THE BIG LION. 203 



ten or twenty feet. We tried in spaced intervals 

 to cover the whole hillside. It was very hard 

 work. The boys, with the horses, kept pace with 

 us on the sky-line atop, and two or three hundred 

 yards away. 



We had proceeded in this fashion for about a 

 mile, when suddenly, and most unexpectedly, 

 the biggest lion I ever saw leapt straight up 

 from a bush twenty-five yards in front of me, 

 and with a tremendous roar vanished behind 

 another bush. I had just time to throw up the 

 405 shotgun-fashion and let drive a snapshot. 

 Clifford Hill, who was ten yards to my right, saw 

 the fur fly, and we all heard the snarl as the 

 bullet hit. Naturally we expected an instant 

 charge, but, as things turned out, it was evident 

 the lion had not seen us at all. He had leapt 

 at the sight of our men and horses on the sky- 

 line, and when the bullet hit he must have 

 ascribed it to them. At any rate, he began 

 to circle through the tangled vines in their 

 direction. 



From their elevation they could follow his 

 movements. At once they set up howls of 

 terror and appeals for help. Some began franti- 

 cally to run back and forth. None of them tried 

 to run away ; there was nowhere to go ! 



