Africa Speaks, Part 2 (1930)

next to the zebra they are the Lion's favorite food and though they have a Placid cowlike expression they will charge without notice and five or six of them fighting together have been known to kill a lion dozens of them huddle under one small tree to escape the terrific heat for shade is scarce though there are many hardship connected with an expedition of this kind the charm of Africa lies in the everchanging things of interest you never know what to expect just around the corner Paul what is it look at those big grasshoppers grasshoppers nothing those are IIA Locas the whole V will soon be black with them we have to cover everything up come on go get that camera quick Charlie you have to cover that truck with the camera this entire down tight all right yo come on yo hurry up get a hold of that crap quick come on pull it right down come on come on with that camera all right go and help them on the truck get over there get this BR go around there hurry up got it tomorrow I will bring Locus unto thy poast and they shall eat every tree which groweth for you out of the field this tremendous swarm is just such a visitation of locust as Moses called down to punish the wicked pharaoh of Egypt 3500 years ago they'll be hon us in a minute let's photograph them from the inside the windows of the tent were especially constructed of flexible iing glass through which photography is possible warns such as this have been known to be 50 m in width and 100 m long and often they'll fly several hundred miles in a day they strike Terror into the hearts of men and beasts and natives in a stricken territory watch with beish anxiety as the creatures fly overhead praying that they will continue their flight without a lighting to devour their trops and ruin their food supply they hit the T like Hailstone are the boys safe yes I put them in the cab of the truck like an enormous storm of black flakes they covered the Earth in a ravenous horde eating every bit of grass in their path every animal leaves the sicken area and hundreds die in their frantic efforts to shake off the [Applause] pant clouds of countless billions literally hide the Sun and every modern resource of science has failed to combat them for no one knows from when they came or where they go hand of a higher power the wilder beast know by Instinct that the only way to escape disaster is by taking a course at right angles to the wind because the lopus Fly With the Wind it is estimated that there are about 60,000 locusts to the square yard and they swarm such as this covers millions and millions of square [Music] yards unlike the Bible plague of old the present plague is no respector of race Creed or country the stampeding Wilder beasts raise clouds of giant Hoppers which have settled on the ground the Frantic animals must travel more than 50 miles through this insect storm before they can eat or drink [Music] again in the evening they continue to come down from the sky in millions settling on every bit of green vegetation in the countryside they break strong branches of trees by the sheer weight of their countless numbers and the ground is covered with a blanket at least 6 in deep all through the night they eat eat eat every blade of grass every leaf of the trees and in the morning this beautiful country is transformed into a bleak and Barren desert to our knowledge we are the first in the history of Motion Pictures to record and photograph this phenomenon of nature and Moses said for they covered the face of the whole earth so that the land was darkened and they did eat of every herb of the land and all the fruit of the trees and there remain not any green thing either tree or herb of the field through all the land with their crops and food supply ruined overnight whole tribes of natives have have been caught in a Scourge like this to die of starvation before they can get out of the devastated area it was our good fortune that the truck contained sufficient food to carry us out of this ravaged country to our next Supply station after many days of travel in Equatorial heat we climb to the summit of the BAGI mountains below is the T gika Valley of lions and here among the tribe of Messi the most profound tragedy of the entire trip took place and here in the shelter of a great Rock the Messi's Builder Manata or Thorn enclosed Village which houses the old men women and children of this famous cattle raising tribe this minata is completely surrounded by an 8ft wall of thorn bushes with the cow dung Huts of the natives just inside the thorny Circle this peculiar construction is a protection against night prowling lions in the evening the entrance gate is also plugged with the thorn bushes and the cattle are hurt into the center where they are comparatively safe through the night of marauding lions in search of food the whole assembly is only a temporary City for when the grass is gone from the nearby Fields the entire tribe moves to a new location a Messi prizes his cattle rather more than his wives and he has about the same number head of each both are traded in regularly and the prices vary according to the supply and demand the old Chief told us the average price per Maiden is one steer two cows and a keg of Honey beer of course secondhand wives are quoted at Cut Rate prices he said he was a good Trader and charted out his collection of female curios to prove it it is the duty of the Messi women to take good care of the caves as well as the children and the chief apologized for those of his wives who were out helping the cows the rest of them wouldn't come out some of the others were nursing Cals for this duty is just as important as the care of the children copper and iron wire form the principal adornments of the Messi women and their social standing is graded by the amount possessed some of the favorites can hardly lift their arms because of the weight of the many metal rings for which the fond husband has traded his precious cattle the cattle spend the night in the circle of thorns and at day break they are turned loose to graze on the Flames no Messi ever eats meat they live entirely on an atrocious curd made from milk and blood both of which are drawn from the cows even in times of starvation and drought they die by hundreds rather than eat the meat of the cattle which they persist in treating as ornaments they are slightly smaller than our cattle and each has a peculiar hump on the back like that of a camel while his youngest son attended to the cattle the kind old Chief instructed his oldest boy kagga to show us around and help however he could in our purpose to secure close-up scenes of wild lions though thousands of lions are known to be in this grassy Valley they have learned to stay away from the cattle because a human being is always with them stting the hillsides in the open but close to the Messi Village can be seen the Huts of the Messi El Moran or lion Hunters the most courageous and feared of all African Warriors they are the tribe policemen or protectors and in these clusters of small Huts they live like Knights of of old being carried their food of milk and blood by maidens of the tribe who also live with them in a state of free love they are maintained for the sole purpose of hunting Lions which have become maneaters or mesters of the great herds of cattle that constitute the wealth of the tribe here in this Valley of lions we make a permanent camp and carefully prepare to obtain motion pictures and sound of the giant cats in their natural moods you know this reminds me of a Duck Blind back home that's practically what it is except that we're hiding a camera instead of a gun kager our Messi boy had chosen the location of our BMA or thorn bush protection near a stone salt lck where a group of lions were in a habit of coming on his ant hill Throne he scans his realm always in search of an unwary wilderbeast zebra or warthog which will afford a target for his hunting skill or satisfy his enormous appetite they prefer zebra meat to any and kills like this are to be seen nearly every day next to the zebra harmless gazel make easy prey for even the smallest of the killers a hungry lion will stalk and kill any animal it sees and there are few with the exception of the Rhino and elephant which are comparatively safe truly the king of beasts flesh eating and blood drinking but now a picture for an artist's eye though she appears as gentle as a tabby cat the female is more deadly than the male look she sees us quiet look out here is a remarkable photograph two lions have made a wilderbeast kill and the herd can be seen in the background even before they had a chance to get away even at that some of the best pictures Escape our camera for instance we saw this great female leap clean Over the Hedge in the background carrying a 200 lb gazelle in her teeth lions are not supposed to be able to climb trees but how would you like to be where the meat is the heat at all times is almost unbearable to both men and beasts in the middle of the day when the sun is white hot they huddle under scraggly trees for what little shade there is lions are rarely found in large numbers and it is quite unusual to photograph seven at one time at 3 months of age the Cubs cly for meat and mother must provide for these have not yet reached the age when they can make a kill of their own while we were in the Bulma the Lions inspected our truck even attempting a small small attack on this unusual stranger they tore off a spare tire and slly took a little nibble at it they see much surprise when it doesn't bite back there is a widespread belief that lions live in a jungle though the truth is just the opposite they are always found in open grassy Plains because the lion is a meat eater and he feeds entirely on animals which in turn live off the Virgin grass of the Open Country [Music] She carries this 200 lb of dead weight like a house cat would amount but Lions never tease a victim they break the neck instantly with a tremendous swipe of the POR and eat what they want almost immediately others have caught the scent of the kill and come in un invited to attend the banquet shooting the prowers of the planes with a camera is much more difficult than with a gun and brings one in closer contact with them there are no place cards at this Feast but despite their noticeable lack of manners it is a remarkable fact that they seldom quarrel over a kill but share it am ably so great is a lion's appetite that he must make a kill every 2 Days in order to exist the thousands of lions in this section kill hundreds of thousands of animals each year for food alone in their natural state active lions are seldom found with great Shaggy mes like those in a zoo because the long hair is caught on bushes and torn by the thorn trees K get rifles from Motorcar quick [Music] [Music] look out h [Music] theom [Music] quick one big male even followed us toward the bomma it is very interesting in to watch a lion shy at the sight of thorn bushes when he will charge straight at a firing revolver after reloading our revolvers it was useless to continue the battle because it was already too late to do anything for poor [Music] kagga 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 finally five out of the six which were around us trooped off behind the leader only one of the maneaters remained at the kill a few hundred yards away a fluck of vultures awaited his departure and behind them far in the distance a ring of cowardly hyenas also await their turn [Applause] it's going to be tough to tell the poor old Chief about ker come on let's go go the code of the Savage a life for a life the Council of the elders are meeting to decide which of the younger Warriors shall be sent out after the Lions they have long been accustomed to kill with the spear Lions which have become man eaters or molesters of their cattle [Music] haager's father sadly await the outcome of the council any of kager's older kin folk now pass their Prime in life would be willing to join the Young Warriors in the hunt sir but a runner has already been sent to the hillside Huts of the Messi El Moran or lion hunters for this honor is reserved solely for them the Fantastic headdress that the chief put on is made of ostrich feathers and is as necessary to the hunt as the spear the Messi Al Moran love a battle but not all of them are allowed to go on the hunt for it is a great honor and the chief can only take along those chosen by the council most of the the younger Warriors wear headdresses made from the MS of the Lions they have killed all their lives they have lived on animal Foods blood milk and water and they are as fit as the Lions they hunt proud cruel and fearless they let us come along to photograph the hunt only on our solemn promise not to shoot the lion their faces legs and chests are painted red yellow and white with a substance Made From the Ashes of previously killed lions naked or half naked with girdles of leopard skin Buffalo hide Shields colored with B patterns and each carrying a long bladed [Music] spear for now the main Master of the Wilds the Terror that stalks by night this Grim Lord of Slaughter is to meet his Doom at the hands of the only foe who dare mest him this is the [Music] challenge they chant in unison the song of the lion and their own feier singing builds up a furious wrath at the man-killing Beast [Music] [Music] for [Music] [Music] all morning the tireless Messiah Warriors have advanced across the rolling grassy Plains in long lines beating across a circle 12 m in diameter Li as Panthers their great muscles Rippling under their smooth dark skin suddenly a short distance ahead a great female spied us and darted off to the right we to shoot her but we could not break our promise with the Messiah Chieftain now the hunters divide to formed the final circle around the base the razor sharp spearheads glint like silver in the sun rays and their Savage yells become shrill in anticipation of Victory the lionist takes temporary refuge in a clump of high weed and now we see that there are two of them but it is too late to inform the Messiah in small groups the Spearman come closer and gradually form the Ring of Death one by one they take their places in the ring and each when he is near enough crouches behind his shield spear in hand his Fierce eager face gleaming over the rim with shields held steady to protect the body and quivering Spears poised for instant action the men in front braced themselves for the shock of the rushing charge the Lioness watches them closely unafraid and seemingly withholding her charge until they are ready at last the tensoring is complete it is a wild sight the Ring of Spearman intent silent bent on blood and in the center a a great man-killing Beast this ring once formed must not be broken for the man who steps back in the face of a charge is forever branded a coward finally with a tremendous Roar she charges the clouded moment Begins the leader plunges his spear into the Beast St him he's down his shield protects him he's up again not a man steps back a doesn't Spears Drive clear through the verious be look out there's another one it's the male her mate fighting to protect his [Music] own let go he's got another one we lightning the F crash again even as he falls in death he fight the [Music] fear the first half dozen Spears have done the work and kga is Avent the whole thing is over in 30 seconds but what a 30 seconds once excited the Messiah are wild with Savage Victory and we wondered if they take after us next the chief takes away the knife of one whose wild frenzy seems to be getting the best of [Music] him strange to say the victors appear unhappy over their victory for the lion is a symbol to them of everything great and they worship His power with deep respect finally the end of this day of Thrills is the Messiah tribute to their fallen fold reverently they move the carcass of the lion to rest it on another spot than that on which it died 5 weeks later we arrive at the Indian Ocean which represents the end of our memorable journey of 14,000 miles across the most interesting continent in the world there it is PA it's taken us 14 months to get here but the old ocean sure looks good to me it's been a Great Adventure [Music]