CO885-(19-20) — Page 247

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

Reference :-

C.O. 885

ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC- COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO |

20 PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

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arrest them; while the boundaries of this joint reserve, being on the edge of the settled areas both in this Protectorate and in German East Africa, would be more easily looked after.

During January of this year I met in Nairobi two German gentlemen who were on shooting expeditions here, Baron de Boecklin and Count Königsmark, on the General Staff.

Baron de Boecklin, in fact both of them, were much impressed by the amount of revenue both directly and indirectly which was brought into the country by the game; and also by the methods of game preservation in force in this Protectorate. They were interested in the various problems connected with the game, and I took the opportunity of discussing with them the above-mentioned scheme for com- bining the reserves. They appeared to think very well of it, and promised to use their influence to promote the scheme privately until the time should be ripe for official negotiations. I have since received a letter from Baron de. Boecklin, who was then returning to German East Africa, to say that he has discussed the question with the authorities in German East Africa, and the Governor has ex- pressed himself strongly in favour of it and an intelligent policy of general game preservation. Baron de Boecklin is a personal friend of the German Colonial Secretary in Berlin, and he told me in his letter that he intended putting the scheme privately before the Colonial Secretary on his return this spring.

The principal difficulty raised in German East Africa to the proposed game reserve was that an English company are possibly going to exploit the soda deposits of Lake Natron. However, that is no more serious than the similar case with lake Magardi in this Protectorate.

I attach menios. from the Lieutenant-Governor and the Manager of the Uganda Railway, giving their views on the question. The Lieutenant-Governor's recommendations are practically identical with mine, with the exception of the inclusion of the Rift Valley in the zone in which zebra may be killed and hides exported; this will, I expect, be necessary. The Manager of the Uganda Railway draws attention to the interpretation which may be put upon throwing open the Southern Reserve, in Europe and America; this is a point of considerable im- portance.

I have, &c.,

The Secretary

to the Administration,

Nairobi.

(No. 77/11.)

Enclosure 2 in No. 39.

R. B. WOOSNAM.

Game Warden.

Game Warden's Office, Nairobi,

20th April, 1911. SIR,

WITH regard to the further proposals of the Society for the Preservation of the Fauna of the Empire contained in Colonial Office despatch of 10th March, 1911, No. 4, I must say that I do not think the suggestion of issuing special licences to hunters to kill zebra and hartebeest in the Southern Reserve for bilthong would be found satisfactory in practice. Zebra bilthong is the least valuable and hartebeest bilthong is not so good as that made from the gazelles, giraffe, and eland. And the class of person who would take out such licences could not possibly be trusted in the reserve without a ranger to look after him; they would make bilthong of all the most suitable animals, and kill numbers of rhinoceros as well.

So much shooting in the reserve would practically destroy its value as a sanctum, and the herds of game, instead of being perfectly tame and fearless of the train, will become wild and scattered and one of the principal objects of the reserve lost.

If the reserve is to fulfil the objects for which it was made it must be kept as an absolute sanctum, with the one exception, that the vermin will have to be killed down along the neighbourhood of the railway line; this can be done by the game rangers, and poison used if necessary.

The only practical and permanent method of getting over this game question and retaining the reserve as well, is by fencing the reserve along the railway line and killing off the game outside. If the Society for the Preservation of the Fauna of the Empire will assist by raising a subscription in England and America, where

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much interest will be taken in the project, they will be rendering very material service, and the matter will be settled for the next 50

years.

I cannot too strongly recommend that this fence be put up; it is the only sound and practical way of overcoming the difficulty and has many advantages from other points of view than the game, which I have mentioned in my previous report. And if sportsmen at home and abroad will each give a little assistance the fence can be put up at very little cost to the already overburdened finances of the Protectorate.

I have, &c.,

R. B. WOOSNAM,

Game Warden.

The Secretary

to the Administration,

Nairobi.

Enclosure 3 in No. 39.

DETAILED ACCOUNT OF THE DAMAGE DONE BY GAME TO FARMERS IN THE MACHAKOS AND PART OF NAIROBI DISTRICTS.

Mr. J. E. Turnbull, who has a farm of 1,000 acres near Nairobi, last year planted 10 acres of beans, states they were all eaten off by the Thomson's gazelles and harte- beest. This farm is unfenced, and the cultivated land is unfenced, and no attempt was apparently made to keep game off the crops. Mr. Turnbull is chiefly going in for cattle, and is doing fairly well; he has a herd of about 50 head. He states he would go in for growing wheat if it was not for the game; however, as he has no capital at all, this would be unlikely to be a successful experiment. He wishes to sell his farm.

Mr. C. W. Dawson, who has a farm of 2,000 acres near Nairobi, states that he has only been on the farm 18 months, as he only lately bought it from Mr. Walsh. He has 1,000 acres fenced with barbed wires; says the fence has been very little damaged as scarcely any zebra, and only a few hartebeest, come near his farm, and his chief complaint is against the Thomson's gazelles, which get through the fence. This is quite correct. These farms near Nairobi, along the Ngong River, in the corner between it and the railway line, are visited by only a few zebra, and not often big herds of hartebeest, and the chief offender is Thomson's gazelle, which come here in great numbers at certain times of the year. Mr. Dawson is now going to lace his fence with cross wires, and will probably have no further trouble with game. Last year Mr. Dawson put in a small experimental crop of several varieties of beans, Indian corn, Tinseed, oats; the Thomson's gazelles eat about half of this until he began in using natives with fires around the crops at night, and thus saved the remainder.

go This year he has 40 acres ploughed and ready to plant. Mr. Dawson does not for cattle, but intends to go in largely for cultivation. He is an energetic, intelligent man, and is likely to do well.

Messrs. Anderson and Mayer, editors and owners of the "East African Stan- dard," have just bought a large farm from Mr. S. Clarke, near Nairobi. They run a good many cattle on their land, which is not fenced, and their chief complaint is that the game eat off all the grass. They have ploughed a small strip of 30 acres around the house, and intend to try wheat this season; this piece of land is fenced, and being close against the house is not likely to be damaged by game. I should be inclined to look upon these people as speculators rather than genuine settler farmers.

Mr. H. Tarlton has a farm near Nairobi. Goes in solely for ostrich farming. and is doing very well. He has put up an excellent set of breeding pens, and has 100 birds; has no complaint against game, but says his chief trouble is that his native boys, who herd the ostriches, steal the feathers very badly. Three years ago he planted 10 acres of lucerne for feeding the young birds on, but it has failed entirely. owing to the insufficient rainfall. States that he does not consider the district suit- Will go in for cattle later on. Says that on able for agriculture for this reason. farms which are not well stocked the game does good by keeping the grass from getting rank and long.

Mr. Thomas has a farm near Nairobi, and is going in entirely for growing sisal fibre. He has 50 acres planted with sisal, which I found had been very much damaged by the game, the leaves of nearly all the young plants being chewed, and the plants often pulled up by the roots. Hartebeest and zebra are the offenders. The farm It is, of course, during very dry seasons that and cultivated land are unfenced.

game damages sisal, and only while the plants are young. Mr. Thomas is ploughing

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