WILD LIFE ACROSS THE WORLD 



the unpardonable crime of shooting the miUtary officers' 

 pets. 



According to him — I give the yarn for what it is 

 worth — when all other things failed the officers would 

 take their rifles and practise shooting on those lions. 



I afterwards heard that the officers had learnt 

 something of our intentions, and had gone in frantic 

 haste to lodge a protest against their pet game being 

 actually shot. But they met with very little sympathy, 

 the Warden telling them the following tale : — 



A certain man once had a small shoot, the only 

 thing on it to be shot at being one jack snipe. When 

 in want of a little sport he would take his gun and walk 

 round the shoot until he put the jack snipe up ; then 

 both barrels were let off, with the never-failing result 

 that the bird was missed, after which the sportsman 

 would go home feeling that he had justified himself 

 as the owner of a gun. One day, however, he chanced 

 to have a friend down and asked him to join in the 

 shoot. Of course, the old snipe was put up as usual, 

 but the guest had not been warned, and being a better 

 shot than his host he killed it forthwith, to the intense 

 chagrin of the other, who exclaimed : " Now you 've 

 spoilt all my sport ! " 



At the same time these warrior sportsmen were 

 warned that they must really kill these lions, or 

 graciously allow someone else to do so, because they 

 were becoming not only a nuisance, but a danger 



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