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Transcript: Africa Speaks

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00:00:37 #1 The actual starting place of the expedition in Africa is the little village of Arquesa.

00:00:42 #2 It is in equatorial heat on the mudflats of the Niger River,

00:00:46 #3 and we are already over 10,000 miles away from home.

00:00:51 #4 Adventurous missionaries, ivory traders and elephant hunters

00:00:55 #5 have used this town as a jumping off place many times before us,

00:01:00 #6 and signs of civilization are apparent.

00:01:02 #7 Life is not a game of bridge and an afternoon of tea for the ladies of Africa.

00:01:08 #8 They are too busy pounding rice for the next meal.

00:01:11 #9 Yet there are light spots in this dark land.

00:01:15 #10 Here is a beauty parlor.

00:01:17 #11 She doesn't put in permanent waves.

00:01:20 #12 She's paid for trying to take them out.

00:01:24 #13 Anyway, she's trying to take out something.

00:01:27 #14 And here is the original tailor of two suits for the price of one thing.

00:01:34 #15 while he weaves a pair of trousers on his ancient foot power loom,

00:01:38 #16 his customer in the background waits in his other suit.

00:01:43 #17 This little group of elephant tusks is worth over $10,000,

00:01:50 #18 and each pair represents the death of a four-ton animal.

00:01:54 #19 Here we charter an old-time wood-burning stern-wheeler,

00:01:59 #20 which will carry the expedition approximately 500 miles up the Niger River.

00:02:04 #21 From that point we will travel by truck and the foot safari will carry the supplies.

00:02:10 #22 Hundreds of gallons of gasoline and oil for the truck must be transported and deposited at convenient points along our proposed route.

00:02:19 #23 In this manner or on the backs of our native quarters.

00:02:23 #24 We engage most of the town's population at 25 cents a day to chop wood for the boat and gather drift logs from along the river banks in their primitive canoes.

00:02:35 #25 which are hollowed out of a single tree.

00:02:38 #26 The foot safari of 200 natives are chosen from various tribes,

00:02:48 #27 and the immense amount of necessary supplies are divided into small loads,

00:02:53 #28 which they can carry on their backs far in advance of the truck and town equipment.

00:02:58 #29 The fact that each tribe speaks a different language

00:03:01 #30 lessens the possibility of them all striking or quitting the expedition at one time.

00:03:06 #31 How would you like to carry 60 pounds on your head 20 miles a day in torturous heat?

00:03:13 #32 Finally, the entire expedition is loaded onto the steamship which will carry us up the Niger

00:03:18 #33 and into the heart of the dark continent.

00:03:21 #34 Then we will begin our great trek across equatorial Africa,

00:03:26 #35 where man is the prey of animals and animals the prey of man.

00:03:30 #36 Africa the unknown.

00:03:32 #37 known. The crossing of the Shari River presented a problem until we found a

00:03:37 #38 trader with a small portable motor attached to a robot. Our own men fashioned

00:03:43 #39 a flimsy raft of three dugout canoes which didn't look very safe but was better

00:03:48 #40 than nothing at all. So we put the truck on and took the chance of walking back

00:03:53 #41 if anything happened in midstream.

00:03:56 #42 Goodbye everybody.

00:03:59 #43 However, many trips landed everything safely,

00:04:02 #44 and on the other side we met some lonesome Frenchmen

00:04:05 #45 who treated us to wine and a very fine dinner.

00:04:09 #46 They were surprised to find that we had come all the way

00:04:12 #47 from the west coast by motor.

00:04:15 #48 At last we arrived on the edge of the Great Eturie Forest

00:04:19 #49 in which elephants, the largest of all animals,

00:04:21 #50 and pygmies, the smallest of men are found.

00:04:24 #51 The trail of the elephant is easy to follow, for they travel down everything in their way.

00:04:35 #52 Large in size, but comparable in bulk to the rhino, elephants differ greatly in brains.

00:04:48 #53 They are the wise, the most stupid.

00:04:51 #54 Their sight is very bad, but their scent and hearing are highly developed,

00:05:01 #55 making them most dangerous animals to approach.

00:05:04 #56 A family like this are very loyal comrades.

00:05:21 #57 They have been known to carry a wounded pal away from danger.

00:05:24 #58 danger. Supporting is a men's body between them at the risk of their own lives. The

00:05:32 #59 African elephant, unlike his Indian namesake, has never been successfully

00:05:36 #60 trained for the use of man. Until recent years ivory hunters penetrated the

00:05:43 #61 haunts of the elephant for centuries, killing millions of these majestic mammoths

00:05:47 #62 and taking away nothing but their tusks. We had been unable to find a route

00:05:56 #63 through the dense forest to the pygmy village so we seized this

00:05:59 #64 opportunity to bribe our way with salt which necessity of life is very difficult

00:06:04 #65 for them to obtain.

00:06:06 #66 Boy, who's a hopper?

00:06:12 #67 Who's a hopper? They are.

00:06:17 #68 They love it.

00:06:18 #69 Like a child those candy.

00:06:20 #70 It's very scarce in the forest.

00:06:22 #71 Zombie.

00:06:24 #72 Zombie Mingi. Who's a.

00:06:33 #73 Somebody again. Again.

00:06:35 #74 You from the other.

00:06:37 #75 Yo.

00:06:39 #76 He says he'll take us to the pygmy clearing if we bring plenty of salt.

00:06:46 #77 We better bring plenty of water.

00:06:47 #78 Something tells me he's going to be plenty thirsty.

00:06:55 #79 Finally our little guide brought us to a clearing in the center of the deep-eated forest,

00:07:00 #80 and hundreds of pygmies came from all directions to greet us.

00:07:07 #81 The average height is a little over four feet, and they rarely weigh more than 75 pounds,

00:07:12 #82 but they are well proportioned and comparatively strong.

00:07:16 #83 This is the smallest tribe of people in the world.

00:07:18 #84 They live in clans of 20 or 30, a few miles apart, and a representative of each family receives the salt.

00:07:41 #85 The clan leaders are in turn ruled by a great king who occupies his throne through blood succession, just like the crowned heads of Europe.

00:07:50 #86 He is honoring us by coming in from the depths of his forest capital.

00:07:54 #87 We wanted to pay our respects to His Majesty there,

00:07:57 #88 but the darkness in the interior makes photography impossible,

00:08:01 #89 and the King graciously offered to come to us in the clearing.

00:08:05 #90 He is comparatively young, and both he and his subjects show character and intelligence.

00:08:15 #91 In this, they differ from most of the other African tribes.

00:08:19 #92 Besides supplying music for the dance, these great tum-tums boom out messages

00:08:24 #93 in a code similar to our telegraphy.

00:08:27 #94 Everybody dances in pygmy land, and their chanting, while not particularly harmonious, has a fast rhythm that makes the feet want to do things.

00:08:41 #95 These are the original hot dogs. The pygmies have practiced companion at marriage for centuries, long before Judge Lindsey was ever heard of.

00:08:56 #96 If a marriage doesn't take after a year's tryout, they start all over again with a new wife.

00:09:03 #97 No one is allowed more than one wife at a time except the king.

00:09:07 #98 He gets two for safety's sake to ensure a son and future king.

00:09:13 #99 These are the queens. They are very modest and shy.

00:09:18 #100 When the king is around, according to scientists who have made a study of the past history of this race,

00:09:28 #101 the pygmy is not really a negro and their faces certainly show a great similarity

00:09:34 #102 to nearly every other nationality in the world. Less than 2,000 of this particular

00:09:46 #103 tribe are known to exist and until our visit no one ever knew the proper

00:09:51 #104 tribal name which is IFI. Here is an unusual fact. This peculiar style of

00:10:00 #105 wrestling is exactly the same as a very popular sport in Japan called

00:10:05 #106 rice wrestling and here we find it in the center of Africa 10,000 miles away.

00:10:11 #107 The idea of the thing is the first one who is thrown off his feet is the loser.

00:10:19 #108 They make everything that they use and the jungle furnishes them with food.

00:10:23 #109 Here they are constructing arrows.

00:10:26 #110 The shafts are made from the hearts of palm trees which are strong, light and durable.

00:10:33 #111 Look at these beautiful teeth.

00:10:36 #112 A dentist in Africa would have a great chance.

00:10:39 #113 Too starved to death.

00:10:43 #114 They mine and smelt their own iron,

00:10:45 #115 which they mold into arrowheads.

00:10:51 #116 The big savage in the center is the official poison mixer

00:10:54 #117 for the whole tribe.

00:10:55 #118 He actually stands only five feet, 10 inches,

00:10:59 #119 but the difference in height is so noticeable

00:11:02 #120 that he looks like a giant beside them.

00:11:05 #121 This man belongs to another tribe and is maintained by the pygmies for one purpose.

00:11:11 #122 He mixes the poison.

00:11:13 #123 Then they dip the arrows into it and put the blame on him for whatever they kill.

00:11:18 #124 Their own conscience is clear because the force of the arrow will not cause death, but

00:11:23 #125 the poison does.

00:11:24 #126 That's their way of escaping responsibility.

00:11:27 #127 Don't clever these pygmies.

00:11:32 #128 The large mound with the little house on it in the background is a great anthill.

00:11:37 #129 This is where we lived while here.

00:11:41 #130 They shoot very accurately, but depend more on the poison than the force.

00:11:47 #131 Pulled by their fat comies.

00:12:09 #132 But it is very hard to get close enough to photograph them.

00:12:13 #133 Any unusual noise on the sounds of every description.

00:12:19 #134 A cheetah slinks off.

00:12:21 #135 The watering is odd bird-like call.

00:12:23 #136 Unusual and rare baby bat-eared foxes run for their dugout,

00:12:28 #137 where they huddle close together and cry plaintively

00:12:31 #138 in fear for their lives.

00:12:38 #139 Even a herd of ostriches lie by.

00:12:41 #140 The huge pads on their feet muffled the sound,

00:12:44 #141 and they make great speed in their springy strutting manner.

00:12:51 #142 It's like Mother Nature holds a grudge against the zebra.

00:12:54 #143 Its glaring stripes make it an outstanding target

00:12:57 #144 a beast of prey in search of food.

00:12:59 #145 Almost powerless when attacked by a lion, but oh boy,

00:13:04 #146 they kick and bite viciously when bothered by other animals.

00:13:09 #147 Zebras in zoos over here rarely make any kind of a sound,

00:13:13 #148 but this shrill bark is common both day and night in Africa.

00:13:18 #149 The spry patterns are like human fingerprints.

00:13:20 #150 No two are found alike.

00:13:28 #151 They are often found grazing in company

00:13:30 #152 with a herd of tope, which are similar to a large American deer.

00:13:35 #153 These two widely separated species often fight together against their common enemy, the lion.

00:13:43 #154 The ripples across the picture in the background are heat waves,

00:13:47 #155 for it is 130 in the shade, and we never found much of that.

00:13:53 #156 Not the least bit camera conscious, just the born actor.

00:14:01 #157 His relations are running out on him.

00:14:03 #158 I don't know whether he's calling his mother or his father, but I guess he wants his mama.

00:14:12 #159 Though lions kill hundreds of thousands for food each year, the zebra still survives and increases in number,

00:14:27 #160 and their pounding hoofs in mad stampede can be heard on all the belts of Africa.

00:14:40 #161 Oh, the original roberneck. You can't get close to a giraffe without him seeing you,

00:14:45 #162 but their curiosity is stronger than their fear,

00:14:48 #163 and often they'll stand a hundred yards away and gaze steadily down at you.

00:14:53 #164 They are natural born reaches.

00:14:58 #165 They will drink every day if near water,

00:15:01 #166 but they can get along without it for weeks at a time,

00:15:04 #167 thereby making a monkey out of the camel.

00:15:07 #168 A full grown giraffe is the tallest animal on the face of the earth,

00:15:12 #169 often standing nearly 16 feet high.

00:15:15 #170 Hunters rarely kill these harmless monsters,

00:15:20 #171 But the natives often do, for the hide makes a bullwhip 30 feet long without a break.

00:15:26 #172 Right!

00:15:36 #173 But these two lions are stuck with food and lazy.

00:15:50 #174 They're just looking for a shady place to snooze.

00:15:57 #175 But Mr. Giraffe doesn't trust them.

00:15:59 #176 He just remembers a very important business engagement elsewhere.

00:16:04 #177 For such awkward bodies they can make great speed.

00:16:07 #178 Sometimes traveling as fast as 40 miles an hour.

00:16:10 #179 a microphone registers only the hook beats.

00:16:13 #180 For giraffes having no vocal cords cannot utter a sound.

00:16:17 #181 They're just naturally dumb.

00:16:19 #182 But not quite as dumb as the yokel who first

00:16:21 #183 saw one in a circus and said, there ain't no such animal.

00:16:33 #184 Here is a marvelous chance to study their peculiar rocking

00:16:36 #185 horse gallop.

00:16:37 #186 All four feet are never off the ground at one time.

00:16:41 #187 They were once called camel leopards.

00:16:44 #188 Due to their leopard spots and their unusual ability

00:16:47 #189 to go without water.

00:16:51 #190 The huge legs, long neck and sloping back

00:16:54 #191 make the giraffe appear clumsy.

00:16:56 #192 But notice how the head remains level,

00:16:59 #193 while the neck takes up the bumps like a shock absorber.

00:17:03 #194 They could run clear across the picture

00:17:05 #195 with a glass of water between their horns

00:17:07 #196 and nuts filled with drops.

00:17:10 #197 Once underway, these great runners are hard to stop

00:17:13 #198 and they have often hung themselves

00:17:15 #199 on the telegraph wires of the new railroad,

00:17:18 #200 which has been started from the Indian Ocean coast.

00:17:29 #201 The little youngsters keep up with the old folks.

00:17:32 #202 Even leading at times,

00:17:39 #203 here is a sure enough neck and neck race

00:17:43 #204 with the little fellow trying the hits on behind.

00:17:47 #205 If he only had sent he'd grab that tail.

00:17:53 #206 Lamingos by the million.

00:17:59 #207 Each bird stands nearly four feet high

00:18:02 #208 and weighs about 30 pounds,

00:18:04 #209 But the flesh is odorous and un-tipped to eat.

00:18:08 #210 It looks like the parade of the wooden soldiers.

00:18:10 #211 Da-da-dom, boom, boom, da-da-dom,

00:18:14 #212 dum, dum, da-dom, da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-dom.

00:18:23 #213 They appear to be floating, but in reality they are.

00:18:28 #214 It is an amazing sight to watch a flock numbering

00:18:31 #215 hundreds of thousands.

00:18:32 #216 Suddenly lift themselves into the air, so thick

00:18:35 #217 that they hide the sun.

00:18:36 #218 Lake is the reality of an artist's dream, a golden sun phage to a lovely pink in natural

00:18:42 #219 harmony with the color of the flamingo that winged their way in vivid circles but always

00:18:47 #220 within sight of the lake, which is their home in life and their grave in death.

00:18:54 #221 Watch the fish trying to gain the upper waters so they can spawn in the place where they

00:18:58 #222 were born.

00:18:59 #223 Oh, how would you like to have that baby on your home?

00:19:07 #224 50 miles below the falls the Nile spreads out into a flat virgin wooded valley.

00:19:14 #225 Unusual trees such as this got the shores and in the interior a short distance are almost impassable papyrus swamps.

00:19:23 #226 It is here that the famous Petty fly which causes sleeping sickness breeds and the far-famed white rhinoceros makes his home.

00:19:32 #227 Here he is, the square lip or so-called white rhino.

00:19:37 #228 He is much larger than the common black variety,

00:19:40 #229 and less than 200 are known to exist.

00:19:43 #230 Gosh! That's a big one.

00:19:46 #231 What do you think he weigh?

00:19:48 #232 All about three times.

00:19:50 #233 Gene.

00:19:54 #234 All bulk of no brains.

00:19:56 #235 Charming fellow, he'd like to make friends with you,

00:20:06 #236 in his own way.

00:20:08 #237 Thick skin and bad tempered, this most weird survivor of prehistoric animals is rapidly becoming extinct.

00:20:16 #238 The horns are not bones, but consist of thickly compressed hair, which is valued at three times the price of ivory,

00:20:23 #239 because it is shipped to China where it is considered the greatest of all medicine cure-all.

00:20:28 #240 I am P-A-L-L-A, impala, the most graceful of all the Antelope family.

00:20:35 #241 They always travel in herds of a hundred or more through a park-like country.

00:20:43 #242 I'll make them show some action.

00:20:45 #243 Be careful. Don't hit them. I won't.

00:20:50 #244 When frightened, they jump, much like a kangaroo, but infinitely more graceful.

00:20:55 #245 The natives call this the dance of the impala, but we call it the dance of the leaping leaners.

00:21:05 #246 Look at that baby jump!

00:21:06 #247 They may be jumped.

00:21:12 #248 If you notice, folks, the one without a hat is a distant relative to the Mexican jumping

00:21:18 #249 beam.

00:21:20 #250 No authority seems to know why the impalas jump.

00:21:23 #251 It's just another of those unexplainable mysteries of African animal life.

00:21:30 #252 When they stop, no amount of outside interference can stop them again.

00:21:39 #253 Sometimes they jump backwards to keep the dust out of their eyes.

00:21:49 #254 They almost seem to have wings as they literally glide through space.

00:21:53 #255 Their live bodies sail through the air for as much as 40 feet in a single jump, and 12 to 15 feet high, but sometimes higher in the spring.

00:22:03 #256 They jump higher on their mother's side than they do on their father's side.

00:22:20 #257 Here's a great job for a cowboy, breaking in one of these things.

00:22:28 #258 It's probably something they ate last night.

00:22:35 #259 There goes three of them up together.

00:22:37 #260 Lions eat very few impolas because the impolas keep them on the jump

00:22:44 #261 and the lion goes crazy trying to catch up.

00:22:47 #262 Like a buffalo, they act like a cow

00:22:58 #263 and make a noise like a lion. All of which means that something went wrong somewhere.

00:23:05 #264 With their shaggy manes and heavy forequarters,

00:23:10 #265 they remind one of the American buffalo, but only had a distance.

00:23:14 #266 for they are much smaller.

00:23:16 #267 They all wish Rome through fairly open country and great herds,

00:23:20 #268 and when the sun is in back of them, their white fairs make them visible for miles.

00:23:25 #269 Though they have a placid cow-like expression,

00:23:29 #270 they will charge without no...

00:23:31 #271 and fight together have been known to kill a lion.

00:23:34 #272 Dozens of them huddle under one small tree to escape the terrific heat,

00:23:39 #273 for sheer scares.

00:23:46 #274 Those are many hardships connected with an expedition of this kind.

00:23:50 #275 The charm of Africa lies in the ever-changing things of interest.

00:23:54 #276 You never know what to expect just around the corner.

00:24:01 #277 Paul!

00:24:03 #278 What is it?

00:24:04 #279 Look at those big grasshoppers.

00:24:06 #280 Grasshoppers? Nothing.

00:24:08 #281 Those are our civilian locusts.

00:24:12 #282 The whole valve will soon be black with them.

00:24:15 #283 We'll have to cover everything up. Come on!

00:24:17 #284 Go and get those cameras. Quick!

00:24:22 #285 You'll have to cover that truck with the cameras and tie it down tight.

00:24:25 #286 All right.

00:24:26 #287 Yongo!

00:24:27 #288 Come on, honey, I'm going. Hurry up.

00:24:29 #289 All that crap, please.

00:24:35 #290 Come on, pull it right down.

00:24:36 #291 Come on with that camera.

00:24:38 #292 I'll help them on the truck.

00:24:40 #293 Get over there. Get this rope.

00:24:43 #294 Four more rounds, I'll make it. Hurry up.

00:24:45 #295 You got it?

00:24:46 #296 Tomorrow I will bring Locus onto thy coast,

00:24:53 #297 and they shall eat every tree which groweth for you out of the field.

00:24:58 #298 field. This tremendous swarm is just such a visitation of locusts as Moses called down

00:25:04 #299 to punish the wicked pharaoh of Egypt 3,500 years ago.

00:25:09 #300 There'll be elephant a minute.

00:25:11 #301 There's a photograph on the inside.

00:25:14 #302 The windows of the tent were especially constructed of flexible icing glass through which photography is possible.

00:25:34 #303 Worn such as this have been known to be 50 miles in width and a hundred miles long and often they'll fly several hundred miles in a day.

00:25:45 #304 They strike terror into the hearts of men and beasts and naked in a stricken territory watched with deeper anxiety as the creatures fly overhead,

00:25:55 #305 praying that they will continue their flight without a lighting to devour their crops and ruin their food supply.

00:26:02 #306 Hit the tad by tailstone.

00:26:07 #307 Are the boys safe?

00:26:11 #308 Yes, I put them in the cab of the truck.

00:26:15 #309 Like an enormous storm of black flakes, they cover the earth in a ravenous force,

00:26:20 #310 eating every bit of grass in their path.

00:26:22 #311 Every animal leads the stricken area,

00:26:29 #312 and hundreds die in their frantic efforts to shake off the pest.

00:26:32 #313 Clouds of countless billions literally hide the sun,

00:26:46 #314 and every modern resource of science has failed to combat them,

00:26:50 #315 for no one knows from whence they came or where they go.

00:26:54 #316 And of a higher power, the wilderness is known by instinct,

00:27:05 #317 and the only way to escape disaster is by taking a course at right angles to the wind,

00:27:10 #318 because the locusts fly with the wind.

00:27:13 #319 It is estimated that there are about 60,000 locusts to the square yard,

00:27:21 #320 and a swarm such as this covers millions and millions of square yards.

00:27:25 #321 Unlike the Bible plague of old, the present plague is no respecter of race, creed, or country.

00:27:34 #322 The stampeding will of beasts raise clouds of giant hoppers which have settled on the ground.

00:27:46 #323 The frantic animals must travel more than 50 miles to sex dorm before they can eat or drink again.

00:27:54 #324 In the evening, they continue to come down from the sky in millions,

00:28:04 #325 settling on every bit of green vegetation in the countryside.

00:28:08 #326 They break strong branches of trees by the sheer weight of their countless numbers,

00:28:13 #327 and the ground is covered with a blanket at least six inches deep.

00:28:17 #328 All through the night they eat, eat, eat every blade of grass, every leaf of the trees.

00:28:26 #329 And in the morning this beautiful country is transformed into a bleak and barren desert.

00:28:33 #330 To our knowledge, we are the first in the history of motion pictures to record and photograph this phenomenon of nature.

00:28:42 #331 And Moses said, for they covered the face of the whole earth so that the land was darkened,

00:28:53 #332 and they did eat of every herb of the land and all the fruit of the trees.

00:28:59 #333 And there remain not any green thing, either tree or herb of the field, through all the land.

00:29:07 #334 With their crops and food supply ruined overnight, whole tribes of natives have been caught in a scourge like this, to die of starvation before they can get out of the devastated area.

00:29:21 #335 It was our good fortune that the truck contained sufficient food to carry us out of this ravaged country to our next supply station.

00:29:29 #336 After many days of travel in equatorial heat, we climbed to the summit of the Banaghi Mountains.

00:29:36 #337 Below is the Tengenjika Valley of Lyons, and here among the tribe of Maasai, the most profound

00:29:42 #338 tragedy of the entire trip took place.

00:29:45 #339 And here in the shelter of a great rock, the Maasai's builder, Menyata, or thorn-in-close

00:29:50 #340 village, which houses the old men, women and children of this famous cattle-raising

00:29:55 #341 tribe.

00:29:56 #342 This minyata is completely surrounded by an eight-foot wall of thorn bushes with the cow-dung

00:30:01 #343 huts of the natives just inside the thorny circle.

00:30:05 #344 This peculiar construction is a protection against night-prowing lions.

00:30:09 #345 In the evening the entrance gate is also plugged with the thorn bushes and the cattle are

00:30:14 #346 herded into the center where they are comparatively safe through the night of marauding lions in

00:30:20 #347 search of food.

00:30:21 #348 The whole assembly is only a temporary city,

00:30:25 #349 for when the grass is gone from the nearby fields,

00:30:28 #350 the entire tribe moves to a new location.

00:30:32 #351 A messiah plies at his cattle rather more than his wives,

00:30:35 #352 and he has about the same number ahead of each.

00:30:39 #353 Both are traded in regularly,

00:30:41 #354 and the prices vary according to the supply and demand.

00:30:46 #355 The old chief told us the average price per maiden

00:30:49 #356 one steer, two cows, and a cake of honey beer. Of course, second-hand wives are

00:30:54 #357 quoted at cut-rate prices. He said he was a good trader and trotted out his

00:31:00 #358 collection of female curios to prove it. It is the duty of the messiah women to

00:31:05 #359 take good care of the calves as well as the children, and the chief apologized for

00:31:10 #360 those of his wives who were out helping the cows. The rest of them wouldn't

00:31:15 #361 come out. Some of the others were nursing calves, for this duty is just as important as the

00:31:23 #362 care of the children. Copper and iron wire form the principal adornments of the messiah women,

00:31:31 #363 and their social standing is graded by the amount possessed. Some of the favorites can

00:31:41 #364 hardly lift their arms because of the weight of the many metal rings, for which the fond

00:31:47 #365 husband has traded his precious cattle. The cattle spend the night in the circle of

00:31:54 #366 thorns and at they break they are turned loose to graze on the plain. No messiah ever eats meat.

00:32:04 #367 They live entirely on a natrocious curd made from milk and blood, both of which are drawn from the

00:32:10 #368 cows. Even in times of starvation and drought, they die by hunters rather than eat the meat of the

00:32:16 #369 cattle which they persist in treating as ornaments. They are slightly smaller than our cattle and

00:32:25 #370 where each has a peculiar hump on the back, like that of a camel.

00:32:31 #371 While his youngest son attended to the cattle,

00:32:34 #372 the kind old sheep instructed his oldest boy, Keiga,

00:32:37 #373 to show us around and help however he could

00:32:40 #374 in our purpose to secure close-up scenes of wild lions.

00:32:44 #375 Those thousands of lions are known to be in this grassy valley.

00:32:48 #376 They have learned to stay away from the cattle

00:32:50 #377 because the human being is always with them.

00:32:52 #378 Starting the hillside in the open, but close to the Masai village, can be seen the huts

00:33:00 #379 of the Masai Elmeran or Lion Hunters, the most courageous and feared of all African warriors.

00:33:08 #380 They are the tribe policemen or protectors, and in these clusters of small huts they live

00:33:13 #381 like knights of old, being carried their food of milk and blood by maidens of the tribe,

00:33:19 #382 also live with them in a state of free love.

00:33:24 #383 They are maintained for the sole purpose of hunting lions

00:33:28 #384 which have become man-eaters or molesters of the great herds

00:33:31 #385 of cattle that constitute the wealth of the tribe.

00:33:38 #386 Here in this valley of lions we make a permanent camp

00:33:42 #387 and carefully prepare to obtain motion pictures and sound

00:33:45 #388 of the giant cats in their natural moods.

00:33:54 #389 You know this reminds me of a duck flying back home.

00:33:57 #390 That's practically what it is, except that we're hiding a camera instead of a gun.

00:34:02 #391 Keiger, our messiah boy, had chosen the location of our bomber.

00:34:07 #392 Orthon-Bush protection, near a stone salt lake, where a group of lions were in the habit of coming.

00:34:15 #393 On his anthill throne he scans his realm.

00:34:18 #394 Always in search of an unwary wildebeest, zebra or warthog,

00:34:23 #395 which will afford a target for his hunting skill or satisfy his enormous appetite.

00:34:28 #396 They prefer zebra meat to any and kills like this are to be seen nearly every day.

00:34:37 #397 Next to the zebra, harmless gazelles make easy prey for even the smallest of the killers.

00:34:43 #398 A hungry lion will stalk and kill any animal it sees and there are few with the exception of the rhino and elephant,

00:34:51 #399 which are comparatively safe. Truly the king of beasts.

00:35:01 #400 flesh-eating and blood-drinking, but now a picture for an artist's eye. Though she

00:35:09 #401 appears as gentle as a tabby cat, the female is more deadly than the male.

00:35:13 #402 Quiet! Look out! Here is a remarkable photograph. Two lions have made a

00:35:35 #403 wildebeest kill, and the herd can be seen in the background even before they

00:35:41 #404 had a chance to get away.

00:35:47 #405 Even at that, some of the best pictures

00:35:49 #406 escape our camera.

00:35:50 #407 For instance, we saw this great female leap clean

00:35:54 #408 over the hedge in the background, carrying

00:35:56 #409 a 200-pound gazelle in her teeth.

00:35:59 #410 Lions are not supposed to be able to climb trees.

00:36:03 #411 But how would you like to be where the meat is?

00:36:17 #412 The heat at all times is almost unbearable to both man

00:36:20 #413 and beast.

00:36:21 #414 In the middle of the day when the sun is white hot,

00:36:24 #415 they huddle under scraggly trees for what little shade there is.

00:36:35 #416 Lions are rarely found in large numbers,

00:36:38 #417 and it is quite unusual to photograph seven at one time.

00:36:44 #418 At three months of age, the cubs cry for meat,

00:36:47 #419 and mother must provide.

00:36:49 #420 For these have not yet reached the age

00:36:51 #421 when they can make a kill of their own.

00:37:09 #422 While we were in the Boma,

00:37:10 #423 the lions inspected our truck,

00:37:12 #424 even attempting a small attack on this unusual stranger.

00:37:29 #425 They tore off a spare tire and slowly took a little nibble at it.

00:37:33 #426 They see much surprise when it doesn't bite back.

00:37:52 #427 There is a widespread belief that lions live in a jungle.

00:37:56 #428 So the truth is just the opposite.

00:37:58 #429 They are always found in open grassy plains.

00:38:01 #430 Because the lion is a meat eater and he feeds entirely on animals,

00:38:05 #431 which in turn live off the virgin grass of the open country.

00:38:09 #432 There is this 200 pounds of dead weight like a house cat would amuse.

00:38:25 #433 But lions never tease a victim.

00:38:29 #434 They break the neck instantly with a tremendous swipe of the paw

00:38:33 #435 and eat what they want almost immediately.

00:38:36 #436 Others have caught the scent of the kill and come in uninvited to attend the banquet.

00:38:44 #437 Shooting the prowlers of the planes with a camera is much more difficult than with a gun

00:38:54 #438 and brings one in closer contact with them.

00:38:57 #439 There are no place cards at this feast.

00:39:05 #440 But despite their noticeable lack of manners, it is a remarkable fact that they seldom quarrel over a kill, but share it amicably.

00:39:14 #441 So great is a lion's appetite that he must make a kill every two days in order to exist.

00:39:22 #442 The thousands of lions in this section kill hundreds of thousands of animals each year for food alone.

00:39:29 #443 In their natural state, active lions are seldom found with great shaggy mains, like those in a zoo,

00:39:38 #444 because the long hair is caught on bushes and torn by the thorn trees.

00:39:42 #445 Get right from the motor car, quick!

00:39:52 #446 It is very interesting to watch a lion shy at the sight of thorn bushes

00:41:10 #447 when he will charge straight at a firing revolver.

00:41:13 #448 After reloading our revolvers, it was useless to continue the battle

00:41:17 #449 because it was already too late to do anything for poor Kager.

00:41:21 #450 Handicapped as we were, with the rifles in the truck, we were forced to wait the rest of the afternoon for the lions to leave.

00:41:34 #451 Finally, five out of the six which were around us, fruit off behind the leader.

00:41:41 #452 Only one of the man he has reigned at the kill.

00:41:45 #453 If away a flock of altars awaited his departure, and behind them in the distance, a ring of cowardly hyenas, also a wait-turn.

00:41:55 #454 going to be tough to tell the poor old chief about kegah come on let's go the

00:42:35 #455 cold savage eight for a life the council of the elders are meeting to decide

00:42:41 #456 which of the warriors shall be sent out after the line they have long been

00:42:47 #457 accustomed to kill with the spear lions with man-eaters on the cattle

00:42:54 #458 This sadly a welcome of the council.

00:43:01 #459 The ebcagas older can now pass them would be willing to young warriors in the hunt.

00:43:07 #460 But are already been sent to the huts of the Elmeran lion hunters.

00:43:12 #461 For this honor serves solely for them.

00:43:15 #462 The pantomade of Osbridge feathers and is as necessary as the spear.

00:43:20 #463 The Messiah Elmeran love a battle but not all of them are out to go on the hunt.

00:43:25 #464 hunt. Great honor and the chief only take along those chosen by the council.

00:43:34 #465 Most of the younger warriors wear headdresses made from the mains of the

00:43:43 #466 land they have killed. All their lives they have lived foods. Blood, milk and water.

00:43:52 #467 They are as fit as the hunt. Rural and fearless. They let us come along to

00:43:58 #468 photograph the hunt. Only on our solemn bus not to shoot the land. His legs

00:44:08 #469 and chastended red, yellow and white with a substance made from the ashes of previously

00:44:14 #470 lion. Naked half naked with girdles of leopard skin, buffalo hide shield colored with bowl

00:44:20 #471 pattern carrying a long bladed spear. For now master of the one, the terror that stalks

00:44:30 #472 by night. This grim lord of slaughter is doomed at the hands of the only foe, Tim. This is the challenge.

00:44:42 #473 They in unison, the sun, and soon fierce singing hills of a furious wrath at the men.

00:45:48 #474 The tireless messiah warriors have advanced across the rolling grassy plains in long lines.

00:45:56 #475 Feeding across the circle 12 miles in diameter, live panthers, their great muscles rippling under their smooth dark skin.

00:46:04 #476 Suddenly a short distance ahead, a great female spied us and docked to the right.

00:46:11 #477 We were happy to shoot her, but we could not break our promise to the Maasai chieftain.

00:46:19 #478 Now the hunters divide, form the final circle around the east.

00:46:23 #479 The raiders sharp spearhead like silver in the sun rays and their savage yells become

00:46:29 #480 shrill in anticipation of victory. The lioness takes temporary refuge in a queen

00:46:35 #481 and now we see that the two of them but it is too late to inform them aside. In

00:46:44 #482 small groups the spearmen come closer and gradually form the ring of death. One by

00:46:51 #483 one they take their ring and each when he is near enough crouches behind his shield.

00:46:57 #484 Spear in hand, his seagr face gleaming over the rim.

00:47:03 #485 Feels held steady to body, and quivering spears, poise, or instant action,

00:47:10 #486 the men in front brace themselves for the shock of the rushing charge.

00:47:15 #487 The lioness watches them closely, enrave, and seemingly withholding her charge until they are ready.

00:47:26 #488 At last the tense ring is complete.

00:47:29 #489 complete it is a wild sight the spearman intent silent bent on blood and his

00:47:36 #490 center a great man killing bees this ring one spawn must not be broken for the

00:47:43 #491 new steps back the face of a charge is forever branded a coward finally with a

00:47:51 #492 tremendous roar she charges the crowded moment begins the leader plunges his

00:47:58 #493 He's down. He's shield protecting him. He's up again.

00:48:02 #494 He's got a man's back.

00:48:04 #495 The Spirits drive clear to the Barotian Spirits.

00:48:07 #496 It's the male.

00:48:15 #497 Fighting to protect his own.

00:48:17 #498 Look out!

00:48:18 #499 There's lightning, Spirits crash again.

00:48:31 #500 Even as he falls to death, he bites the Spirits.

00:48:44 #501 The first half dozen Spirits have done the work.

00:48:47 #502 have done the work and kege is a vendor. The whole thing is open in 30 seconds.

00:48:53 #503 Excited, then wild with savage, and we wondered after us next.

00:49:02 #504 The chief picks away the knife and whose wild frenzy seems to be getting the best of him.

00:49:07 #505 The victory is over.

00:49:18 #506 The lion is a symbol of everything great.

00:49:22 #507 They worship his power with respect.

00:49:25 #508 The end of this day of the battle is the messiah's tribute to the fallen.

00:49:33 #509 Reverend, they moved the cocks of the lion to another spot than that on which it died.