes. They were out grazing and were attended 
by a couple of children. In passing I walked to the wind- 
ward of them, and so soon as they caught my scent they 
made a w-icked charge, in spite of the .yells of the young- 
'^ters. Fortunately, a convenient tree served as my refuge, 
:ind I wa.s astounded to see the tots deliberately climb over 
the rumps of the animals on to their backs, by using their 
tails as a help. When they were firmly seated at the 
shoulders, a series of shouts and whacks with bamboo 
cudgels caused my assailants to move off and allow my 
descent to terra firma, with the impression that it was not 
prudent for a Caucasian to prowl around among such 
seemingly peaceful creatures. 
I was surprised at seeing the number of ways in which 
bamboo was used for all manner of purposes. For in- 
stance, it takes the place of buckets for holding and 
carrying water. By knocking out all the joints, except 
at one end, of pieces about four feet in length and swing- 
ing thera with bits of rattan to the two ends of another 
smaller piece, carried on the shoulders, they are made to 
serve as vessels for the transportation of the fluid, and 
on reaching the dwelling, are leaned up in a corner until 
empty. 1 found the Raden in possession of a pack of 
playing cards, and very desirous of learning some game 
of which he had no knowledge. On the spur of the mo- 
ment I thought of solitaire and proffered to teach it to 
him. He proved an apt pupil and expressed himself de- 
lighted at learning a game which he could play alone 
without being bothered to hunt up an opponent. He be- 
came so smitten with it that he spent every spare moment 
shufliing and dealing out the cards. 
Several days passed before we received any word from 
our scouts, when our suspense was relieved by the arrival 
of a messenger requesting our presence at a small hamlet 
only a few miles distant. Hastily following our guide, we 
soon arrived at our destination, where, in less than an 
hour, a house was erected for the especial accommodation 
of the Raden, Ferrari and myself, every portion of which 
was bamboo. Singular to relate, the roof was the first 
portion constructed, and after the frame had been thatched 
with bamboo leaves, it was hoisted up on to the four cor- 
ner posts, and bamboo mats were hung around, to serve 
as walls, while the floor was of small bamboo poles lashed 
on sills of the same material. The edifice was about six- 
teen feet square, and the only tool used in its construc- 
tion was the parang, which is a large knife, very similar 
to the bowie, suspended sword fashion at the side. 
We had just stretched ourselves on our makeshift 
shakedowns for a good night's rest, and I was in the act 
of reaching for the coal oil lamp in order to extinguish 
it, when I suddenly became conscious of an abrupt vibra- 
tory motion, and was forced to lift it from the floor in or- 
der to prevent its upset. Immediately sitting up on my 
pallet I became conscious of experiencing a violent earth- 
quake shock, which was so severe that it was with great 
diihculty that I kept in an upright position. Suddenly 
there was an appalling crash, and the vibration increased 
for a few seconds, while the bamboo frame of our shanty 
squeaked fearfully, and an awful wail went up from the 
panicstricken inhabitants of the hamlet. Abruptly the 
vibration ceased as quickly as it had arisen, and we were 
able to stand up and move out into the open air, where 
we found the natives flat on their faces and heartily pray- 
ing. It required a deal of persuasion on the part of the 
Raden to induce them to arise from their recumbent posi- 
tions, and re-enter their domiciles, which had received 
little or no injury, on account of their peculiar bamboo 
construction. 
The next morning the Raden received notice that a 
landslide had taken place in a ravine about a mile distant, 
and after breakfast we visited the locality and found that 
about an acre of woodland had slipped from a hillside mto 
a valley, maldng one . of the most complete examples of 
havoc that I ever witnessed, and fui-nishing an undeniable 
reason for the fearful crash and corresponding tremor 
which had been felt on tlie preceding night. 
After such a terrible shaking up we were very anxious 
to hear from our scouts on the trail of the rhinoceros, and 
our anxiety was relieved about noon by the tidings that 
she and the calf were completely swrrounded, and a party 
were at work arranging a driveway, along which they 
would be forced, so as to give a fair shot at the mother 
and insure the consequent capture of the youngster. 
The driveway was in the form of an enormous Y, with 
the men stationed at short intervals along the outer edge 
and across the upper portion, Ferrari and myself were 
placed about midway of each jaw, so as to get a shot 
at the mother, while the frightened calf would be driven 
forward until it reached the junction of the paths where 
It would inadvertently thrust its head through a noose, 
which had been stretched across the pathway, and on rush- 
ing a few steps further, it would be entangled in a sec- 
ond one. To both of the nooses had been tied small, 
short bits of logs, which would serve as drags, for the 
purpose of wearing out the captive. The path in which 
the nooses were arranged was very narrow, and the sides 
were composed of a dense wall of heavily leaved palm 
branches in order to prevent anv attempt at a bolt before 
becoming entangled in the second noose. 
The Raden picked out the positions which Ferrari and 
myself were to occupy and then hurried off to give the 
signal to the drivers. In a very short time a most terrific 
din was raised, and the panicstricken animals rushed past 
Ferrari, who was so fortunate as to drop the mother in 
her tracks. The calf rushed headlong into the first noose 
and m a few seconds was entangled in the other one and 
trotted off, dragging the pieces of wood after him. The 
Raden then selected about a dozen of the drivers to fol- 
low the little one and keep it moving, so as to gradually 
tire It out, which he informed us would take some three 
or four days, as he did not wish to wear it out suddenly 
for fear of injuring it permanently. I noticed that every 
man he picked out carried a gun, while a large majority 
of those who had helped to make the surround were 
unarmed. On asking for the reason of the selection, I 
was informed that only the most skillful and trustworthy 
were allowed to carry arms, which fully accounted for 
the preference. 
After receiving special orders from the Raden to keep 
the youngster in constant motion without pressing him 
too hard, the hunters started on his trail, which was 
easily followed, on account of the traces left by the bits 
of wood. The Raden, Ferrari and myself then returned 
to our hastily erected domicile, spent the night, and the 
next morning Ferrari started for Buitenzorg, as he could 
not afford to be absent any longer from his hotel, thus 
leaving the Raden and myself to look after the capture 
of the cal! We bundled up what traps we thought neces- 
sary for our journey and started to follow the pursuers 
of the baby. It did not take much time to overtake thera 
as their progress was somewhat slow. Their mode of pro- 
cedure was to keep within a short distance of the tags 
and whenever the fugitive showed any disposition to stop 
and rest, a tug at the little logs would quickly cause a 
forward movement. As the ropes were some thirty or 
forty feet in length, there was not much risk from a 
charge, and if a vicious one was made, every one acted 
so as to divert the attention of the animal from his tan- 
talizer. The Raden and myself wefe much altitlsed attd in- 
terested at the various ways by which the vicious lunges 
of the irritated animal were avoided by his skillful pur- 
suers, and he was kept on the move from the earliest 
dawn until darkness set in. The hunters' food was passed 
to thera while they were moving, and it was the special 
task of two men to keep the entire party supplied with 
fresh cocoanut milk, while one would be serving out 
draughts to the thirsty party, the other would be seeking 
a grove of the trees, from which he would gather the 
nuts and hurry back with a bag of them, so that there 
was no suffering from thirst. For a thoroughly cooling 
and refreshing drink, I have never tasted anything to 
compare with it. At dark the huntsmen would cease 
persecuting their quarry and form an impromptu camp 
immediately around the logs, while the Raden and myself 
were sheltered under a hastily constructed shed of palm 
branches. _ ^ . . ^ 
ihe pursuit continued in this manner until late in the 
afternoon of the third day, when the Raden thought the 
hour had arrived for the complete checking and consequent 
capture of the nearly worn out calf. By his orders two 
of the hunters seized the logs and suddenly wound the 
ropes around two convenient trees, which entirely checked 
the forward movement of the little one, which lay down, 
seeming completely exhausted. Two hunters then ad- 
vanced with a couple of nooses fastened to bamboo poles, 
for the purpose of entangling his legs and weaving a 
complete network around him. They not acting precisely 
as the Raden thought proper, he hastily stepped between 
them and their quarry, when to the consternation of the 
entire party, he received a backward charge, which tossed 
him among the branches of a leaning palm, where he hung 
senseless, while the calf prepared to follow up his ad- 
vantage by another attack. I shouted "Badil! Badill" 
"Shoot! Shoot!" when he received a volley which dropped 
him in his tracks, and every one rushed toward the un- 
conscious Raden, who was quickly and gently lowered 
from his dangling situation and softly laid on a make- 
shift bed of palm leaves. In a few minutes he showed 
signs of returning consciousness, and soon was able to 
sit up and show that he did not suffer from broken limbs. 
A comfortable litter was manufactured, in which he was 
placed, and we started on our sorrowful tramp to Sagran- 
ten, which we reached in four days, with the Raden much 
improved, but still unable to walk without assistance. 
For several days I was busy superintending the making 
of temporary cages for the transportation of the living 
zoological specimens secured during my trip. As all of 
them had to be carried on men's shoulders, their construc- 
tion required a deal of thought and trouble, and I found 
that bamboo served as their main component. The Raden 
kindly drew a rough map of the best route to Buitenzorg, 
and I bade farewell to him while he was seated on his 
piazza at a table, busily engaged in playing solitaire. 
Frank J. Thompson. 
The Fascinating Kissimmee, 
From the Florida Times-Union Citizen, describing a trip in mid- 
winter of 1901-2. 
There is an old Oriental saying, "See Damascus arid 
die. That city was considered so beautiful that it was 
taken for granted that it was no use living with the ex- 
pectation of seeing anything to compare with it this side 
of paradise, and though we do not recommend the latter 
part of the saying to our readers so far as Florida is con- 
cerned, yet we can safely assert that no one can be said to 
have seen the beauties of the State unless they have made 
a trip down the Kissimmee River. Without being grand, 
there is a quiet beauty about it which clings to the mem- 
ory—it is the beauty of repose, and from the time the 
steamer starts from the dock at Kissimmee till she reaches 
her destination at Bassinger or Fort Myers, one never 
wants to take his eyes from the every varying picture con- 
stantly opening up before him. 
_ For the purpose of writing this notice we accepted the 
invitation to make the voyage in the fine steamer Bassin- 
ger, belonging to the Gilbert Bros. 
On leaving Kissimmee, the first thirteen miles are over 
the waters of Lake Tohopekaliga, a Seminole name sig- 
nifying the "sleeping tiger," probably so named from its 
shape. Several oak and palm-covered islands, one of 
which IS called Paradise, deep bays and long sandy 
beaches,_ diversify the scenery till we reach the commence'- 
ment_ ot the great drainage system inaugurated by Mr 
Hamilton Disston, at Southport; hence a canal loo feet 
wide and four miles in length was cut, and in addition 
to forming a means of navigation to the coast at Punta 
Rassa, on the Gulf of Mexico, was the means of reclaim- 
ing a large extent of splendid land from the original 
swamp which existed there, and which is now partly un- 
der cultivation as a truck farm, the crops on which were 
looking particularly rich, and there a're possibilities of 
many more on both banks of the canal. About half way 
down we saw a flock of about i,ooo sheep and lam.bs all 
m good condition, and we learned that the increase is 
nearly TOO per cent., owing to the number of twin lamb"? 
One of the chief causes of anxiety for their safety is due 
to eagles while the lambs are small. Cattle, too, are to 
be seen feeding m and near the marshes on either side 
Near the lower end of the canal the land gradually slopes 
down till It forms the marshes which almost entirely en- 
circle Lake Cypress, a sheet of water about five miles 
long by about one and a half miles in width. Another 
canal of three miles in length from this brings us into 
Hatchneha. We pass several projecting oak-covered 
beaches, with deep bays between, and then crossing a lone- 
arm, the lake narrows between fairly high pine woods and 
oak hammocks, and forms the real commencement of the 
Kissimmee River at Shell Hammock, a tract of high land 
covered with giant spreading oaks overhanging the river ■ 
here about forty yards wide, and extending down the 
river for more than a mile, to Gardner, another landing 
place on the river At Shell Hammock a hotel has lately 
been opened for the benefit of tourists and sportsmen as 
the river is famous for its fishing, and quail, ducks knd 
snipe are plentiful m the season, and there is an occasional 
chance ^hot to be had at deer or turkey. Both these • 
places are exceedingly picturesque, great moss-festooned ' 
oaks oyerhangrag the deep running river, and palm trees ^ 
and palmettos lend a tropical appearance. As the distance' 
from Kissimmee is only twenty-five miles by water it 
has become a very favorite picnic ground f©r the people 
