The Caldwell tribune. [volume] (Caldwell, Idaho Territory [Idaho]) 1883-1928, 1893-05-13
THE THREE LZ0lI5SS.
By T. 2iDE--i EAcGkID.
CHAPTER. IT.


1.-THE lions ca,.lc Eac,; no more rEet
night, and by lie rexs morning my
nerves had got pretty straight again,
put was full OF Ss',r:.t.i wien | thopyft
oI al That l had gone through at tie
nands, or rather roscs, OF those four
HONS. aNu Ut rho tate OF my asterox hur-
tean. 10 was n Splendid OK, and wi-<
very fOnd CT him. So wroth was that,
Ake tool, ! determined to go for the
whole family Of them. 1t was worthy
Of Rreenhorn out On his first hunting
Trip, but did 1t nevertheless.
accordingly, after breakfast, having
rubbed some oil upon my leg, which
vas very sore from the cubs tongue,
took the driver, Tom, who did not half
like the job, and having armed myself
with an ordinary double number twelve
smoothbore, the first breechloader ever
had, ! started. took the smoothbore
because it shot bullet very well, and
my experience has been that a round
ball from smoothbore is quite as effect
I'VE against lion as an express bullet.
The lion is soft and not a difficult ami
NAL to finish if you hit him anywhere in
the body. A buck takes far more
killing.
Well, l started, and the first thing
set to work to do was to try to make out
whereabouts the brutes lay up for the
day. About three hundred yards from
the wagon was the crest Of rise, COW
cred with single mimosa trees, dotted
about in parklike fashion, and beyond
this was stretch Of open plain, run
ming down to a dry pan, or water hole,
which covered about an acre of ground
and was densely clothed with reeds,
now in the sere and yellow leaf. EnDm
the farther edge of this pan the ground
sloped up again to q great cleft or null
lab, which had been cut out by the ac-
tton OF water and was pretty thickly
spr1nkled with bush. among which grew
some large trees, forget of what sort.
''lt at once struck me that the dry pan
would be u likely place to find my friends
in, as there is nothing a lion is fonder of
than lying up in reeds, through which
he can see things without being seen
himself. Accordingly thither l went
and prospected. Before had got half
way round the pan found the remains
OF blue vilderbeeste that had evidently
been killed within the last three or four
days ind partially devoured by lions,
and from other indications about was
soon assured that if the family were not
in the pan that day they spent good
deal OF their spare time there. But if
there the question was how to get them
snsrl rO.T tv.S1s< -o.-.---,-s..-.-So
Think of going in after them unless one
was quite determined to commit suicide.
"Now there was a strong wind blow
ing from tho direction of the wagon
across the reedy pan toward the bush
clad kloof or donga, and this first gave
me the idea Of firing the reeds, which,
as think told you, were pretty dry.
Accordingly Tom took some matches
and began starting little fires to the left,
and did the same to the right. But
the reeds were still green at the bottom,
and we should never have got them we'll
alight. had il not been for the wind,
which got stronger and stronger as the
sun got higher and forced the fire into
them. At last. after half an hours
trouble. the fame got q hold and began
to spread ont like q fan, whereupon
got around to the farther side Of the
pan to wait for the lions, standing we'll
ont in the open as we stood at the copse
today where you shot the woodcock. Il
ut was . rather risky thing to do, but
I used to be so sure Of my shooting in
those days that did not 80 much mind
tho risk. Scarcely had got round
when heard the reeds parting before
the onward rush Of some animal. Now
for it, said !. On it came. could sec
that it was yellow and prepared for &C.
ton, when. instead Of q lion. out bound
cd beautiful re3k box which had been
lying in the shelter OF the pan. Il ni;st.
by the way, have been reit-ho., of Il.
peculiarly confding nature to lay itsslf
down with the lion like the lamb ct
prophecy, but ] suppose that the recds
wore thick and that it kept a long way
Oh.
4sWell, let the reit-bok so, and It
went like tho wind, and kept my eyes
fixed upon the reeds. The fire was burn
ing like q furnace now, the flames crack
ling and roaring aahthey bit into tho
reeds, sending spouts 6f fire twenty feet
and moro into the air, and making the
hot air dance above itin a way that was
perfectly dazzling. But the reeds were
still half green and created an enormous
quantity ot smoke, which came rolling
toward me like . curtain, lying very low
on sccouat Of the wind. Presently above
tn. cracking of the fire heard startled
roar, they another and another. So the