Identifier: explorationsadve00wils (find matches)
Title: Explorations and adventures in the wilds of Africa;
Year: 1909 (1900s)
Authors: Wilson, James Russell
Subjects:
Publisher: (Philadelphia?)
Contributing Library: The Library of Congress
Digitizing Sponsor: The Library of Congress

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This too lenient conduct was regretted by Baker afterwards, and,during the time he remained, the incessant attacks of the Baris and thehalf-hearted service of some of the troops made things very unpleasant,and dangerous after a while. The crocodiles, too, were extremely fero-cious, and many serious losses were occasioned by their attacks. Oneanimal was captured which contained five pounds weight of pebbles in itsstomach, a necklace, and two armlets, such as worn by the Negro girls.A Dangerous Encounter. (n giving an account of the capture of one of these monsters in theearly part of the expedition, Baker says: Yesterday, as the men weredigging out the steamers, which had become jammed by the floatingrafts, they felt something struggling beneath their feet. They immedi-ately scrambled away in time to avoid the large head of a crocodile thatbroke its way through the mass in which it had been jammed and heldprisoner by the rafts. The black soldiers, armed with swords and bill* W. A.—8
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A RENOWNED EXPEDITION. 115 hooks, Immediately attacked the crocodile, who, although ireed fromimprisonment, had not exactly fallen into the hands of the HumaneSociety. He was quickly dispatched, and that evening his flesh glad-dened the cooking-pots of the party. I was amused with the account of this adventure given by variousofficers who were eye-witnesses. One stated, in reply to my question asto the length of the animal, Well, sir, I should not like to exaggerate,but I should say it was forty-five feet long from snout to tail! Anotherwitness declared it to be at least twenty feet; but if one were seized bysuch a creature he would be disposed to think that, whatev:, might beits length, it is made up mainly of jaws. The Baris were still very enterprising, and came night after rugnt toattack the expedition. Their wily method of advance, and the silencewhich they observe, make their attack all the more dangerous. Thepassive resistance of Baker had been regarded as cowardice, and oneeve

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