232 



UNDER THE AFRICAN SUN 



that this came true, for they are very superstitious, and with 

 them "medicine-man" and wizard are synonymous terms. 

 The native heutenant reminded me of this fact. "You told 

 us/' he said, " that you would kill the lion next day, but then— 

 you are a ' medicine-man.' " 



I advised the men to retire to their huts, and to see that 

 their doors were firmly secured. As regards my own hut, 

 this was easier said than done, as the door was only a reed- 

 screen leaning against the aperture, which it failed to close. 

 But natives usually take the precaution of fixing two vertical 

 poles inside the hut, so that the reed-screen slides between 

 them, and is retained in position ; the door is then firmly 

 closed by some faggots placed transversely. Having dis- 

 persed the crowd, I determined to put out a bait for the man- 

 eater, and to sit up and watch for him. 



We tied a young goat to a tree a few feet from my door. The 



night was very 

 dark, and I 

 was obliged to 

 kindle a lire to 

 enable me to 

 see the fore- 

 sight of my 

 rifle. Then 

 the silent and 

 dreary watch 

 began. As the 

 hours crept 

 on, the stillness 

 and the dark- 

 ness told on 

 me. I had had 



a fatiguing day. In the early morning I had marched from 

 Wakibara to Fajao, afterwards I had attended to patients, and 

 then came the lively doings of the evening. By -and -by I 

 caught myself nodding. If the man-eater had chosen to pass 

 my hut once more, it could have had me, notwithstanding the 

 loaded rifle on my knees. At 3.30 a.m. I gave up the struggle to 

 keep awake, and, resolving to set a trap for the lion, 1 went to bed. 

 At 8 A.M. next morning I began to build the lion-trap. 

 Everybody helped willingly, although it was Friday, the 



THE CAGE FOR THE LION. 



