248 BIG GAME SHOOTING 



caught her on the point of the shoulder as she faced me, 

 smashing the blade-bone into fragments and tearing the flesh 

 to a frightful extent. This wound may have knocked all in- 

 clination to charge out of her, if she ever had any ; otherwise, 

 considering the way she was harassed and the reputation lions 

 have for charging under such circumstances, she might have 

 done so, more especially as the nature of the covert in many 

 places was decidedly favourable for such a demonstration on 

 her part. 



The second time I was attracted to where a lion and two 

 lionesses had killed a cow buffalo, mentioned above. As the 

 vultures and marabou storks were sitting patiently waiting in a 

 large leafless tree, I felt pretty sure that lions were still at the 

 kill, and I also knew before I actually saw them that they had 

 killed a buffalo, as the ground was cut up in all directions by the 

 fresh spoor of a large herd of these beasts as they stampeded. 

 On crawling up to a bush and looking through it, I saw the 

 head of the lion, as he stood on the far side of the dead buffalo. 

 As there was nothing but the lion's head showing, and as I 

 could only get an indistinct view of one lioness as she lay, I sat 

 and watched them with the aid of binoculars for a considerable 

 time, until the lion stepped clear of the carcase and stood 

 broadside on, offering me a splendid shot. Aiming at his 

 shoulder, I fired at a range of a trifle over 100 yards, and he 

 answered to the shot with a growl, bounded forward a few 

 yards, and stood behind a small skeleton bush. At the shot 

 the lioness stood up and looked hard in my direction, but could 

 not see me, and I then noticed for the first time that there was 

 another lioness standing under a small bush close by ; but as I 

 could only make out the head of either of them, and could not 

 see the effect of my shot on the lion, I reloaded and waited. In 

 a short time I had the satisfaction of seeing the lion limp back 

 to the buffalo, dead lame, and feeling pretty confident that he 

 would not go far (in which I was greatly mistaken), I took a 

 shot at the nearest lioness, as she stood facing me. She also 

 answered to the shot with a grand roar, reared up in the air 



