night, however, we were awakened by a tremendous rending crash of
breaking bushes, followed by an instant's silence and then the

outbreak of a babel of voices. Then we heard a prolonged
sw-i-sh-sh-sh, exactly like the launching of a big boat. A hippo

had blundered out the wrong side the river, and fairly into our
camp.

In rivers such as the Tana these great beasts are most
extraordinarily abundant. Directly in front of our camp, for

example, were three separate herds which contained respectively
about sixty, forty, and twenty-five head. Within two miles below

camp were three other big pools each with its population; while a
walk of a mile above showed about as many more. This sort of

thing obtained for practically the whole length of the
river-hundreds of miles. Furthermore, every little tributary

stream, no matter how small, provided it can muster a pool or so
deep enough to submerge so large an animal, has its faithful

band. I have known of a hippo quite happily occupying a ditch
pool ten feet wide and fifteen feet long. There was literally not

room enough for the beast to turn around; he had to go in at one
end and out at the other! Each lake, too, is alive with them; and

both lakes and rivers are many.
Nobody disturbs hippos, save for trophies and an occasional

supply of meat for the men or of cooking fat for the kitchen.
Therefore they wax fat and sassy, and will long continue to

flourish in the land.
It takes time to kill a hippo, provided one is wanted. The mark

is small, and generally it is impossible to tell whether or not
the bullet has reached the brain. Harmed or whole the beast sinks

anyway. Some hours later the distention of the stomach will float
the body. Therefore the only decent way to do is to take the

shot, and then wait a half day to see whether or not you have
missed. There are always plenty of volunteers in camp to watch

the pool, for the boys are extravagantly fond of hippo meat. Then
it is necessary to manoeuvre a rope on the carcass, often a

matter of great difficulty, for the other hippos bellow and snort
and try to live up to the circus posters of the Blood-sweating

Behemoth of Holy Writ, and the crocodiles like dark meat very
much. Usually one offers especialreward to volunteers, and

shoots into the water to frighten the beasts. The volunteer
dashes rapidly across the shallows, makes a swift plunge, and

clambers out on the floating body as onto a raft.
Then he makes fast the rope, and everybody tails on and tows the

whole outfitashore. On one occasion the volunteer produced a
fish line and actually caught a small fish from the floating

carcass! This sounds like a good one; but I saw it with my own
two eyes.

It was at the hippo pool camp that we first became acquainted
with Funny Face.

Funny Face was the smallest, furriest little monkey you ever saw.
I never cared for monkeys before; but this one was altogether

engaging. He had thick soft fur almost like that on a Persian
cat, and a tiny human black face, and hands that emerged from a

ruff; and he was about as big as old-fashioned dolls used to be
before they began to try to imitate real babies with them. That

is to say, he was that big when we said farewell to him. When we
first knew him, had he stood in a half pint measure he could just

have seen over the rim. We caught him in a little thorn ravine
all by himself, a fact that perhaps indicates that his mother had

been killed, or perhaps that he, like a good little Funny Face,
was merely staying where he was told while she was away. At any

rate he fought savagely, according to his small powers. We took
him ignominiously by the scruff of the neck, haled him to camp,

and dumped him down on Billy. Billy constructed him a beautiful
belt by sacrificing part of a kodak strap (mine), and tied him to

a chop box filled with dry grass. Thenceforth this became Funny
Face's castle, at home and on the march.

Within a few hours his confidence in life was restored. He
accepted small articles of food from our hands, eyeing us

intently, retired and examined them. As they all proved
desirable, he rapidly came to the conclusion that these new large

strange monkeys, while not so beautiful and agile as his own
people, were nevertheless a good sort after all. Therefore he

took us into his confidence. By next day he was quite tame, would
submit to being picked up without struggling, and had ceased

trying to take an end off our various fingers. In fact when the
finger was presented, he would seize it in both small black

hands; convey it to his mouth; give it several mild and gentle
love-chews; and then, clasping it with all four hands, would

draw himself up like a little athlete and seat himself upright on
the outspread palm. Thence he would survey the world, wrinkling

up his tiny brow.
This chastened and scholarly attitude of mind lasted for four or

five days. Then Funny Face concluded that he understood all about
it, had settled satisfactorily to himself all the problems of the

world and his relations to it, and had arrived at a good working
basis for life. Therefore these questions ceased to occupy him.

He dismissed them from his mind completely, and gave himself over
to light-hearted frivolity.

His disposition was flighty but full of elusive charm. You
deprecated his lack of serious purpose in life, disapproved

heartily of his irresponsibility, but you fell to his engaging
qualities. He was a typical example of the lovable

good-for-naught. Nothing retained his attention for two
consecutive minutes. If he seized a nut and started for his chop

box with it, the chances were he would drop it and forget all
about it in the interest excited by a crawling ant or the colour

of a flower. His elfish face was always alight with the play of
emotions and of flashing changing interests. He was greatly given

to starting off on very important errands, which he forgot before
he arrived.

In this he contrasted strangely with his friend Darwin. Darwin
was another monkey of the same species, caught about a week

later. Darwin's face was sober and pondering, and his methods
direct and effective. No side excursions into the brilliant

though evanescent fields of fancy diverted him from his ends.
These were, generally, to get the most and best food and the

warmest corner for sleep. When he had acquired a nut, a kernel of
corn, or a piece of fruit, he sat him down and examined it

thoroughly and conscientiously and then, conscientiously and
thoroughly, he devoured it. No extraneous interest could distract

his attention; not for a moment. That he had sounded the
seriousness of life is proved by the fact that he had observed

and understood the flighty character of Funny Face. When Funny
Face acquired a titbit, Darwin took up a hump-backed position

near at hand, his bright little eyes fixed on his friend's
activities. Funny Face would nibble relishingly at his prune for

a moment or so; then an altogetherastonishingbutterfly would
flitter by just overhead. Funny Face, lost in ecstasy would gaze

skyward after the departing marvel. This was Darwin's
opportunity. In two hops he was at Funny Face's side. With great

deliberation, but most businesslike directness, Darwin disengaged
Funny Face's unresisting fingers from the prune, seized it, and

retired. Funny Face never knew it; his soul was far away after
the blazoned wonder, and when it returned, it was not to prunes

at all. They were forgotten, and his wandering eye focussed back
to a bright button in the grass. Thus by strict attention to

business did Darwin prosper.
Darwin's attitude was always serious, and his expression grave.

When he condescended to romp with Funny Face one could see that
it was not for the mere joy of sport, but for the purposes of

relaxation. If offered a gift he always examined it seriously
before finally accepting it, turning it over and over in his