THE LION 209 



In this letter Tarlton does not mention that the two 

 wounded Hons charged him from different quarters, coming 

 on with savage fury; and they were stopped because Tarlton, 

 in addition to having great coolness and nerve, is an ex- 

 ceptionally good shot with the rifle at dangerous game. 



We do not regard marksmanship as the most important 

 quality in the chase of dangerous game; but it is very impor- 

 tant, and, of course, no man has a right to follow dangerous 

 game at all unless he is a good shot, while if he is a really 

 first-class game shot his task is very much simplified. 

 Pease, Delamere, Tarlton, are all of them excellent shots. 

 Stewart Edward White in his trip to East Africa in 191 1, 

 during the course of which he killed a dozen lions with his 

 little Springfield rifle, was with our old friend and hunting 

 companion, Cu^inghame; and Cuninghame wrote us that 

 of all the hunters, of every description, whom he had ever 

 seen in Africa, White was the best shot. Among other noted 

 lion hunters, Selous, Akeley, Stigand, and Rainey are all good 

 shots. Of the above, Delamere and Stigand have been 

 mauled by lions; Akeley was mauled by a leopard and nearly 

 killed by an elephant. Mrs. Akeley and Mrs. McMillan — 

 whose husband is among the successful lion hunters — have 

 both of them killed lions to their own rifles. 



Occasionally lions are killed with the rifle, as in the in- 

 stance above by Tarlton, and in other instances in the 

 careers of almost all veterans like the men named where the 

 conditions are such as to imply high prowess on the part of 

 the hunter and the running of grave danger. Normally, 

 however, of course, lion hunting with a modern rifle does 

 not mean danger of the kind incurred by coming to close 

 quarters. Such a feat as that of Jones, Means, and Loveless 



