From the Cape to Cairo; the first traverse of Africa from south to north . ile from the donga sent a boy up a treeto piospect. He soon came down trembling Avith excitement, and told methat he had seen tliree skellem^ lyi^S under a tree about three hundredyards from where we were. With loving care I loaded the double 500magnum, and crept cautiously in the direction indicated ; when I hadadvanced about one hundred yards, two heads suddenly appeared abovethe intervening grass, and to my mad joy I dropped them with a rightand left; at the same instant I saw a body dash past the scrub on theant-hil
From the Cape to Cairo; the first traverse of Africa from south to north . ile from the donga sent a boy up a treeto piospect. He soon came down trembling Avith excitement, and told methat he had seen tliree skellem^ lyi^S under a tree about three hundredyards from where we were. With loving care I loaded the double 500magnum, and crept cautiously in the direction indicated ; when I hadadvanced about one hundred yards, two heads suddenly appeared abovethe intervening grass, and to my mad joy I dropped them with a rightand left; at the same instant I saw a body dash past the scrub on theant-hill where they had been lying, and pojjping in another double-barrel,he spun round and came rolling down the slope, a loathesome mangy gods; Never shall I forget that moment 1 Then a fourth dashedpast, and, mad with rage, I spoiled his sedentary capabilities as he plungedinto the grass. Then I sat down on that ant-hill and looked at them lyingthere, my three lionesses in the guise of disgusting grinning hyaenas, while ^ Skellevi: any dangerous beast, not THE PUNGWE FLATS 15 the tears coursed slowly down my cheeks. The sun vanished into otherspheres, the whole w^orld turned grey, life seemed a pitiable grease-spot;and then I swore; rippling, fruity, full-bodied, sonorous it thundered forth,till, feeling better, I rose and staggered on. I was following down the bed of the donga when a hiss from my gun-boy made me look up just in time to see an old lion look at me over hisshoulder, then, before I could put up my gun, step into the long grass. Idashed up the bank and saw a lioness sloping along about three hundred3ards further down, where the side of the watercourse was covered with bush;taking advantage of this, I hurried in pursuit; when within two hundredyards 1 saw she must descend into the hollow, so knelt down and aimed, butthe pump-pump of my heart made it impossible to keep steady, so I broughtthe rifle down as she disappeared from view; in a few minutes he
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