The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1912-12-11
CAUGHT BY A LION
Fearful Adventure With a South
 African Man Eater.
FLUNG RIGHT INTO ITS JAWS.

Ordeal of a TransvaaI Ranger Who
 Was Pitched Over His Horse's Head
 Only to Be Gripped In Midair by the
 Savage Brute-The Dramatic Finish.
 If any one Is eager for adventure hunting lions in their native 1ungles will offer him abundant opportunity. Major J. Stevenson Hamilton in the pages of his book, Animal Life In Africa" gives an account of a terrible experience that one of his fellow ran gers of the TransvaaI game reserve had with a lion
 In August, 1903, he was returning from a months patrol to the Olifants river and had arrived within two days march of the Sabi. He had pushed on ahead of his natives and pack donkeys in order to reach the nearest police picket before nightfaII. However. the distance was greater than he thought. and darkness found him still some three miles from his destination. riding along a path by the side of reed bordered stream, accompanied only by his big dog Bill.
 As he rode through the dry bed of she creek. where the path crossed it fin one of its windings, he saw something move out of the reeds and melt away into the darkness ahead. A few yards farther on the dog rushed forward. barking, and again an indistinct form moved away. Supposing this to be a buck of some kind. the ranger rode on without taking any special notice of the incident, but a few minutes after ward he suddenly saw the shape again, this time apparently approaching.
 He had scarcely time to reflect that this was an odd performance for a reed buck when he became conscious that it was no antelope, but a lion in the act of crouching for a spring. Pulling his horse sharp to the right just as the lion rushed, he caused the latter partially to miss his mark, but his claws tore down the horses guar ters. and the frightened animal, mak- ing a terrified leap forward. shot its rider over It's right shoulder straight into the jaws of a second lion. which had been coming up from behind.
 Horse. man and rife all went in diff ferent directions. The horse made of at full speed. followed by the first lion. which in turn was pursued by the dog. The man never touched the ground at all, as the lion seemed to catch him in midair.
 The first thing he realized was that path. He was held firmly by the right face was on a level with the Drute's neck. while his legs were dragging along under its belly.
 It was a desperate predicament, and as soon as he was able to collect his thoughts a little he began to wonder whether he would be killed outright or tortured first He saw no hope of escape. The ra1n he describes as acute, which is contrary to the expert ence of Livingstone and others. How ever, being a very cool headed man and full of grit, he presently began to cast about for some method of saving himself.
 The mind works quickly in such cases, and suddenly he remembered his sheathknife, an ordinary six inch blade, which was carried in an open leather case at the back of his belt Reaching snderneath himself with his left hand. he discovered that the knife had not been lost. so, pulling it out, he bent all his energy on holding 1t tight and awaited favorable opportunity.
 Fortune favors the brave, and the rangers chance came when the lion. after going with him about 15o yards. laid him down under a small tree for the purpose either of shifting it's grip or of commencing operations upon him
 Feeling very carefully behind the left shoulder for what he judged to be vital spot, he struck couple of back handed blows with all his force, using, of course, his left hand. 1t turned out that each of these strokes reached the heart
 For what seemed hours, but was no doubt only a few seconds, man and beast stood facing each other, the lat ter silent and the former, with some hay idea of the power of the human voice, shouting out every abusive word that rose to his tongue. The tension was relieved by the lion turning and walking slowly away to spot some thirty yards distant, where, after swaytng for a moment, it fell heavily to the ground, emitted a few groans and expired.