Today is World Hippo Day. Hippos are the one of the largest walking mammals on earth, second only to elephants, and perhaps rhinoceroses. Some are skinnier, and some are chubbier. They are only found in the wild in Africa. Hippos spend most of their time in water, and can be very dangerous. Over 500 people a year die from hippo attacks. They are very territorial in water, and are are aggressive to boats and people. During the night, they leave the rivers and graze for grass, sometimes walking up to 3 miles. This first story was a great find. ”Huberta Goes South: A Record of the Lone Trek of the Celebrated Zululand Hippopotamus 1928 to 1931″ by Hedley A. Chilvers, 1931.
The book tells the engaging and true story of a hippopotamus that lived in Zululand. She decided she didn’t like where she was and traveled south. In the course of two and a half years, she wandered to the Keiskama River in British Kaffraria. It is estimated she walked around 1000 miles in that time. She became a kind of celebrity, and was granted ‘protected royal game’ status, and yet was still shot by several poaching farmers. Her body was retrieved, stuffed, and put in a local museum.
The second book is “Hubert the Traveling Hippopotamus” by Edmund Lindop, 1961. This tells the same story, but is a kids book, full of illustrations. Both of these books, while hard to find, are very interesting. During the actual walk (for about 30 months), newspapers named the the hippo Hubert. After death, it was discovered to be a female. The first author (who wrote the book right after the death) then titled the book, Huberta. The kids book kept the folktale name of Hubert. The death of Huberta brought a change in big game killing attitudes in Africa. While it did not stop hunting, it was one of the first attempts to bring about change.
Stories like this is why I don’t just collect one type of book. I would miss out on such wonderful, unusual books. I use The Squirrel Theory of Collecting, that is I may be focused on one topic, and then “squirrel”, I’m chasing something else. Senior book collectors warn would-be collectors, about people like me. ”Don’t get distracted”, they say. ”Stay focused on your topic.” And they may be right. But then again, I am not just collecting, I am filling a library with books of unusual stories, a most eclectic library. So please keep reading. you may find a book that you enjoy.
Librarytomes 