A NIGHT ADVENTURE " Slli, THE LION." 239 



came, till at last I fancied the leader was on the verge of the 

 pitfall; but just at that moment there was a low, stifled 

 growl, a rush, and then a faint cry, as of some dying animal. 

 All was again silent. Though the impenetrable darkness 

 prevented me from seeing any thing, I could no longer doubt 

 that I was in the immediate vicinity of a lion. I freely ac- 

 knowledge that I felt awed, well knowing that, were he to 

 attack me, I should be completely at his mercy. My situa- 

 tion was critical in the extreme. Straining eyes and ears to 

 discover the beast's whereabout, I held my breath in fearful 

 suspense, while every nerve was strung to the highest pitch. 

 Presently I heard, to my astonishment, the report of a gun 

 mthin fifty paces of my hiding-place ; then a second and a 

 third shot. This made matters worse ; for I now became ap- 

 prehensive that the men, not aware of my presence, might 

 direct their fire toward me. I therefore sprang to my feet, 

 and vociferated, " Who's there 1" ^' Sir ! the lion— the lion !" 

 replied Eyebrecht, for it was no other. The next instant he 

 stood trembling before me. He had, it appeared, been sent 

 by Amral to call me back, but had encountered the beast in 

 his path, and fired, in order to frighten him away. 



Though I did not exactly comply with the wishes of the 

 chief, I deemed it advisable, after what bad passed, to re- 

 move to a more open place, where I was less likely to be 

 taken by surprise. Early next morning a number of Hot- 

 tentots came to examine the ground, when, as I had expect- 

 ed, we found the footprints of a lion at the very back of my 

 "skai'm," and scarcely distant the length of the gun-barrel 

 from my own person, where he had evidently been crouching 

 previously to leaping on the pallah (whose cry I had heard in 

 the night), but which, though wounded, had effected its escape. 

 How far the beast intended me mischief is hard to say, but, 

 in any case, my position had not been an enviable one. 



On our return journey to Barmen it rained heavily, and in 

 some places the landscape looked quite revived. Many mi- 



