XIII CHASED BY A LIONESS 285 



in all probability have glanced from her skull. 

 There now only remained the lioness with the three 

 cubs, and her I could see nowhere, though I felt 

 certain she was not far off. The light was getting 

 so bad in the shade of the trees that I could scarcely 

 see the sights of my rifle. I was standing at the foot 

 of a large ant-heap, on the top of which grew a bush 

 and a tree, so ciismounting, I led the horse a little 

 way up it (the ant-heap was at least thirty feet in 

 diameter at the base), and looked all about me 

 through the bush and long grass. I was beginning 

 to feel rather lonely, for the gloom of the evening 

 was fast deepening, and though I knew that two 

 lions lay dead, I did not know exactly how near me 

 the mother of the cubs might be. Suddenly I 

 heard " yap, yap, yap," behind me, and looking 

 round saw one of the little creatures emerge from 

 the long grass and come trotting towards me. It 

 came to within a yard of my horse's hind-legs and 

 then trotted back again towards the grass, being met 

 half-way by the other two, when all three of the 

 little beasts stood together about ten yards from me. 

 From the moment I saw the first cub I had not 

 moved, but stood straining my eyes in the direction 

 from which it had come, to try and get a view of 

 the lioness. My horse too had been standing like 

 a statue. I now thought it time to move, for I 

 reflected that as the cubs were so near, their mother 

 was in all probability not far ofF. I was in the 

 act of mounting, and just swinging my legs over 

 the saddle, when with open, snarling mouth, and 

 giving vent to a succession of grunts, out she came 

 straight at me. She had, of course, been watching 

 me, and interpreted my moving as a demonstration 

 against the cubs. To whisk the horse round the 



