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April 2, 1957
Dear Diary,
I have just arrived at Kenya Castle by boat at the age of 23 to visit an old friend and her family.
When I arrived at their house, I told them about my dream of traveling to Africa to observe and write about wild animals. They told me, “ Jane, if you’re interested in animals, you should meet Dr. Louis Leakey.”
Then I called him, and he invited me to the Natural History Museum where he was the caretaker of the collection. I believe he was fascinated by how much I learned about African wild animals since I work in the Natural History Museum of London. I have obviously mentioned about the boring secretarial work I have, then surprisingly, his secretary unexpectedly quit. He needed a secretary so instead of wasting time, he hired me.
July 14, 1960
Dear Diary,
I have just arrived at Gombe Stream Game Reserve on the eastern shore of Lake Tanganyika by boat with my mother and African cook at the age of 26.
Dr. Leakey has finally sent me here to study wild chimpanzees.
I have brought a tent, a few tin plates, a cup without a handle, a shabby pair of binoculars, and a whistle in case I happen to be in danger.
Our tent was up right away, in a clearing up from fishermen’s huts on the stony beach. We all ate lunch together, and then my mother and I spent an exhausting and boiling afternoon sorting things in order.
Around 5 p.m., someone came to us and said they had seen a chimp. So we went off, and there was a chimp. It was very far from our tent. I only took a blurred glimpse. The chimp moved away when we all went to take a closer look; but when we climbed a neighbouring slope, we did not see it again. But the good thing is, I noticed and recorded a fresh nest.
We all went back to the beach before dark so we could continue arranging the place.
After long conversations and supper, my mother and I peacefully went to bed.
October 30, 1960
Dear Diary,
Exciting news! I have just discovered that chimps eat meat as well! They are omnivores, but omnivores who hunt for their own meat.
I discovered it by watching a group of chimps eat a bushpig, and watched them as they hunted down a red colobus monkey that climbed to a lofty tree for their supper.
November 4, 1960
Dear Diary,
Marvelous news! Today I observed a male chimpanzee whose name is David Greybeard. He started by sticking twigs of tense grass into termite holes to extract the termites and this meant that chimps use tools! Which is a trait uniquely human.
I was very excited that I telegraphed Dr. Leakey instantly about my new observation. He wrote to me back, “Now we must redefine ‘tool,’ redefine ‘man,’ or accept chimpanzees as humans.”
About the Author
Nesdeline Jill C. Ducusin
Hi, my name is Nesdeline Ducusin! You can call me Dela for short. I live in the Philippines. My hobbies are reading, drawing, singing, and dancing ballet, but my top favorite hobby is reading. I started reading big books when my sister pleaded, and as I started, I enjoyed it. I started to collect many, many books till our bookshelf could no longer fit them.