THE UPPER CONGO RAILWAY.

Greymouth Evening Star, Volume XXXI, 26 November 1901, Page 4

THE UPPER CONGO RAILWAY.

Civilisation which costs £IO,OOO a mile. Brussels, November 20. The Upper Congo Railway Company, with a capital of one million, has been formed here to carry out the construction of the lino. The Congo Free State guarantees the company 4 per cent on its outlay. Writing on the delay in the construction of the Uganda railway, the “Daily Mail" says

The activity of the tseto fly made it necessary to transport all the materials used in building the first 250 miles of the line on the backs of native “carriers, ’’ as horses or oxen would have been killed ; but the attacks of the “jigger" upon the men were so fierce, especially on the soles of their feet, that hundreds of the carriers wore incapacitated, and many of them were forced to have one or more of their toes amputated. Malaria has carried off scores of victims ; but almost every member of the expedition would hove agreed to bear these hardships if they might have been spared the visitations of lions. Since the work was commenced over thirty men have been killed by these animals, to say nothing of those injured. Two lions in particular “bagged" so many victims that at one time the whole construction force “struck” work until the man-eaters were killed. On another occasion an official of the East African Protectorate and a soldier were walking along the line when suddenly a lion pounced upon them from the brush behind the track. The officer hastily ducked and escaped with an ugly scratch, but the beast killed the soldier outright before any attempt could be made to rescue him. It was not long after this that Ryall, an official of the railroad, was attacked by a lion, who entered the compartment in a railway carriage where he was sleeping, and in spite of his cries and struggles carried him off bodily into the jungle and there devoured him. While the excitsment at the station where this happened was at its height, the lion returned, jumped upon the roof of the station where the railway hands were sleeping, and tried to got in by tearing off the corrugated iron sheets. During the night his roars of baffled rage could be heard only 100 plainly by the seared inmates, and in the morning the iron covering of the roof was wet with the blood from the animal’s paws. Finding his efforts there fruitless Leo had crouched for the rest of the night close outside the station door, where he occupied himself by gnawing into small pieces the station’s stock of red and green signal flags. Only a short t : me ago another majestic looking beast jumped on the train, and was shot in the act.

Perhaps the most awful adventure with a lion that ever happened in Africa took place on the Uganda line. Five native labourers had deserted, and taking their guns with them, started back towards the coast. One night while sleeping under a tree, they were set upon by several lions and promptly made the best of their way up into the low-hanging branches. Accordingly the lions sat themselves down under the tree and waited patiently until one by one the miserable men were exhausted or discouraged by weakness and hunger, let go their hold and fell to the ground, there to be torn to nieces and eaten. One man only was able to hold out until the lions grew tired of waiting.