But the success he had achieved with the mountain lions of the
Southwest, the musk-ox of the North, and the grizzly bears of the
Rockies was not enough. For twenty years it had been the one
ambition of his life to take an outfit to British East Africa to
try his hand with the more ferocious big game of that country.
But in his Western experience Colonel Jones had learned something
else besides the mastery of man over beast. Precisely how an
American cowboy was going to hold a rhinoceros that weighed two
tons and a half was purely a matter of speculation. Yet of one
thing the Colonel was certain--the experiment would result in a
moving picture that would be well worth the taking. For this
reason, what afterward came to be known as the "picture
department" was added to the make-up of the expedition.
The preparations extended over a considerable length of time, and
were carried on in various places. Unquestionably, the most
important part of the outfit was the horses. It was absolutely
essential that they should be Western cow-ponies, fast, well
trained, and reliable in every way. The Colonel, who best of all
could foresee the nature of the work they would have to do,
selected them himself, ten in all, from the ranches of New
Mexico, and shipped them to New York.
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