The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1909-09-30
CONSCIOUS AS LION
CHEWED HIS LEG
African Hunter Whose Aim Was
Bad. Severely HAULED by
Wounded Animal.

! WeIl-knOWn African hunter, who
is just back in England after sew
eral months spent i'll the region in
which Col. Roosevelt has been
displaying his prowess, describes
rather realistically the unfortunate
encounter of Harry Williams, one
Of William n McMillan's hunting
companions, with a lion, which
left its wicked marks upon him.
Williams escape with his life was
very narrow, and it was for long
time question wheti er he would
not be compelled to sacrifice a leg.
Going through grass about
breast-high, with his gun-bearer,
one day, lion suddenly arose and
started to move away from them.
This behavior, by the way, Mr..
Selous says, is not at all unusual.
Williams was anxious to get the
lion, and Clapped his hands to irri-
tate it. 1t turned and walked
toward the hunter, but the dis
lance between them was still sew
eral hundred yards. Williams
took aim, but instead of waiting
calmly until the beast had drawn
comparatively near, fired prema-
turely, one charge of his heavy
gun Immediately following the
other, The first ball flew wide
and the other merely grazed the
lions shoulder. Then, lashing
his tail in intense anger, the great
cat came forward by leaps The
gun-bearer had another gun, but
there was no time for him to hand
it to his chief, There were no
large trees nearby that could be
climbed. The only protection was
a young bamboo copse, and around
this Williams ran. In less time
than it takes to tell it, the lion
had him. He seized one of his
legs and sank his teeth deep into
it. Luckily the lion, who was an
old fellow, had lost one of his
longer tusks. but the correspond
ing one on the other side of the
jaw passed just between the two
bones of the laCerated leg, and
then the lion, with the grip upon
him, shook the unlucky hunter as
dog does fowl which it has
caught in similar manner.
Williams life at that moment
was worth only a very small pur-
chase. One stroke of the lion S
paw upon the head would have
finished him. All this time the
gun-bearer was displaying grit
unusual in his kind. He had ap
preached the lion, striving to dis
charge the other gun. But he did
not understand the method of
working the gun. Try as he
would, he could not inject a
cartridge into the firing chamber.
In tones of entreaty he asked Will
liams how it was done. Though
suffering great agony, the hunter
retained his consciousness. He
gave the needed directions while
the lion was ravenously chewing
his leg. The native fired two big
charges into the flank of the beast,
and it rolled over dead. Yet it
proved a rather difficult task to
withdraw its teeth from the wound
in Williams leg. The latter was
taken as quickly as possible into
camp and one of the Uganda rail
way surgeons was summoned.
1t was found after a few hours
that poison from the fang of the
lion had infiltrated the flesh.
muscles and tendons around the
bones of the leg The consequent
inflammation was severe and
threatening. Unfortunately the
wound was permitted to heal too
rapidly in the outer part, and thus
was closed before the septic sup
puration had ceased. Several
operations were performed to save
the leg At last accounts Mr.
Williams had not yet wholly re-
covered, but he has, at least, the
satisfaction of owning the skin of
the beast that mauled him.