Africa, India, Asia: 1900-1960.
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Hardcover. An archive of typescript works by the author, renowned hunter, and British soldier Lieutenant Colonel H.E. Crocker. A substantial lot of documents neatly organized in five folders including a 500 page typed manuscript, 56 page typed manuscript of *The Hoghunter’s Annual Volume II*, 31 typed manuscripts essays, letters from editors, and agendas for organizations he was involved in. Very good with some small chips and tears and age-toning.
Crocker (1877-1962) obtained a commission as Lieutenant in the Essex Regiment in 1900, and served in the Second Boer War. After sustaining an injury during his regimental service in Belfast, South Africa, in 1901 he was seconded to the North Nigerian Regiment, remaining at this post until the end of the war. During the First World War, Crocker commanded the 13th Signal Company at Gallipoli, where he was wounded. He was appointed second-in-command of the 8th Battalion, Chinese Regiment, which arrived in Mesopotamia in late February 1916, and became battalion commander during the capture of Hai Salient on 15 February 1917, retaining this position until the end of the war. Crocker retired from the army in 1929 after some years in India, and subsequently decided to travel, hunt, and write, exploring extensively in Africa with his wife. He died on 13 May 1962.
This comprehensive autobiographical archive details Crocker’s travels with the British Army and on his own accord. Possessing a keen interest in global advancement and world events, he produced numerous unpublished essays and personal observations of politics, education, industrialization, and campaigns of war, starting with his own participation in the Fall of Baghdad in 1917 with the Thirteenth Division under General Maude. Topics include a 14-page account of border disputes of the Northern States of India, the railways in Nepal, Kashmir-Tibet, Assam, and the importance of the Russian steel plant, Bhilai Steel Plant, which in 1955 became India’s first and main producer of steel rails, as well as a 17-page report that examines the reformation of Taiwan during the 1950s under KMT (Chinese Nationalist Party) rule.
Lieutenant-Colonel Crocker kept numerous well-written recollections of his hunting expeditions in Africa meeting Sir Julian Huxley, secretary of the Zoological Society of London and founding member of the World Wildlife Fund. Captivating accounts include a hunt for black partridge near Baghdad, Iraq, during his service in the Mesopotamia Campaign, partaking in a “pig-sticking festival” in Germany (which digresses into an account of the event’s ancient tradition), and fly fishing in Scotland's Highlands, Central Ireland, and England. Some of his hunting adventures were published in poetic form, in the 1930s sport hunting magazine *The Field: Hoghunter’s Annual.* Other articles pertaining to Africa were published in the *Army Quarterly Magazine.*
The papers mirror Crocker’s career and travel accounts, some of which were printed as articles, and others which remain unpublished, many of which were intended to be released collectively as a yet unpublished book. One of the folders contains a 500-plus page unpublished book manuscript titled, *Africa from Within* written by Crocker circa 1960-1962. In it he describes cannibalism among the leopard society, superstition and witchcraft, juju and venerated objects, serpent totems for worship, male initiation rites, rain dances and festivities, marriage customs, tribal dress, communications and industry, as well as the discovery of the bronze head and other copper alloy sculptures in 1938 at Ife, in Nigeria. Not simply an observer, Crocker was a member of the Conservative Commonwealth Council for East and Central Africa, among other groups, and according to meeting minutes herein, was involved in the rehabilitation of the Mau Mau during the 1950s uprisings, in hopes of improving living standards and conditions. Shortly after World War II he reported on a munitions area in East Africa.
Yielding numerous engaging adventures, this substantial archive of firsthand accounts embodies the life of an all-but-forgotten British soldier, skilled hunter, and writer. A voluminous and extensive collection that forms the most complete account of Crocker’s life and career.
Item #409911
