New-York tribune., 1909-06-13
THE THRILLS OF LION HUNTING

In the last three months two men have lost
arms and almost their lives, riding lions. In
both cases the same mistake was made. They
pressed the beast too closely. No horse can
t1ru or stop as can cat. I have seen a cheetah
I was ridng-an animal very much faster than
anv lion-actually stop in its very stride. II
was as though its claws were glued TO the earth.
II cid not seem possible that such sudden halt
could be made by anything that Nor can
auy other beast show the desperate speed OF
cat for few yards distance MI PerclVale.
the game warden Of the PTotectorate. who has
probaby ridden more lions than any other man
IN the country tells me that he, though well
mounted, was once almost pulled down by q
lion that he had ridden into cover He, too on
that occasion came too close. the hon Tor some
reason or other dispensed with all the usual pre-
liruinaries and rushed at him He turned his
horse as quickly as he could and rode for his
life He had quite fifty yards start, ana yet ne
believes that. had he not fired his heaEy reVoL-
yer into the face Of the lion when II was almost
on his horses hind quarters both he ana the
horse would have been pulled down Mr.. Per-
civale was alone. There was no other horse or
hunter near to divide the lions attention This.
perhaps may account for its very unusually
rapid and deadly attack
Hoev was attacked by three uonesses. near
the Rock The only provOcation he had given
them was that two hours before he had shot
the lion Of the band. He was riding back 10
his camp unarmed. having left his rifle with
his gunbearer, who was sklnning the lion he had
killed The three saw him from distance OF
quite two hundred yards. and pressed him hard
for g quarter of a mile He was riding the
same fast mule that I rode and so outran them
There are one or Two lnlllSS lldI any lA1iA
riding lions would do well 10 remember.
First Il is not we'll follow lion or lions
into cover If you are on horseback, not even into
Thin cover Once you have chased lion, II Is
very different from the beast that rapidly sinks
away from you. when you are hunting on loot
In this last case II instinctively knows II can get
svvay II il cares to- In the former IL finds you
have its pace and resenting that. Will attack
with determination. The second lion Hoey and
rode had every chance to walk into the i'm
penetrable stronghold Of the river grass If II
had wanted to. The grass grew thickly not
twenty yards from where the Hon was first hit.
But il did not want to do anything Of the sort,
and angered by The long. hard chase, cast all
idea Of further retreat behind and came boldly
away from the covert II had striven so strenu-
ousiy 10 gain
Secondly. the man who does the shooting must
disrount without delay or hesitation He must
quickly choose his place. fixing II in his mind as
he gallops up-if possible. spot from which
he can command the lion for few yards every
way and on which he plump down. If
there is no such place Of course. he must stand
up and shoot. All delay is dangerous Get the
beast before il rushes in. Any cool hunter can
knock standing lion out with one shot at one
hundred yards or less. No living man can be
sure Of hitting charging. snarling embodiment
Of death.-Dr. ". S. Rainsford in The Worlds
Work