AFRICAN LEGENDS. 113 



Another of their notions is that though the lion 

 from its great strength is enabled to bear away on 

 his back an ox, or one of the larger of the antelope 

 tribe, in like manner as the fox a goose yet, if it 

 happens to be a sheep that he has slain, he is inca- 

 pable, from some unexplained cause, of thus remov- 

 ing the animal from the spot, but is necessitated 

 to drag it along the ground. 



Singularly enough, the like belief prevails amongst 

 the Arabs of Algeria, who, according to General 

 Dumas, account for this peculiarity in the following 

 amusing manner : 



" In relating what his strength enabled him to 

 effect, the lion said one day : 



" ' An cha Allah /' that is, if it pleases God, ' I 

 shall carry off the horse without inconvenience. 



" * An cha Allah ! whenever I please I shall bear 

 away a heifer, and her weight will not prevent me 

 from bounding or running.' 



" When, however, he caught the sheep, he put it 

 so under him that he forgot the religious formula : 

 ' // it pleases God /' and God, to punish him, decreed 

 that he should never be able to carry away the sheep 

 otherwise than IHJ dragging it along fln> ground." 



During his journey ings in Great Namaqua-land, 

 Sir James Alexander was told by thonatives that tl.e 

 Bush-women have it in their power to change their 

 forms into lions, hyaenas, and other beasts of prey. 

 The following legend illustrates this superstition : 



O O i 



"Once on a time, a certain Xamaqua was travel- 

 ling in company with a Bushwomau carrying a child 

 on her back. They had proceeded some distance 



i 



