206 AFRICAN GAME ANIMALS 



formed an interesting feat with lions which shows what a 

 really good hunter can do when luck is not hostile. He 

 writes me as follows under date of June 2, 191 1: 



Provided you can decipher this missive, I can entertain 

 myself by hoping that a letter from a *'far countree" breathing 

 blood and "deeds of derringdo" may take your thoughts away 

 for a time from the sterner work of life, and recall some pleasant 

 hours spent together, what time we carried a lioness through the 

 darkness one night, and fondly scanned the blackness for the 

 bellicose rhino! In a recent letter to Kermit I mentioned a rather 

 successful hunt at Simba, and last Saturday I took a run down 

 to a point half way between Athi and Kapiti Plains Stations, and 

 arriving there at 3 P. M, hunted unsuccessfully for lions until dark. 

 Next morning I was at it early, hoping to return in time for office 

 Monday, but my hopes were considerably damped by finally see- 

 ing four lions galloping away some two miles ahead in that open 

 country about five miles nearer Nairobi than Wami Hill where 

 you got your first lions. I was on foot, and without much chance 

 of a stalk in that country. I sat down and watched them until 

 they stopped under one solitary thorn tree close to the only piece 

 of bush within sight — about enough to really cover the four if 

 they wanted to hide. Here they lay down, but after a long and 

 painful stalk, the nearest I could get was 500 yards before they 

 saw me and slid into cover — 2 Hons, i lioness and i large cub. 

 Again I made a very careful stalk on the bush, and finally getting 

 up to, beat it carefully — to find the birds flown! So I sat down 

 and had no trouble in picking up my quarry trotting steadily 

 away in almost perfectly flat country a mile and a half off". So 

 the game being up apparently, I sat down under my bush and 

 gazed through glasses at the quarry. Presently they started to 

 walk, and the youngster lagged behind — sat down — and then 

 went on. So we all hid under the bushes, and after half a mile 

 of walking and stopping, the four finally came to a halt about 

 2 miles away, the youngster lay down, and presently went to 

 sleep. Whereupon I set a boy on guard and followed suit. It 

 was about 8 a. m. and a cool cloudy day and I had lots of time 



