294 AFRICAN ADVENTURE STORIES 



"I knew that they had not taken fright at 

 me, for many times they had allowed the oxen 

 to pass within a hundred yards without paying 

 the slightest attention to the team, so I began 

 to search for the cause of their alarm. 



"I was not long in discovering it, for suddenly 

 a lioness appeared among the rocks, then an- 

 other and another, until, in all, four lionesses 

 and one fine, shaggy, black-maned lion had 

 come into view, all slowly sauntering out of 

 the rocks for an evening's hunt. Their actions 

 showed plainly that they had seen the bullocks, 

 for every few seconds one or another of them 

 would stop and gaze at us, while the oxen, 

 innocent of any danger, plodded onward. 



"To hurry them was almost certain to pro- 

 voke an attack, especially if the lions were in 

 the least hungry, so I simply let the animals 

 jog along at their leisure. As soon as the lions 

 emerged from the rocks they followed along 

 parallel with me but a little behind and about 

 three hundred yards distant. Although they 

 seemed in no hurry, they were slowly overtaking 

 the team. 



"The wind was blowing from them toward 

 me, but the lions' scent had been carried behind 



