220 THE LIOX. 



Gumming, for instance, had at one trno, ha states, 

 as many as thirty, ami n:> doubt ho was constantly 

 replenishing his pack, yet on his return to civilisa- 

 tion, it would seem as if he had only three or four 

 remaining, the remainder of the poor creatures, the 

 larger portion at least, having been destroyed by 

 the beasts in question. 



In the more open parts of the country at least, the 

 horse, in lion-shooting, is a great advantage, as it 

 not only enables one the more rapidly to come up 

 with the quarry, but, to a certain extent, is a safe- 

 guard also ; for should the beast " charge," and 



O * O * 



succeed in overtaking and overthrowing both the 

 steed and its rider, as not unfrequently happens, he, 

 in the first instance, almost invariably expends his 

 rage and fury on the former. 



By all accounts the Cape horses, with a little 

 training, are admirably adapted for cither hunting 

 or shooting. " They are," says Harris, " hardy, 

 docile, and enduring. In the chase, the most for- 

 midable animal does not inspire them with the 

 slightest alarm ; and, the bridle being thrown over 

 their heads, they may generally be left standing in 

 the wilderness for hours together, without attempt- 

 ing to stir from the spot. They seldom trot; the 

 usual pace is a canter, and occasionally a gallop." 



The endurance of these horses is something won- 

 derful. A striking instance of this occurred a few 

 years ago in Great Namaqua-land. The animal in 

 question belonged to a son of the Hottentot chief, 

 Zwartbooi, who, whilst hunting in an open tract of 

 country, fell in with a troop of eleven giraffes, to 



