The daily morning journal and courier., 1899-11-23

sound Of excited voices from the cam
 showing that my men also had hear it, and were wide awake in consequence
 in a moment I could hear them pilinl
 dry brushwood on the slumberin,
 coals.
 , The deep, rumbing roar was repeated
 at intervals, apparently growing nearer and dying away in the same moaning
 note. Then an apparently interminabl
 time elapsed--a creepy silence, in which
 the men huddled around the blazing
 campfire; suddenly there was a sounc
 Of brute's heavy gallop over the sant
 between the Jungle and our camp, ther
 a mighty roar, followed by thud as
 donkey was felled while his bray rang
 out piteously on the night air A sight
 noise of struggle, a few more stiied
 brays, and then silence, broken, a mo.
 ment later, by the sound of a heavy
 body being dragged across the sand,
 At the first shock of excitement
 grasped my rifle and ran towards inc
 men. When the lion began to drag tha
 carcass of the donkey into the brush l
 moved instinctively towards the sound
 at which the Zulu cried quickly:
 "Khabdar! sahib! bara khabi janwar''
 (have care, sir, very dangerous an-
 maD. When I turned to upbrald them
 all for their cowardice thep explained
 that the natives who had recently joined us had told them that this wadi
 was inhabited by a pair of dreaded eating lions, which had killed some fifty natives in the past. As there is nothing in the world that native dreads so much as man-eating lion, or leopard (the latter are scarce, but real ly do eXisD, curbed my anger, and, re- solving to square accounts with the marauder on the morrow, if he could be found, returned to my tent, where I soon fell asleep again.
 Our cook awakened me at daylight the following morning, and after rub ping my eyes sleepily I found the darkness and the lion had faded away together, while the wadi was alive with the notes of bird and wild fowl. After nasty breakfast l at once filled my jacket pockets with cartridges and ac companied by Gan, the Zulu, started out upon the spoor of the lion. When we had proceeded about mile we came upon the half-eaten carcass of the don key. lying in a small thicket After
  tained that the lion was not there, and so continued on his spoor over the thin growth of grass As it had rained lightly during the early morning, this was very difficult, and after following for half a mile we lost it altogether, There was nothing to do but return to camp, which we did reluctantly, trust ing that fate would throw the game in our way before We left the wadi.
 With the cool of the evening came the usual feeling of restlessness and call ing to Gan, who was sitting apart from the rest, cleaning his eight-bore, we again took up the spoor of the lion, fol- lowing it lelsurely until we reached the carcass of the donkey. When we reached the spot we were delighted to discover that the lion had been there shortly before our arrival, his great tracks showing plainly in the tell-tale sand. We followed these in hot haste, and soon an excited exclamation from the Zulu told me that the game was close at hand. The spoor now led to- wards a dense thicket of wait-a- bit thorns, about two hundred yards in di- ameter, which we approached with ex- treme caution.
 Lion there, sure, sahib," whispered Gan in Zulu, adding that I should ap- proach from the front while he went around to the rear, to intercept him in case he tried to pass through. As ap- preached the thicket, with the hammer of my gun drawn, could at first see nothing. Twas about to call to Gan when I suddenly made out the backs of two large, yellow animals in the grass, and moment later discovered that there were two cubs with them They were evidently disturbed, but were gaz- ing in the direction taken by Gan, ap- parently not having noticed me. A | later a fine lion sprang out into the open and seeing me less than fifty | paces away, gave a low growl and dis into the thick brush. The other, a lioness, stood looking about, ev- identity reluctant to leave her cubs. She was cycling me closely, and it re- quired a great deal of effort to enable me to scrape up enough courage to ap- proach nearer. As I did SO, she turned and ran about ten feet to a thick clump of grass, in which she crouched so low could only see her head.
 @h iiCiA Q yEilOW Sy Co dlC NlIl6 uldIly lfIl- oressive, especially if you happen to De watching them some thirty yards distant, with nothing but the open, lev ] ground between. They incline one to | great deal of discretion, and it was With extreme caution that slowly ap- her, her eyes following my very movement and watching intently 'n my part for the first sign of com ng charge. When I had reached a 'oint about fifteen yards from her I concluded that had better open hostn- ties, and taking very careful aim at Ter head, between the eye and the ear, I ressed the trigger. With a furious oar she sprang into the air and seemed o fly back through her lair. I quickly hrew i'll another cartridge and fired ust as she disappeared into the bushes, nd an instant later I heard the roar of i 'ans elephant gun, followed by the narllng of a lion. I quickly ran round the thicket, and arrived in sight f him just as he was in the act of dis ( harging his second barrel into the very l ,outh of the lion, which was charging ( Lraight for him. As he fired he quickly I lmped to one side, while the lion s lrned complete somersault, but re- S aimed it's feet in an instant and stood I a uar iy, aIi1 1 4