THE KOOLOO-KAMBA--THE GOUAMBA, OR MEAT-HUNGER--EXPLORING THE
FOREST--GORILLA-HUNTING--WITHIN EIGHT YARDS OF A LARGE GORILLA--HE
ROARS WITH RAGE AND MARCHES UPON US.
We established ourselves in a deserted Bakalai village, a few miles
from the banks of the Ovenga, and about ten miles above Obindji. I was
glad that I had no olako to build.
There were with me several Bakalai; among whom, of course, were my good
friends Querlaouen and Malaouen. Gambo was also one of our party.
After our camp was arranged we went out to look for gorilla tracks.
It was too late to hunt; besides, we were too tired. In the evening
Malaouen came in after dark, and said he had heard the cry of the
kooloo, and knew where to find it in the morning.
Of course I asked what this kooloo was; for I had not the slightest
idea of what he meant. I had never heard the name before. I received,
in answer, a description of the animal, which threw me into the
greatest excitement; for I saw this was most certainly a new species
of ape, or man-like monkey; a new man of the woods, of which I had not
even heard as yet. It was called kooloo-kamba by the Goumbi people from
its cry or call, "kooloo," and the Commi word _kamba_, which means
"speak." The Bakalai call it simply _koola_.
I scarce slept all night, with fidgeting over the morrow's prospects.
The Bakalai said the kooloo-kamba was very rare here, and there was
only a chance that we should find the one whose call had been heard.
At last the tedious night was gone. At the earliest streak of dawn I
had my men up. We had fixed our guns the night before. All was ready,
and we set out in two parties. My party had been walking through
the forest about an hour, by a path which led, I knew not where,
when suddenly I stepped into a file of bashikonay ants, whose fierce
bites nearly made me scream. The little rascals were infuriated at my
disturbance of their progress; and they held on to my legs, and to my
trousers, till I picked them off. Of course I jumped nimbly out of the
way of the great army of which they formed part, but I did not get off
without some severe bites.
We had hardly got clear of the bashikonays, when my ears were
saluted by the singular cry of the ape I was after. "Koola-kooloo,
koola-kooloo," it said several times. Only Gambo and Malaouen were with
me. Gambo and I raised our eyes, and saw, high up on a tree-branch, a
large ape. It looked almost like a black hairy man. We both fired at
once; and the next moment the poor beast fell with a heavy crash to
the ground. I rushed up, anxious to see if indeed I had a new animal.
I saw in a moment that it was neither a nshiego mbouvé, nor a common
chimpanzee, nor a gorilla. Again I had a happy day. This kooloo-kamba
was undoubtedly a new variety of chimpanzee.
We at once disembowelled the animal, which was a full-grown male. We
found in his stomach nothing but berries, nuts, and fruits. He had no
doubt just begun to take his breakfast.
This kooloo-kamba was four feet three inches high.
He was powerfully built, with strong and square shoulders. He had a
very round head, with whiskers running quite round the face and below
the chin. The face was round; the cheek-bones prominent; the cheeks
sunken. The roundness of the head and the prominence of the cheek-bones
were so great as to remind me of some of the heads of Indians or
Chinamen. The hair was black and long on the arms, which, however, were
partly bare. His ears were large, and shaped like those of a human
being. Of its habits the people could tell me nothing, except that it
was found more frequently in the far interior. I brought the skin of
this kooloo-kamba to New York, and some years ago many people saw it.
On our return to Obindji we were overtaken by my good friend
Querlaouen, who had shot a wild pig, of which the good fellow gave me
half. The negroes feasted on the kooloo meat, which I could not touch.
So the pig was welcome to me, as indeed it was to Quengueza, whom we
found almost crying with an affection which is common in this part
of Africa, and is called _gouamba_, but for which we happily have no
name. Gouamba is the inordinate longing and craving of exhausted nature
for meat. For days, and sometimes for weeks, a man does not get any
meat at all, and whenever other food is brought before him, you will
hear him say, looking at the food with disgust, "Gouamba," which means
literally, "I am sick of food; I have a craving for meat; I care for
nothing else."
I had some glorious gorilla-hunting while in the Bakalai country, in
the upper regions of the Ovenga river. Malaouen, Querlaouen, Gambo, and
I, often started out together, and remained for days in the thickest
part of the forest. Now and then we would return to Obindji to get a
supply of plantain, and then would go off again. We roamed over the
forest in all directions; we explored some new regions; and sometimes
we got lost in the midst of impenetrable mountains, where often for
days we killed nothing.
In these excursions we suffered sometimes a good deal; for we had to
endure many hardships. We often had very poor fare, and fever sometimes
prostrated me.
One day, I remember well, we were out for gorillas; which we knew were
to be found thereabouts, by the presence of a pulpy pear-shaped fruit,
the _tondo_, of which the animal is very fond. I also am very fond of
the subdued and grateful acid of this fruit, which is eaten by the
negroes as well as by the gorilla.
We found everywhere gorilla marks, and so recent that we began to think
the animals must be avoiding us. This was really the case, I believe,
though I am not sure. At any rate, we beat the bush for two hours,
before, at last, we found the game. Suddenly, an immense gorilla
advanced out of the wood, straight towards us, and gave vent, as he
came up, to a terrible howl of rage, as much as to say, "I am tired of
being pursued, and will face you."
It was a lone male, the kind which are always most ferocious. This
fellow made the woods resound with his roar, which is really an awful
sound, resembling very much a rolling and muttering of distant thunder.
He was about twenty yards off when we first saw him. We at once
gathered together; and I was about to take aim and bring him down where
he stood, when Malaouen stopped me, saying in a whisper, "Not time yet."
We stood, therefore, in silence, gun in hand. The gorilla looked at us
for a minute or so out of his evil grey eyes, then beat his breast with
his gigantic arms--and what arms he had!--then he gave another howl of
defiance and advanced upon us. How horrible he looked! I shall never
forget it.
Again he stopped not more than fifteen yards away.
Still Malaouen said, "Not yet." Good gracious! what is to become of us,
if our guns miss fire, or if we only wound the huge beast?
Again the gorilla made an advance upon us. Now he was not twelve
yards off. I could see plainly his ferocious face. It was distorted
with rage; his huge teeth were ground against each other, so that we
could hear the sound; the skin of the forehead was drawn forward and
back rapidly, which made his hair move up and down, and gave a truly
devilish expression to the hideous face. Once more he gave out a roar,
which seemed to shake the woods like thunder; I could really feel the
earth trembling under my feet. The gorilla, looking us in the eyes, and
beating his breast, advanced again.
"Don't fire too soon," said Malaouen; "if you do not kill him, he will
kill you."
This time he came within eight yards of us before he stopped. I was
breathing fast with excitement as I watched the huge beast.
Malaouen said only, "Steady," as the gorilla came up. When he stopped,
Malaouen said, "Now!" And before he could utter the roar for which he
was opening his mouth, three musket-balls were in his body. He fell
dead, almost without a struggle.
He was a monstrous beast indeed, though not amongst the tallest.
His height was five feet six inches. His arms had a spread of seven
feet two inches. His broad brawny chest measured fifty inches round.
The big toe of his foot measured five inches and three quarters in
circumference. His arms seemed like immense bunches of muscle only;
and his legs and claw-like feet were so well fitted for grabbing and
holding that I could see how easy it was for the negroes to believe
that these animals, when they conceal themselves in trees and watch for
prey, can seize and pull up with their feet any living thing, leopard,
ox, or man, that passes beneath.
The face of this gorilla was intensely black. The vast chest, which
proved his great power, was bare, and covered with a parchment-like
skin. His body was covered with grey hair.
While the animal approached us in its fierce way, walking on its hind
legs and facing us as few animals dare face man, it really seemed to me
to be a horrid likeness of man.
[Illustration: MEETING THE MBUITI.]