164 TREKKING [c h. mi 



ahead of us in the tall grass, but I missed it. Then, 

 trotting on foot, I got ahead of two wart-hog boars, and 

 killed the biggest ; making a bad initial miss and then 

 emptying my magazine at it as it ran. We sent it in to 

 camp, and went on, following a donga, or small water- 

 course, fringed with big acacias. The afternoon was 

 wearing away, and it was time for lions to be abroad. 



The sun was near the horizon when Tarlton thought 

 he saw^ something tawny in the watercourse ahead of 

 us, behind a grassy ant-hill, toward which we walked 

 after dismounting. Some buck were grazing peacefully 

 beyond it, and for a moment we supposed that this was 

 what he had seen. But as we stood, one of the porters 

 behind called out " Simba !" and we caught a glimpse of 

 a big lioness galloping down beside the trees, just 

 beyond the donga ; she was out of sight in an instant. 

 Mounting our horses, we crossed the donga ; she was 

 not to be seen, and we loped at a smart pace parallel 

 with the line of trees, hoping to see her in the open. 

 But, as it turned out, as soon as she saw us pass, she 

 crouched in the bed of the donga. We had gone by her 

 a quarter of a mile when a shout from one of our 

 followers announced that he had seen her, and back we 

 galloped, threw ourselves from our horses, and walked 

 toward where the man was pointing. Tarlton took his 

 big double-barrel and advised me to take mine, as the 

 sun had just set and it was likely to be close work ; but 

 I shook my head, for the Winchester -405 is, at least 

 for me personally, the " medicine gun " for lions. In 

 another moment up she jumped, and galloped slowly 

 down the other side of the donga, switching her tail 

 and growling. 1 scrambled across the donga, and just 

 before she went round a clump of trees, eighty yards 

 ofl", 1 tired. The bullet hit her fair, and going forward. 



