Assessing Cartridges for Africa
First, let’s get the all-round 375 H&H out of the way. Fine though it is, it’s been dominating Africa rifles discussions too long. Yes, this may indeed be the ultimate one-gun option. With the right bullets at the right muzzle velocity this 111-year-old cartridge...
A Rush of Black
We stood now in the shade of the trees with great smooth trunks, circled at their base with the line of roots that showed in rounded ridges up the trunks like arteries; the trunks the yellow green of a French forest on a day in winter after rain. But these trees had a...
The Devil of Bangalore
The night was warm and still and, although there was no moon, the myriad stars cast a bright glow over the village as the hunter took his position outside one of the huts. He had just arrived in the Bangalore region of southern India where he was waiting for one of...
Uganda: The Pearl
While rummaging through some of my father’s old books, I stumbled across African Game Trails by Theodore Roosevelt. It’s an interesting read regarding the exploits and African journeys of an American hunter and conservationist. One chapter, “Uganda, and the Great...
A Rogue Elephant
This article originally appeared in the December 1892 issue of Outing. Some 10 ten years ago, toward the close of the hot season, I was traveling through the somewhat sparsely inhabited district of Bintenna, in the Eastern province of Ceylon. The country was wild in...
Never Invisible
“For extended trips, where time is no object and cross country work is intended, the ox-wagon is the best means of conveyance, especially if a bulk of heads and skins is to be collected, and carried about. The hire of a wagon, with a full span of oxen native driver,...
The Borrowed Gun
Our son, Jamie, is 10 years old. Today, after much pleading, he is with me at a cabin on the South Island of New Zealand, a long way from anywhere. There at the head of the valley, the snow looms high overhead, waterfalls cascade off the mountainside and fingers of...
Lt. Colonel J. H. Patterson: A Life on the Lunatic Express
A Life on the Lunatic Express Some four decades ago, when both this magazine and writer were young, I wrote a feature bearing the title “The Lunatic Express.” It later appeared as the lead story in an anthology of grand tales of derring-do carrying the title Africa:...
One Dog Night
In the early years, African leopards commonly preyed on cattle and other livestock, and even humans. But their favorite prey of all was the dog.