Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-07-21

at night to be operated automatically by an cleo
trio system that would open the shutter, set OF
O fash and close the shutter again, when tho
animals about a water hole or q kin should trip
the trigger. But the fash failed tame after
time. On one occasion We found the tracks OF
. lion all about the string We had stretched.
He had actually rolled On 1t, and had evidently
played around for quite while, but the fash
had failed to 90 Oh. Sometimes We found the
string broken, and very often tracks showed
that It must have been touched But 1t rarely
worked. Consequently We were forced TO use
blinds, or bomas. so as to be able to sit up near
the cameras, and press q button when we felt
that there was q picture worth taking.
The result was that In the six months Dug
more and were together We spent about so
nights In bomas and got number Of remark
ably successful photographs besides having
several experiences filed with suspense and
excitement. We photographed many different
species around the water holes at night, but our
experiences with hons were far and away the
most interesting.
We had had some experience at night work
before we seriously determined TO try for lions.
We had been IN Africa nearly two months. by
this time, and were camped beside the Theka
River, about 40 miles to the northeast Of Maj
robi. Already We had managed to get several
lion pictures, but We we're looking for something
u .
zebra for bait. We placed the zebra just II
yards from the bona, set up three cameras ar
ranged our fashltght apparatus. and rs dusk
was falling climbed into the bona.
We had already worked out . sort Of divi-
sion Of labor, and Dugmore took the frss
watch. with the idea of calling me 1T midnight.
I went to sleep promptly enough, while Dug
more sat with the electric button In his hand.
watching as the darkness grew deeper and
Akn4A
of more than few yards not thing was viS-
ible It was a lonely place, and know from
experience the feeling Dugmore must have had
as he sat staring out into the night. trying to
interpret every sound that came to his ears.
That night, things began to happen early.
without the slightest warning two lions
bounded suddenly upon the zebra. It seemed.
so Dugmore told me aftervard. that they had
stalked the carcass, for 10, had not the faint
est notion that they wer near until he saw .
blurred movement in ths darkness and heard
them land on the bait. He reached for me and
shook ne gently. Luckily awoke without o
sound, and as I peered forth could make out
the indiStinct forms of the two lions as they
moved about the zebra.
I reached for my gun (Dugmore already had
his in his hands, and he pressed the flashlight
button. But the flash failed to work. The
silence and the lack of the flash were more Of
u surprise 70 uS tndn tkc OOOn anu IlHIe WOulu
have been. and it took us a moment to re-
cover ourselves. The lions were still beside the
zebra. We could hear them plainly and It
seemed to be.up to us to get rid of them Our
bona had seemed remarkably sturdy that aft
ernOOn, but we began to recall the weak places
in it, now that the two lions we're within IL
yards of us.
WE aimed as best we could in the dark at
w the moving objects outside, and fired to-
gether There was q rapid series Of growls as
both lions disappeared, but we could not tell
whether either Of our bullets had told We
peered out, wondering what to do next. and as
strained nIy eyes in the dark, was surprised
to see form standing few yards of. 1t was
motaonless when first saw it, but Immediately
1t began moving silently toward us.
1t Is no particular pleasure to be stalked by
lion when one Is protected only by an irregular
pile of thorny branches which might readily be-
come IS much Of q trap as a protection
Dugmore fired first, and I followed imme.
daitely. The flashes of the guns let up the Inn