FURTHER DESCRIPTION OF AFRICA. 
259 
the Spot. The man was immediately brought to me, but the lungs 
were lacerated, and he died during the night. 
On another occasion five men were wounded (two fatally) by 
a lioness which fought so gallantly that she at length escaped from 
her assailants with two spears in her body. I was not present on 
that occasion, but I have frequently admired the pluck of the natives, 
who attack every animal with the simple hunting-spear, which, of 
course, necessitates close approach. 
NEGROES EAT ALMOST ALL KINDS OF FLESH. 
The Negroes eat everything in the shape of flesh, except the 
feline beasts of prey. Some of the smaller kinds of felines are as 
dangerous to poultry as are the large species of falcons and eagles. 
With respect to several kinds of flesh which are considered by us to 
be uneatable, we may say that different kinds of monkeys, porcu¬ 
pines, large rats, crocodiles, and other creatures, are used for food. 
It is very singular that the Negroes do not understand the milking 
of their domestic animals, and were above measure astonished when 
the explorers’ servants milked the goats, and gave the milk to their 
master; and the Negroes often surrounded him in crowds to see him 
eat hens’ eggs, a diet quite new to them, although they ate numbers 
of the large round eggs of the turtle and the still larger crocodile 
eggs. 
Mosquitoes abound everywhere, and next to them ranks an 
insect which has only been known in Africa during the last ten 
years-—the sand flea, which is said to have been brought by the 
crew of a Brazilian ship who were suffering from them. They 
multiplied with incredible rapidity. The animalculse enter the skin 
beneath the toe-nails, where they lay a bag of eggs as large as a pea; 
and the difficulty is to remove this bag without breaking it. If this 
is done, the wound soon heals; but if not, painful sores are the 
result, and the process of healing is very slow. Another interesting 
insect is the giant beetle, Goliath, an insect measuring nearly four 
inches. This black velvety beetle, marked with white on its upper 
side, is at home throughout all Africa; and, with its kindred types, 
forms one of the principal treasures of our collections, being so 
