LION-HUNTING AND LIONS 293 



lion's teeth, so that, although it was bad enough to have 

 the bones of his arm crushed into splinters, the eleven 

 flesh wounds on his shoulder, healed without leaving 

 any ill-effects. The other two men, on the contrary, who 

 had had nothing to protect them, suffered to the end of their 

 lives from strange pains in the wounded parts, which 

 were always particularly violent at the season of the year 

 in which the lion had bitten them. 



The next morning a great bonfire was made in the 

 village, and the lion solemnly burnt ; and from that 

 moment the spell was pronounced broken — and the lions 

 went away. 



The idea that lions are the bravest of all animals 

 dates from the time when very little was really known 

 about them. Anyone who reads Mr. Livingstone's travels 

 in South Africa will find that he tells a widely different 

 tale. According to him, no single lion will ever attack 

 a man by daylight or even moonlight, unless he is first 

 attacked himself, or almost starving. Even on a dark, 

 rainy night, the dread of falling into a trap is enough to 

 keep him from assaulting any animal tied to a tree, and 

 therefore at his mercy. It is curious how fear of pitfalls 

 never leaves him ! One day, an Englishman's horse, 

 which had bolted and thrown its rider, was caught by its 

 bridle in the fork of a tree and held fast. For two days 

 search was made for it, but in vain. On the third they 

 came upon the missing creature by accident, quite safe 

 and sound, though all round it were the marks of lions' 

 paws ! Any animal tied up seems to act as a charm 

 against lions, by night as well as by day — they will not 

 even attack a sheep, lest something unknown and terrible 

 should be the consequence. 



As a rule, unless they have little ones, nobody need 

 be afraid of lions from sunrise to sunset! Livingstone 

 and his family used often to meet them in their walks 

 outside the camp, and after staring with surprise for a few 

 seconds, the lion would turn slowly round and cautiously 



