Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1888-11-14

=
Not exactly, but they must have a
fair show, you know. Even our cow
ardly natives here can FIRE of guns and
raise great row. Why don't a couple
Of you go forward with your rifles?"
''Ear him talkl' growled an Eng
lIshman.
Nothing but Yankee blusterr'
added 4 second
"You and Will advance upon the
beasts alone" | said to the French |
sprig of nobility, who stood with gun |
in hand.
"No! no! noI'' he replied, as he
backed of.
But I thought you gave the lion a
fair show? Is there a mSn in this |
crowd who dares go with me?"
1 stepped out. revolver in hand. and |
for half n minute there was deep
silence. Then two or three OF them,
urged me not to be foolhardy, while
two or three others growled out that It
was only Yankee bluff aud buster.
The lions roared again, making the
very earth tremble, and l saw that
neither had changed position.
''SOme of you have seen lit to slur
the nerve required by men in our voca-
tIon,'' / said when the roarings died
away. ~ am going to drive those
lions off the ridge. L should like COM
pany. Who will come with mep"
Not a man moved.
VERY well, will 60 alone. This,
as all can see, is my only weapon"
/ struck out at a moderate pace, face
to the lions and the revolver in hand
was going to bluff the beasts or lose
my life. l believed they could be
bluffed. They stood about four feet
aNA I'D ~aaH1 nj
! had not advanced forty feet when
both uttered deep growl. Before L
had gone a hundred feet the men were
begging me to return. Had 1 faltered
or halted or looked back my power
would have vanished in a second. /
had my eyes on the lions, and L Went
steadily forward. They growled again
aud switched their tails. When l had
covered one-third of the distance the
female crouched as If for a run at me,
while the male was evidently uneasy.
At half the distance the male advanced
a step or two, with a low roar. and the
female changed her place 20 the other
side of him. Behind me every man
held his breath, believing was going
to certain death. / am not going TO
deny that l was in tremble, and that
would have given ten years OF my
life 10 be out OF the scIape, but l had
been insulted and slurred as Yankee.
and was either to die like Yankee
OF come off with flying colors.
When / had come within fifty feet of
the lions 1 fully expected they would
rush upon me. Both were excited and
angry, and both ready. Here was
where nerve came into play. 1t was a
game OF bluff, but it takes nerve to
bluff. kept straight on for the male,
and he let me come within thirty feet
| Uwenty-ten-indeed ] got the full
strength OF his offensive breath before
| he sprang aside with a snari and trotted
away. HIS mate followed his move
/ ments, and / was saved. Every man
who has hunted the lion knows that If
I you can upset him he becomes cowardly.
/ To upset him you have got to work on
his other nature. lie is easily mystliied
/ and Just as superstitious as an OLD
woman The idea of my daring To
/ come straight at them. alone aud ap-
parently unarmed, was too much for
/ their eQuanimity. Once they were on
the run they became more frightened
with every rod, and this permitted me
To carry out the second part of the
programme. 1 shouted after them,
calling them jackals and towards, and
] GudSEu luc AnN AAAsO 4Ol
forty rods or more. l also emptied my
revolver at the pair, taking care not T.
aim too carefully, and the result Was
that both ran OF into the desert, with
their tails dragging. L returned TO
camp to receive All ovation, and Yankee
stock went above par at a single
bound. /, of course, tried to make
light OF the venture, but / was really
in a cold sweat, and ny knees did
get over their weakness tor hours.
Next day We separated from the
party and pushed up the stream fOI
twenty miles, where We halted and
made a permanent camp. The left
nand bank was here timbered and
broken, offering good cover for lions,
and our first night satisfied US that We
had them in plenty around u.s. On the
next night our new idea in lion catch
ing Was put to the test. As 1t was II
one sense a failure, and as 1t Is no lon
ger practIced, L can give 1t away with
out injury to any one a German
chemist had compounded for us al
opiate. AS we could not give it dlrec
to the lions. it was poured down the
throat of a calf, L never knew what TIT
stuff was, but We forced a yearling call
to imbibe about a pint of il, and fol
]
if drunk. Then he got sleepy, AM
Law down and closed his eyes while WE
were switching him. We removed hin
to a rayine about half a mile from
camp. and soon after dark a pair o
/ lions came down aud killed and at
r him. We were astir at early dawn
Z and we found both animals within
: quarter of a mile of the spot The
( were lying fat on the earth, helpless a
| old drunkards, and we had had then
4, Gagged for hours before they threw oi
the stupor. We waited week to dis
. cover what effect the stuff woald have
= Neither one recovered from the dose
one diving on the sixth and the other o
Z the seventh day. They acted languiC
A had no appetite, and 1t was plain tina
Il they had been thoroughly knocked GU
: nv the drug. We were thinking {
e trying it again and using less quar-
9 tity. when the two jugs holding Il
stuff were broken by accident, and ths
4 was the end of our scheme, Other
= have tried it, but no animal caught tia
! way lived to reach Amsterdam
4 On the ninth day, having discovere
:. a runway down which the lions can
4 10 drink at the river, we prepared
% trap by digging a deep pit. This WI
N the work of natives, and their skill W;
Is something to wsnder at. When the
# had finished their work, the keene
a white man would have kept the pa
a without suspicion Of danger. A fe
% branches and reeds held up layer
a earth, and this earth was 50 patts
n down that it seemed to have been tro
p den for weeks. When all was reat
,e the natives broke a branch of bu
'. beside the path in peculiar Wa
re This they told US would prevent hyen
10 or jackals from following the pat
r Then a rag was hung on limb oy'
4. the path to keep hoofed beasts fro
n | walking into our pit, and all was read
m When night came we heard lions ;
= around US, and one came so close
% camp as to alarm US, but If they We
" 20 the river they did not follow the pa
= xe had meddled with The next d;