can’t object if we free them. Roger, let out the cubs.’
Roger flung open the cage door. Chu and Cha tumbled over each other in their eagerness to get out They gambolled about through the grass, letting out little grunts and yips of delight.
Colonel Bigg, with a good deal of mumbling and muttering, disappeared into his tent
Hal, followed by Roger, went in to their father’s bedside.
‘Are you awake, Dad?’
‘Of course, Hal. I wouldn’t have missed this for the world. Good show.’
‘Perhaps I was too rough on the colonel.’
‘Not a bit of it. The sooner he knows he’s not the boss of this safari, the better for him. Congratulations on getting the two fisi.’ He used the native Swahili word for hyena.
‘Well,’ Hal said, ‘they’re worth money, but I can’t say they’re very pleasant animals to have around.’
‘I know what you mean. The hyena has an unsavoury reputation. He makes frightful sounds and he smells bad. He eats dead bodies. People hold that against him. But has it ever occurred to you that we do the same? We eat nothing live, except perhaps oysters. It’s a mighty good thing that the hyenas do eat up the dead animals. The wild-animal population of East Africa runs into millions, and every day hundreds of them die for one reason or another. Suppose all those bodies were left to rot, what a stinking jungle this would be! The hyenas are the sanitary squad. They go around and clean things up. They, along with the jackals and the vultures, are the jungle scavengers. We couldn’t do without them. Suppose a lion kills a zebra - he eats only part of it, then wanders off. In come the hyenas and eat the bones. Then along come the jackals and eat the scraps of flesh lying about. Finally the vultures arrive and take whatever is left, even gobbling up the bloody sand, so that when they are all done you would never know an animal had been killed on that spot. That’s a pretty good clean-up job.’
They may be useful,’ Roger admitted. ‘But they look so mean.’
They do, indeed. But perhaps they’re like a lot of people - not as mean as they look. On my last trip to Africa, I saw a hyena run into a camp and pick up a scrap and disappear with it into the bushes. In a moment he came back, got another bit, and off he went with it. This was repeated many times. I got curious and followed him back into the bush. There I found his mate nursing her young, and in front of her were all the scraps. The male had brought them all to her without taking one for himself. And you’d be surprised what nice pets hyena pups can be. They don’t have the smell of the older animals, and they are full of fun and as affectionate as dogs. That’s natural because they are a kind of dog, you know. Part cat and part dog, but more dog than cat.’
Chapter 12
The witchdoctor
Dawn was beginning to grey the walls of the tent. The flaps opened and the gun-bearer Toto looked in. ‘May I speak, bwana?’ ‘Come in, Toto. What’s on your mind?’ The little leopard - Chu - the male - he is gone.’ ‘Probably just running around in the bushes somewhere,’ Hal said.
‘No, I saw a man take him and run. A man from the village. I chased him but could not catch him.’
‘Why should they steal Chu?’
‘I think I know why, bwana. Last night I was in the village. The headman is sick unto death. The witchdoctor said only one thing could cure him. A goat must be sacrificed. It must be burned alive in front of the headman’s house. The men caught a black goat and tied it to a stake and piled much wood around it. They set fire to the wood. The witchdoctor danced around the fire. The goat cried very loudly. The fire burned its legs and then its body, and it died. The witchdoctor took some of the hot ashes and mixed them with juice squeezed from the body of a toad and made the headman drink.’
Then what?’ John Hunt asked. ‘Did the chief feel better?’
‘No, he did not. He closed his eyes. His face showed his great
Roger flung open the cage door. Chu and Cha tumbled over each other in their eagerness to get out They gambolled about through the grass, letting out little grunts and yips of delight.
Colonel Bigg, with a good deal of mumbling and muttering, disappeared into his tent
Hal, followed by Roger, went in to their father’s bedside.
‘Are you awake, Dad?’
‘Of course, Hal. I wouldn’t have missed this for the world. Good show.’
‘Perhaps I was too rough on the colonel.’
‘Not a bit of it. The sooner he knows he’s not the boss of this safari, the better for him. Congratulations on getting the two fisi.’ He used the native Swahili word for hyena.
‘Well,’ Hal said, ‘they’re worth money, but I can’t say they’re very pleasant animals to have around.’
‘I know what you mean. The hyena has an unsavoury reputation. He makes frightful sounds and he smells bad. He eats dead bodies. People hold that against him. But has it ever occurred to you that we do the same? We eat nothing live, except perhaps oysters. It’s a mighty good thing that the hyenas do eat up the dead animals. The wild-animal population of East Africa runs into millions, and every day hundreds of them die for one reason or another. Suppose all those bodies were left to rot, what a stinking jungle this would be! The hyenas are the sanitary squad. They go around and clean things up. They, along with the jackals and the vultures, are the jungle scavengers. We couldn’t do without them. Suppose a lion kills a zebra - he eats only part of it, then wanders off. In come the hyenas and eat the bones. Then along come the jackals and eat the scraps of flesh lying about. Finally the vultures arrive and take whatever is left, even gobbling up the bloody sand, so that when they are all done you would never know an animal had been killed on that spot. That’s a pretty good clean-up job.’
They may be useful,’ Roger admitted. ‘But they look so mean.’
They do, indeed. But perhaps they’re like a lot of people - not as mean as they look. On my last trip to Africa, I saw a hyena run into a camp and pick up a scrap and disappear with it into the bushes. In a moment he came back, got another bit, and off he went with it. This was repeated many times. I got curious and followed him back into the bush. There I found his mate nursing her young, and in front of her were all the scraps. The male had brought them all to her without taking one for himself. And you’d be surprised what nice pets hyena pups can be. They don’t have the smell of the older animals, and they are full of fun and as affectionate as dogs. That’s natural because they are a kind of dog, you know. Part cat and part dog, but more dog than cat.’
Chapter 12
The witchdoctor
Dawn was beginning to grey the walls of the tent. The flaps opened and the gun-bearer Toto looked in. ‘May I speak, bwana?’ ‘Come in, Toto. What’s on your mind?’ The little leopard - Chu - the male - he is gone.’ ‘Probably just running around in the bushes somewhere,’ Hal said.
‘No, I saw a man take him and run. A man from the village. I chased him but could not catch him.’
‘Why should they steal Chu?’
‘I think I know why, bwana. Last night I was in the village. The headman is sick unto death. The witchdoctor said only one thing could cure him. A goat must be sacrificed. It must be burned alive in front of the headman’s house. The men caught a black goat and tied it to a stake and piled much wood around it. They set fire to the wood. The witchdoctor danced around the fire. The goat cried very loudly. The fire burned its legs and then its body, and it died. The witchdoctor took some of the hot ashes and mixed them with juice squeezed from the body of a toad and made the headman drink.’
Then what?’ John Hunt asked. ‘Did the chief feel better?’
‘No, he did not. He closed his eyes. His face showed his great
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