WILD ANIMALS OF THE EASTERN SUDAN 47 



within reach of its hoofs, and I cannot conceive of its 

 affording sport except from the saddle. 



The lion may be met with in any part of the 

 Eastern Sudan, south of Kassala or Sennar. During 

 the dry season it affects the banks of the great rivers, 

 and is a wide-ranging animal, so that local informa- 

 tion should invariably be sought for. A well-known 

 hunting-ground for lions is the valley of the Atbara 

 between Fasher and Son. I was unlucky in that 

 neighbourhood, but found them numerous over the 

 entire course of the Settit, especially near Wad 

 Heleu. On the Rahad, from Hawata to the 

 Abyssinian border, they were extraordinarily abun- 

 dant, being attracted by the large herds of ariel. 

 There were comparatively few upon the Galegu, 

 Binder, and Blue Nile. They are a heavy tax upon 

 the domestic animals of the Arabs in inhabited tracts, 

 and more Englishmen might very well visit the 

 Eastern Sudan for the express purpose of hunting 

 them down. The Arabs are totally fearless of them 

 and will not hesitate to attack them with a spear, the 

 modus operandi being to swathe the left arm in a long 

 cloth, present it to the charging lion, and drive a 

 spear through and through the brute with the right. 

 At the same time they are very pleased when a sports- 

 man will deliver them from some of these pests, and 

 any Englishman devoting himself to their extermina- 

 tion will find his efforts right well seconded. I am 



