224 AFRICAN ADVENTURE STORIES 



from his subject. As the beast dashes at him 

 he must take the charge with sullen indifference 

 and press the button at the critical moment, 

 leaving it to his armed companion to carry him 

 through in safety. 



The next day you may find this same man 

 cooped in a little blind, with his camera trained 

 upon the carcass of a freshly killed bait, to which 

 he hopes some passing bird of prey or carnivo- 

 rous mammal will be lured. 



It was while thus engaged that one of these 

 nature photographers had a thrilling experience 

 with a cobra, the most deadly of all poison- 

 ous snakes. At the time he was camped with 

 twenty porters at the south end of the Ulucania 

 Hills, a series of rocky ridges in which live lions, 

 leopards, hyenas, klipspringers, hyraxes, eagles, 

 vultures, and cobras and other species of snakes. 



Looking over the grassy veldt bordering these 

 hills, one sees herds of zebras, hartebeests, wilde- 

 beests, bustards, secretary-birds, and ostriches. 

 On being fired at, the sound of the hunter's 

 rifle has scarcely died away when the vultures, 

 eagles, kites, and marabou storks begin to con- 

 gregate to feed upon the carcass of the victim. 



Seizing upon this suggestion as a good oppor- 



