SOUTH AFRICA FIFTY YEARS AGO 67 
- noise, of course, woke us all, and dogs, Kafirs, Hotten- 
_ tots, Murray and myself had our work fully cut out ; our 
_ assailants kept just outside the firelight, making savage 
| rushes at the dogs, but never giving us the chance of a 
_ shot. I stood for a long time in very scant attire (some- 
one brought me a jacket and trousers later on), my first 
entrance to the scene being anything but noble, for on running 
from the waggon to the front my foot caught in a creeper, and 
_ I fell heavily. The Kafirs behaved admirably, never yielding 
_ an inch, though the lions were very determined. After 
_ half an hour or so we nursed the fires into brighter glow, 
' and increased the circle of light around us, and things grew 
_ rathercalmer. We could hear every breath and angry purr, 
though as we were looking into the dark we could see nothing. 
For some time I made a Kafir stand beside me and throw 
‘brands into the darkness, hoping by a gleam to get sufficient 
indication of the whereabouts of our foes for a shot—but in vain. 
I fired frequently as near as I could guess on the spot where 
‘the purring seemed to come from, and could hear the angry 
; beast make a dash at the pinging ball. But I struck nothing 
_ Save the ground. However, we had checked the onset, and 
"now had only to keep on the alert. Just before the day broke 
: the Siege was raised, and I was on horseback to look out a 
__ better camping-ground for the next night. As I cleared the 
_ low jungle which iay around us, a lioness broke away from 
the edge of it and took across an opening beyond. She was 
eighty yards from me, rather too long a shot for the old Purdey ; 
but there was cover ahead from which I could not cut her off, 
and I was savage enough at her unwished-for attentions during 
the night, for she was, no doubt, one of the three, and oh! how 
glad I was when I heard the ball thud, and saw her stride 
short. I mounted and rode her to a standstill in a couple of 
hundred yards, when she squatted in front of a bush. I got 
within twenty or twenty-five yards of her, intending to dis- 
mount, but found I had fired all my loose balis away during 
‘the night, and that the one in ‘the barrel was all I had to 
F2 
