HIGH JUMPERS AND TREE PLANTERS

Chronicle (Levin), 11 January 1947, Page 4

HIGH JUMPERS AND TREE PLANTERS

A TIP FOR CATCHMENT BOARDS.

Accordi-ng to last year's Whittaker's Almanac Ihe World lvigh'jump record, establislied by L. Bteers in U.B.A. in li>41, is six feet eleven inches. Aceording to an explorer who has spent fourteeu years in Africa there is, just. below the Equator and in the middle of the "Dark Gontinent," a small spot ealled Rwanda which contains more marvels, contrasts and- exaggeratioas than any other Africa land. To begin with, Rwanda 's meagre .18,000 square miles are inhabited by 3,01)0,000 people. The bulk of tliem are Bahutu, negroes of the usual Bantu type, who are the only people of Rwanda who are normal in physical characteristies. The Bahutu, who have nothing to do with liigh juniping exCept when there is a snake or scOrpion about, liave cultivated to perfection every bit of ground not taken up by water, stone or forest. Yet, tuiti 1 recently, this contradictory land, whieh nine years out of ten would give prodigal crops, every tentli year or so was afTlieted by terribie d rough ts eaeli followed liy famine and death. These calainities were stopped by one man who liigh-jumped only once when he felt the hot breatli of a lion on the baek of liis neek. Ile persuaded the Jving of Rwanda to issue a couple of innocent-appearing laws, one, that each of his subjects must plant a tree every month, and, t 'other, that each luit should be permanently surrouiidcd by a patcli of hardy prolliic manioca which no drought could lcill and whose root giees a substantiai food. This means Ihe planting of a billlion Irees in oue generation, the halting of soil erosion due to deforestation of centuries, and without the frightening expenditure whicli is likely to i'ollow the eslalilishment of catehment boards. And lliis brings the story back to (he world 's high-jurnp record'of 6ft. 11 ins. There are 3,000,000 people in F'wanda bnf 80,000 of tliem are Watussi, a niysterious spectaeular race, all giants, Rnd all of princely blood, whose men rule the country under the Moami, Ihe noblest of tliem. The "Watussi man is oue, two, and sometimes three feet taller than the comely women of his race. >She never reaches six feet but his height is above seven feet, and men of seven feet nine or ten inches are common. But that has nothing to do with Jiigh jumping, or, has it. 'These Watussi are broad-shmildered, narrow-liipped, and slim-lcgged. rlhey are liglit brown in • yolour, have lean- faces. Jaiul flawlcss, gleaniing teetl].. 1't ,-is claimed that one of ' tiro secretsvoft .f]|§ir sple.ndid Jitijess is their diet. IffeU' eat rnainly jialk, cream, butter, unfermented eheeses, and lioney, banaiias — wliatever the3r are — and boiled vegetables. Aleat has ver\little part in tlieir-. meals, possiblv because for some reason it d'oes not seem to agree with tlie climate. Another of the secrets might be that of pia n n ed fasting. This tlie.v use period ically as a safeguard against illness, often as a preparation for strenuous physical e^ortion — high jumping — and always as a first treatmcnt ivlien illness comes. There is a third secret, one regulating a man's pliA'sieal activi iy. And nov* we are coming nearer to i t — t ho world 's high jnmp record. From his enrliest childhood, the Watussi boy spends a good part of the da.v, practicallv naked, in the clear exhilarating mountain air, running, jumping, throwing spoars, and learning the traditional dances of the, race. Wlien he is eight lie starts sehool — walks .many miles for ij, two-hours lesson and and tlien walks home. Later he participates in the tribal dances and jumping competitions in which, tall as he may have grown to be, lie still must jurnp at least as high as his own stature, lightlv, gracefully, and without the least manifestation of effort. *- Aeeording to the explorer, in whose, honour the Moami arranged a sort of' Olvmpie Games, one of the star items on the programme was high jumping ynd for this slim figures took a few c-asy steps, effortlesslv abandoned the pTonnd, and, one after the other, soared high up over a tliin reed, descended in a graceful curve, and landed lighth', composedly. The explorer was asked to go and sland under the reed (crossbar), which liad just been raised. He measured the distance and was astounded to find it exactfy 8 feet 3/ inches from the ground, and the bit of ant heap from xvlncli tbe junrpers took off was 2 )-8 inches high. The next jnmp, therefore, was nn amazing 8 feet 1 ineh leap comnnred with Ihe official world reeoi'd of 6 s feet 11 inches. The faseinating hook from which these extracts are taken is "South of the Sahara" by Attilio Gatti.