AN ADVENTURE IN THE HEART OF AFRICA.

Waipawa Mail, Volume I, Issue 3, 21 September 1878, Page 3

AN ADVENTURE IN THE HEART OF AFRICA.

Sclnveinfurth, one of the recent travellers who, like Livingstone, has tried, amid a thousand perils from a deadly climate, and men and beasts as deadly, to lay open to the civilised world the long-closed book of the heart of Africa, had his scores of adventures. One will give an idea of many. The traveller was in the Baggaras, and pushing on toward the Peaks of Nyemati. “ The 14th day of January was our first unlucky one, and indirectly through my own fault. A boat had overtaken us in the morning, and my men, wishing to avail themselves of the opportunity, asked to halt. As the place was of absolutely no interest to me, I made them go a little further on. so as to disembark on an island which offered great attractions, to my eye at least. Here an accident happened. Mahamed Amin, one of my two attendants, inadvertently stumbled upon a buffalo w’hich was taking its ease in the tall grass. None of us had a suspicion of the presence of any w ild animals, and' We* were all utterly unprepaired. But the buffalo diu 3 mfd relish the presumptuous intrusion on his siesta. To give one bound and hurl the intruder into the air was the work of a second. The next moment my faithful companion lay before me senseless and bleeding ; and, with tail erect, bellowing with rage, the buffalo

prepred to trample him down, when, fort unately, the attention of the brute was for the first time attracted to ourselves. There wc stood, silently staring at the scene, as though petrified. I was unarmed. My rifle, which Mahamed had been carrying, hung from the left horn of the furious creature. My other attendant had my carbine, but, though he twice tried to fire, it misaed both times. There was no time to think Wc had to act. My mail jerked his battle-hatchet from his belt and hurled it the buffalo’s head. It was full twenty paces, but, like the red men, these Africans hurl their tomahawks skilfully. His nerves were stout and his aim true. With a tremendous leap the animal sprang into the reeds, crushing the stalks with his immense weight, and fairly making the ground quiver. Bellowing and muttering, but still leaping, it tore away. When the noise ceased, we raised Mohamed. Sharp reeds had pierced his ears, pinning him to the ground ; hut, fortunately, none of his injuries w'ere very serious. Three weeks set him up, and ten dollars paid for four teeth lost on the occasion, made him supremely happy. We took care not to disturb any more such gentry while taking their repose, and to be ready to talk to them it we did."