Evald Marks

There were other interesting settlers around Babati. The Earl of Lovelace owned estates managed by two Estonians, Karl Nurk and Evald Marks, deserters from the French Foreign Legion who had subsequently crossed the Sahara on foot, after their camels had died.

Hunting was popular among Babati's European settlers. One, a Dutchman called Mello Versluys had killed a huge elephant known as "Jaho the Invincible", with tusks weighing 290 pounds. "Cockie" Blixen knew Mello as "The Little Ray of Sunshine" as he always looked down in the dumps and revelled in reporting bad news. But Mello was generous (and rich); he let the Blixens use his silver Rolls Royce to tour Europe on their honeymoon.

The District Commissioner in Babati, a gentleman called de Coursey-Ireland, was killed by elephants in 1931.