430 



HUNTING ADVENTURES. 



ferly disabled in his after-quarters. Thus ended this protracted and 

 all but unsuccessful hunt; for when I at length managed to shoot 

 him, the dogs were quite tired of it, and, the reeds being green, 1 

 could not have set them on fire to force him out. 



The lion proved to be a first-rate one ; he was in the prime of life 

 and had an exquisitely beautiful coat of hair. His inane was not 

 very rank ; his awful teeth were quite perfect, a thing which in lions 

 of his age is rather unusual ; and he had the finest tuft of hair on 

 the end of his tail that I had ever seen on a lion. In the chas*e my 

 after-rider, who fortunately did not carry my rifle, got a tremenduous 

 capsize from bad riding, a common occurrence with most after-riders 

 who have been employed in my service. The afternoon was spent 

 in drying the wet mane of the lion, skinning out the feet, and pre- 

 serving the skin with alum and arsenical soap. 



