"Nooner"
Teddy Rossevelt & Cunninghame
Oil, 12x16"
Price on request

Towards the end of 1909, Theodore Roosevelt’s massive East African safari had reached Lake Naivasha.

Hunting rhino was on TR’s mind when he and his guide, R.J. Cunninghame decided to take a respite from the heat of the day. They off-saddled their horses and sat down to have lunch in the shade of a huge acacia tree.

TR wrote in his journal: The huge thorn tree, which stood by itself, lonely and beautiful, offered a shelter from the blazing sun. The game was grazing on every side; and I kept thinking of all the life of the wilderness, and of its many tragedies, which the great tree must have witnessed during the centuries since it was a seedling.

When lunch was over TR and Cunninghame loaded their heavy rifles and headed out towards where they had seen rhino.

The complete story will be in Volume II of Seerey-Lester’s book, Legends of the Hunt – Campfire Tales, due to be published in 2012.