Gorillas & Chimpanzees

While I sat in my cage watching Othello, who lay on the ground a short distance away, I discovered a native approaching him from the jungle. The man had an uplifted spear in his hand, as if in the act of hurling it at something. He had not seen me, but it did not for the moment occur to me that he had designs upon my pet. I spoke to him in the native language, when he explained that he had seen the young gorilla, and from that fact suspected there was an old one close at hand, for whose attack he was prepared: that he was not afraid of the little one, but desired to capture it. I informed him that my gorilla was ill. He examined it, and assured me that it would die. The man departed, and Othello continued to grow worse. His sighing and groaning were really touching. I gave him an emetic, which took effect with good results. I also used some vaperoles to resuscitate him, but my skill was not sufficient to meet the demands of his case.

His conduct was so like that of a human being that it deeply impressed me, and being alone with him in the silence of the dreary forest at the time of his demise, gave the scene a touch of sadness that impressed me with a deeper sense of its reality; and Moses watched the dying ape as if he knew what it meant. He showed no signs of regret, but his manner was such as to suggest that he knew it was a trying hour.

Othello died just before sunset, but for a long time prior to this he was unconscious. The only movements made by him were spasmodic actions of the muscles caused by pain. The fixed and vacant stare of his eyes in this last hour was so like those of man in the hour of dissolution, that no one could look upon the scene and fail to realise the solemn fact that this was death. The next day I dissected him, and prepared the skin and skeleton to bring home with me. They are now, with Moses and others, in the Museum of the University of Toronto; and if the taxidermist who mounts the skin of Othello poses him like most of the craft do – in the attitude of dancing a fandango and the corners of his mouth forming obtuse angles – I will have that man executed if I have to bribe the court.

When I first secured this ape and brought him to my home in the bush, he was placed on the ground a few feet from my cage, and near him was laid some bananas and sugar-cane for Moses, who had not yet seen the stranger. The gorilla was in a box with one side open, so that he could easily be seen. My purpose was to see how each one would act on discovering the other. When Moses observed the food he proceeded to help himself. On seeing the gorilla he paused a moment and gave me an alarm, but he was not himself deterred from taking a banana, which he seized and retreated. While he was eating the banana, I took the gorilla from the cage and set him on the ground by it. I petted him, and gave him some food. Moses looked on, but did not interfere. I returned to my cage, and Moses proceeded to investigate the new ape. He approached slowly and cautiously within about three feet of it. He walked around it a couple of times, keeping his face towards it, and gradually getting a little nearer. At length he stopped by one side of the gorilla, and came up within a few inches of it. He appeared to stand almost on tiptoe, with only the ends of his fingers touching the ground. The gorilla continued to eat his food without so much as giving him a look. Moses placed his mouth near the ear of the gorilla and gave one terrific yell. But the gorilla did not flinch or even turn his eyes. Moses stood for a moment looking at him as if in surprise that he had made no impression. After this time he made many overtures to make friends with the gorilla, but the latter did not entertain them with favour beyond maintaining terms of peace. They never quarrelled, but Othello always treated him as an inferior. I do not know if he entertained a real feeling of contempt, but his manner was such.

There were but few articles of food that he and Moses liked in common, and therefore they had no occasion to quarrel; but they never played together or cultivated any friendly terms as the chimpanzees did among themselves. This may have been due to the gorilla, who was so exclusive in his demeanour towards the chimpanzee as to forbid all attempts of the latter to become intimate. The chimpanzee by nature is more sociable and is fond of human society. He imitates the actions of man in many things, and quickly adapts himself to new conditions, while the gorilla is selfish and retiring. He can seldom, if ever, be reconciled to human society; he does not imitate man nor yield to the influences of civilised life.

One special trait of the gorilla which I wish to emphasise is that he is one of the most taciturn, if not quite the most, of any member of the simian family. This fact does not appear to confirm my theory as to their high type of speech, but it is a fact so far as I observed, although the natives say that they are as loquacious as the chimpanzee. Among the specimens that I have studied, both wild and in captivity, I have never heard but four sounds that differed from each other, and of these only two could properly be defined as speech. I do not include the screaming sound described in another chapter. I have not been able so far to translate the sounds that I have heard, and they cannot be spelled with letters. There is one sound which Othello often used. It was not a speech sound, but a kind of whine, always coupled with a deep sigh. When left alone for a time he became oppressed with solitude. At such times he would heave a deep sigh and utter this strange sound. The tone and manner strongly appealed to the feelings of others, and while he did not appear to address it to any one or have any design in making it, it always touched a sympathetic chord, and I was sometimes tempted to release him. Another sound which was not within the pale of speech was a kind of grumbling sound. This frequently occurred when he was eating. It was not a growl in the proper sense, but was in a way a kind of complaint. Twice I heard this same sound made by wild ones in the forest near my cage. The only thing that I can compare it to in its use is that habit of a cat while eating, to make a peculiar growling sound, which appears to be done only when something else is near. It is possibly intended to deter others from trying to take the food.

During my life in the cage I saw a number of gorillas, but I shall only describe a few of them, as their actions were similar in most instances.

The first one that I had the pleasure of seeing in the jungle came within a few yards of the cage before it was yet in order to receive. He was not half grown. He must have been attracted by the noise made in putting it together. He advanced with caution, and when I discovered him he was peering through the bushes as if to ascertain the cause of the sounds. When he saw me, he only tarried a few seconds and hurried off into the jungle. I did not disturb or shoot at him, because I desired him to return.

On the third day after I went to live in the cage a family of ten gorillas was seen to cross an open space along the back of a patch of plantains near one of the villages. A small native boy was within about twenty yards of them when they crossed the path in front of him. A few minutes later I was notified of it, took my rifle, and followed them into the jungle until I lost the trail. A few hours after this they were again seen by some natives not far away from my cage, but they did not come near enough to be seen or heard. The next day there was a family came within some thirty yards of the cage. The bush was so dense that I could not see them, but I could distinguish four or five voices. They seemed to be engaged in a broil of some kind. I suppose it was the same family that had been seen the day before. The second night after this time I heard the screams of one in the forest some distance from me, but I do not know whether it was the king of this family or another.

One day, as I sat alone, a young gorilla, perhaps five years old, came within six or seven yards of the cage and took a peep. I do not know whether he was aware of its being there or not until he was so near. He stood for a time, almost erect, with one hand holding on to a bough; his lower lip was relaxed, showing the red line mentioned above, and the end of his tongue could be seen between his parted lips. He did not evince either fear or anger, but rather appeared to be amazed. I heard him creeping through the bush a few seconds before I saw him, but as a rule they move so stealthily as not to be heard. I know of no other animal of equal weight that makes so little noise in going through the forest. During the short time he stood gazing at me I sat still as a statue, and I think he was in doubt as to whether I was alive or not. He did not turn and run away, but after a brief pause turned off at an angle and departed. He lost no time, but made no great haste. The only sound he made was a low grunt, and this he did not repeat.

At another time I heard two making a noise among the plantains near me. I could only obtain a glimpse of them, but as well as I could see they were of good size, being almost grown. They were making a low sound from time to time, something like I have described, but I could not see them well enough to frame any opinion as to what it meant. They were certainly not quarrelling, and I am not sure that they were eating, for I afterwards went and looked to see if I could find where they had broken any of the stalks. Their trail was visible through the grass and weeds, but I could find no stalk broken. They were moving at a very leisurely gait, and must have been within hearing ten or twelve minutes. They were quite alike in colour, and appeared to be so in size, although it is well known that the adult male attains a much greater size than the female.

On one occasion when I was standing outside of the cage some twenty yards away, Moses was sitting on a dead log near by. I turned to him, and was just in the act of sitting down by him when he gave an alarm. I looked around, and discovered a gorilla standing not more than twenty yards away. He had just that moment discovered us. He gazed for a few moments and started on, moving obliquely towards the cage. I turned to retreat. At this instant Moses gave one of his piercing screams, which frightened the gorilla and he fled. He changed his course almost at right angles. He was going at a good rate before Moses screamed, but he mended it at once.

One day I heard three sounds which my boy assured me were gorillas; they were in different directions from the cage. It was not a scream nor a howl, but somewhat resembled the human voice calling out with a sound like "he-oo!" This sound was repeated at intervals, but did not appear to be in the relation of call and answer, and the animals making them did not approach each other while doing so. The sounds were the same except in volume, and one of them appeared to be made by a much larger animal than the other two. I must say that this sound rarely occurred within my hearing during all my stay in that part, and with the exception of this time I never heard them make any loud sound during the day.

Another interesting specimen that I saw came prowling through the jungle as if he had lost his way. He found a small opening, or tunnel, which I had cut through the foliage in order to get a better view. Turning into that, he came a few steps towards the cage before he discovered it. Suddenly he stopped, squatted on the ground, but did not sit flat down. For a few seconds he was motionless, and so was I. He slowly raised one arm till his hand was above his head, in which position he sat for a few seconds, when he moved his hand quickly forward as if to motion at me. He did not drop his hand to the ground, but held it at an angle from his face for a short time, then slowly let it down till it reached the ground. During this time he kept his eyes fixed on me. At length he raised the other arm and seized hold of a strong bush, by which he slowly drew himself in a half-standing position. Thus he stood for a few seconds, with one hand resting on the ground. Suddenly he turned to one side, parted the bushes, and instantly disappeared. He uttered no sound whatever.

Another visitor that came within about thirty yards along the open path which led to my retreat, stopped when he discovered me, and stared in a perplexed manner. He turned away to retreat, but only went a few feet, turned around, and sat down on the ground. He remained in that attitude for more than half a minute, when he arose and retired in the direction from which he came.

The finest view that I ever had of any specimen, and at the same time the best subject for study, was a large female that came within a trifle more than three yards of me. There was a dog that belonged to a village a mile or two away that had become attached to me, and had found its way through the bush to my cage. He frequently came to visit me in my retreat, and I was always glad to welcome him. One afternoon, about three o'clock, he came, and I let him in the cage for a while to pass the usual greetings. I had a bone of a goat which I had saved from my last meal, and I threw this out to him in the bush a few feet away from the cage. He seized the bone, and began to gnaw it where it lay. His body was in the opening of a rough path cut through the jungle near the cage, but his head was concealed under a clump of leaves. All at once I caught a glimpse of some moving object at the edge of the path on the opposite side of the cage. It was a huge female gorilla, carrying a young one on her back. When I first saw her she was not more than thirty feet away. She was creeping along the edge of the bushes and watching the dog, who was busy with the bone. Her tread was so stealthy that I could not hear the rustle of a leaf. She advanced a few feet, crouched under the edge of the bushes, and cautiously peeped at the dog. She advanced again a little way, halted, crouched, and peeped again. It was evident that her purpose was to attack, and her approach was so wary as to leave no doubt of her dexterity in attacking a foe. Every movement was the embodiment of stealth. Her face wore a look of anxiety with a touch of ferocity. Her movements were quick but accurate, and her advance was not delayed by any indecision. The dog had not discovered her, and the smell of the bone and the noise he was making with it prevented his either smelling or hearing her. I could not warn him without alarming her. If he could have seen her before she made the attack, I should have left him to take his chances by flight or by battle. I should have been glad of an opportunity to witness such a combat and to study the actions of the belligerents, but I could not consent to see a friendly dog taken at such disadvantage. She was now rapidly covering the distance between them, and the dog had not yet discovered her. When she reached a point within about four yards of him I determined to break the silence. I cocked my rifle, and the click of the trigger caught her attention. I think this was the first thing that made her aware of my presence. She instantly stopped, turned her face and body towards the cage, and sat down on the ground in front of it. She gave me such a look that I almost felt ashamed of having interfered. She sat for fully one minute staring at me as if she had been transfixed. There was no trace of anger or of fear, but the look of surprise was on every feature. I could see her eyes move from my head to my feet. She scanned me as closely as if it had been her purpose to purchase me. At length she glanced at the dog, who was still eating the bone, then turned her head uneasily, as if to search for some way of escape. She rose, and retraced her steps with moderate haste; she did not run, but lost no time. She glanced back from time to time to see that she was not pursued. She uttered no sound of any kind.

From the time this ape came in view until she departed was about four minutes, and during that time I was afforded an opportunity of studying her in a way that no one else has ever been able to do. I watched every movement of her body, face and eyes. I could sit with perfect composure and study her without the fear of attack. With due respect for the temerity of men, I do not believe that any sane man could calmly sit and watch one of these huge beasts approach so near him without feeling a tremor of fear, unless he was protected as I was. Any man would either shoot or retreat, and he could not possibly study the subject with equanimity.

The temptation to shoot her was almost too great to resist, and the desire to capture her babe made it all the more so; but up to that time I had refrained from firing my gun anywhere within a radius of half a mile or so of my cage, and the natives had agreed to the same thing. My purpose in doing so was to avoid frightening the apes away from the locality. I had been told by the native hunters before this, that if I wounded one of them the others would leave the vicinity and not return perhaps for weeks. They say if you kill one the others do not appear to notice it so much as if it were wounded, although they seem to be aware of the fact and for the time flee, but will return again within a short time.

I could have shot this one with perfect ease and safety. As she approached, her head and breast were towards me; just before she discovered me her left side was in plain view, and when she sat down her breast was perfectly exposed, so that I could have shot her in the heart, the breast, or the head.

Her baby lay upon her back, with its arms embracing her neck and its feet caught under her arms. The cunning little imp saw me long before the mother did, but it gave her no warning of danger. It lay with its cheek resting on the back of her head. Its black face looked as smooth and soft as velvet. Its big brown eyes were looking straight at me, but it betrayed no sign of fear or even of concern. It really had a pleased expression, and was the nearest approach to a smile I have ever seen on the face of a gorilla. I believe that this is their method of carrying the young, and I have elsewhere assigned other reasons for this belief. In this case it is not a matter of belief, but one of knowledge, and everything that I have observed conspires to say that this is no exception to the rule.

During my sojourn of nearly four months in the jungle, where it was said the greatest number of gorillas could be found of any other place in the basin of that lake, I only saw a total of twenty-two, besides one other that I saw at another time in the forest while I was hunting. I only caught a glimpse of him, and should not even have done that had not the native guide discovered and pointed him out to me. I believe that no other white man has ever seen an equal number of these animals in a wild state, and it is certain that no other has ever seen them under as favourable conditions for study. I have compared notes with many white men on that part of the coast, but I have never found any reliable man who claims to have seen an equal number. I know men there who have lived in that part for years, who frequently hunt in the forest for days at a time, and yet never saw a live gorilla. I met one man on my last voyage who has lived on the edge of the gorilla country forty-nine years, makes frequent journeys through the bush and along the watercourses in the interest of trade, and this man told me himself that in all that time he had never seen a wild gorilla. I would cite Mr. James A. Deemin as an expert woodsman, a cool, daring hunter, and I have enjoyed several hunts with him. He has travelled, traded, and hunted through the gorilla country for more than thirteen years, and has told me that with one exception he had never seen but one wild gorilla. This was a young one, and the exception alluded to was that he one time saw a school of them at a distance. On this occasion he was in a canoe and under the cover of the bushes along the side of a river until he came near them unobserved. Another man, whose name I will take the liberty of giving, is Mr. J. H. Drake, of Liverpool. Mr. Drake has never been suspected by those who know him of lacking courage in the hunt or being given to romance, and yet in many years on the coast he never saw but one school of these apes, and that was the same one that Mr. Deemin saw when they were travelling together. I could cite many others to show that it is a rare thing for the most expert woodsman ever to see one of these creatures, and many of the stories told by the casual traveller cannot be received with implicit faith. I do not mean to impeach the veracity of others, but fancy must have something to do with the case. While we cannot prove the negative by direct evidence, we must be permitted to doubt whether or not these apes are so frequently met in the jungle as they are alleged to be. I will give some reasons why I am a sceptic on this subject.

Almost every yarn told by the novice is quite the same in substance and much the same in detail as those related by others. It seems that most of them meet the same old gorilla, still beating his breast and screaming just as he did thirty years ago. The number of gun-barrels that he is accused of having chewed up would make an arsenal that would arm the volunteers. What becomes of all those that are attacked by this fierce monarch of the jungle? Not one of them ever gets killed, and not one of them ever kills a gorilla. Does he merely do this as a bluff and then recede from the attack? Or does he follow it up and seize his victim, tear him open and drink his blood as he is supposed to do? How does the victim escape? What becomes of the assailant? Who lives to tell the tale?

The gorilla has good ears, good eyes, and is a skilful bushman. One man walking through the jungle will make more noise than half a dozen gorillas. The gorilla can always see and hear a man before he is seen or heard by him. He is shy, and will not attack a man unless he is disturbed by him. He is always on the alert for danger, and rarely comes into the open parts of the bush except for food. He can conceal himself with more ease than a man can, and has every advantage in making his escape. I do not believe that he will ever approach a man if he can evade him. I quite believe that he will make a strong defence if surprised or attacked, but I do not believe it possible for any one to see a great number of gorillas in any length of time unless he goes to some one place and remains there as I have done. Even then he must sometimes wait for days without a trace of one. Silence and patience alone will enable him to see them; but when the gorilla sees him he at once retires as soon as he discovers the nature of the thing before him. He does not always flee in haste as many other animals do, but is more deliberate and cool. He will retreat in good order, and as a rule always starts in time if possible to escape without being observed. I trust that I may be pardoned for not being able to believe that every stranger who visits that country is attacked by a gorilla.

In addition to those I have seen in a wild state, I have seen about ten in captivity. Two of those were my own. They were good subjects for study, and I made the best use of them for the time I had them.

I accomplished one thing while in the jungle, for which I feel a just sense of pride, and that was making a gorilla take a portrait of himself. This will interest the amateur in the art of snapshots, and I shall relate it.

I selected a place in the forest where I found some tracks of the animal along the edge of a dense thicket of batuna. Under cover of the foliage I set up two pairs of stakes which were crossed at the tops, and to them was lashed a short pole forming something like a sawbuck. To this was fastened the camera, to which had been attached a trigger made of bamboo splits. One end of a string was fastened to the trigger, and the other end carried under a yoke to a distance of eight feet from the lens. At this point was attached a fresh plantain stalk and a nice bunch of the red fruit of the batuna. Upon this point the camera was focussed, the trigger was set, and it was left to await the gorilla. That afternoon I returned to find that something had taken the bait, broken the string, sprung the trigger and snapped the camera. I developed the plate, but could find no image of anything except the leaves in front of it. I repeated the experiment with the same results, but could not understand how anything could steal the bait and yet not be shown in the picture. The third time I did this I was gratified to find the image of a gorilla, and also to discover the cause why the others had not succeeded. The deep shadows of the forest make it difficult to take a photograph without giving it a time exposure, and when the sun is under a cloud or on the wrong side of an object it is quite impossible. The leaves that were shown in the first two plates were only those which were most exposed to the light, and all the lower part of the picture was without detail. In the third trial it could be seen that the sun was shining at the instant of exposure. A part of the body of the gorilla was in the light, but most of it was in the shadow of the leaves above it. The left side of the head and face were quite distinct, also the left shoulder and arm. The hand and bait could not have been distinguished except by their context. The right side of the head, arm, and most of the body were lost. The picture showed that he had taken the bait with his left hand, and that he was in a crouching posture at the moment. While the photograph was very poor as a work of art, it was full of interest as an experiment.