Radio in Africa

Radio Record, Volume V, Issue 40, 15 April 1932, Page 9

Radio in Africa

(Continued from. April 1.) Ww! RELESS on the safari had a great deal to do with the upkeep of the company morale, although there was practically. none of the general entertainment angle about it, although I often did, in co-operation with the sound-reeording crew, rig up a loudspeaker through the amplifying devices, and we had programmes including football games, the announcement that Aloysius Horn was broadcasting at Palisades Park, New Jersey, and jazz programmes which were quite tame compared to the native African dance music going on in our camp. Yor a time an advance party of ours was thought lost, as I had not transmitted for ten days, being on forced marches, but I happened to call Nairobi, and this saved them from sending a search party which was still being organised. At another time, Harry Carey was suffering from fever and a complication of digestive troubles, which I described over the radio. Detailed medical instructiozs were re eeived-and Carey was soon cured! Duncan Renaldo had two ribs broken by a stroke from an elephant’s trunk, when he was hunting, and I sent this hews and other such matters of interest out to Nairobi. Also Miss Hdwina Booth suffered a sort of sunstroke, and fell from a tree while Harry Carey and Renaldo were under it chasing away a lion with clubs. Her costume, as required by the picture, was indeed scant, and she was overcome by the heat of the scorching sun on her body. Talks With Byrd. Y best and perhaps most curious performance was not official, but grew out of the visit of an American oil operator and the Governor of Uganda to one of our camps, This oil man ‘was the father of one of the men on Commander Byrd’s expedition to the South Pole. Through the A.R.R, League, mentioned above, I radioed to the South Pole and asked about the young man’s health, and received an answer that he was okay, which we delivered to his grateful father in Africa. At one time production was held up because the company was looking for a certain poisonous African spider needed in the story. In gossiping with Nairobi I obtained over the air a description of how the spider might be found, and through this message we shortly located one. From this radio

hint we named the tarantula the "African radio bug." Amusing incidents. occurred from time to time. I have had to guard my precious antenna wire from native tribes, especially the Kavirondos, for they wind copper wire around and around their ankles and arms for ornaments, some women wearing ten or twelve pounds of the metal for a lifetime, and the men wear copper ornaments ag well. . I have had monkeys, both a wild band and a tame red colubus and 2 baboon, playing antics on my antennas from time to time. The natives regarded the humming of my plant as some sort of magic in remote districts, as indeed they considered everything strange ahout our mo-tion-picture outait,

I tried repeatedly to explain to some of our native helpers that I was talking to people far away, which they seemed to doubt. They have an ancient method of booming enormous wooden drums from village to village to herald the approach of strangers, and convey information, the drum. telegraph, with which I competed on occasions.