ASCHEMEIER — THE GORILLA AND THE CHIMPANZEE 
91 
surprise at what he had seen. Just as he was beginning his explana- 
tion^ an old gorilla that had still remained in its bed arose and with a 
mighty yell retreated into the timber. The guide explained that the 
gorilla I had shot from the tree fell to the ground, apparently dead, 
but that another gorilla had rushed up, gathered it in his arms, and 
carried it into the bush. 
Another time, Pambo, my best guide and helper, went into the bush 
with another native. Not long after I heard shots and very soon 
both natives came running, scratched from the bush and out of breath. 
They said that soon after entering the bush they encountered a large 
family of gorillas. Pambo said he shot a large female and that a male 
immediately approached in a very threatening manner, picked up the 
wounded female, and made off. On turning around the men saw 
another large male making at them. This one apparently meant busi- 
ness so they ran as fast as they could to get out of his reach. 
On two occasions I captured young chimpanzees, but only once did I 
come near to getting a young gorilla ahve. In this case a mother 
gorilla strayed a bit farther than usual while the baby was feeding. 
We had heard the animals in the bush, and were advancing cautiously 
when we saw the young one on the ground. We were closing in to 
capture it when suddenly we heard, on both sides, the swishing of 
bushes. Both parents were coming to the rescue as fast as they could. 
The smaller, presumably a female, went straight to the youngster, 
picked it up, and stood looking us full in the face. The old male 
arrived near these two very quickly, and on seeing us gave the terrible 
gorilla cry, and started off in the lead. As we followed, he dropped to 
the rear to guard the mother and young. This was one of several 
times, when the parents showed signs of wilhngness to sacrifice their 
own lives for the young, that I did not shoot. 
I have frequently been asked as to the probable result in a combat 
between a gorilla and a chimpanzee. To begin with, one must take 
into consideration the weight, height, and reach of the two beasts. 
I shot two grown gorillas that measured five feet, one inch and five 
feet, three inches in height. The largest adult chimpanzee I got meas- 
ured four feet and weighed about 150 pounds. The gorillas weigh 
from 300 to 350 pounds, practically twice as much as the chimpanzees. 
The chimpanzee is undeniably a strong beast, but the gorilla is just as 
strong, comparatively, and has the natural advantage of larger size 
and strength. I think that in the event of an encounter, the gorilla 
would by sheer weight and strength, wear the chimpanzee down. I 
