MYSTERIOUS ANIMAL

Taranaki Central Press, Volume IV, Issue 352, 5 February 1937, Page 3

MYSTERIOUS ANIMAL

ENCOUNTERS IN AFRICA. CREATURE LIKE A BEAR. The mystery animal of Africa, the ' fsandi bear, is again in tn< news, i Captain A. T. Ritchie, the game warden of Kenya, in his report i"eludes ! accounts from two people who say .they saw it last year. One of the observers was a District Commissioner, who. rays that while near Londiani he suddenly saw a. dark grey creature about three feet, i high to the back, round and even ! x»odgy, with a pointed head, Iqping along the side of the road just at dusk. He is unable t u say what it is, if not a bear. He had never s.en another animal like it bears in zoos. It was compact, powerful looking, and not afraid uii i. motorcar. The second incident concerns an anima] which slew a forest hog on an estate near Kaimosi. TI e farmer, at about 11 o'clock in the morning on a very wet day, was planting shade trees in his coffee plantation witn the help of natives. About noon he sent the natives away to collect shade plants for the next day's 'work. As the men went off through the coffee a terrific yelling and shouting arose, and when the far-.ier ’ ushed to see what was wrong 1 found them still shouting round •>. killed forest pig. At the same time he heard a roar from tne forest, not like anything he had ever heard before. That the pig had been killed by a very powerful animal and a. very Annoyed one could easily be seen.

The natives refused to help him to track the beast and contented themsel/es with saying tha+ it »vas an evil thing. They described it as very big, with long black h ir and long tail. Plenty of black he r was found, apparently lost in the battle with the pig, and an indistinct footmark resembled that of an old Leopard which could t o longer draw in its claws properly.