246 : BIG GAME SHOOTING 
still at the carcase, and although it may turn out to be onlya 
hyzena or a lot of jackals, it is always advisable to go up and 
have a look on the chance of there being lions. I was myself 
attracted by vultures to three out of the four lions which I killed, 
and on other occasions when I was less successful vultures were 
my guides, Sitting up at night near a water-hole, provided 
there is no other water nearer than 8 or 10 miles, might be 
well worth trying, also sitting up a tree near a bullock or 
donkey tied up as a bait ; but as I have never tried either way 
I cannot speak from experience. For lions I prefer a hollow 
Express bullet with copper tube, as they are soft beasts, and the 
smashing power and shock to the system of a bullet that flies 
to pieces zuside a beast is tremendous. - The bullet should, how- 
ever, be much longer and heavier, with longer solid base, than 
Eley’s ordinary Express bullet, which often flies to pieces before 
it can penetrate to the vitals of even a soft beast like a lion, as 
I have found to my cost on more than one occasion. 
In support of my contention that the lion of East Africa is 
by no means plucky or savage when wounded, I will give two 
examples. On both occasions I was attracted to the lions by vul- 
tures. On the first I found that a lion and lioness had killed a 
zebra in the open, and had dragged it into a large belt of dense _ 
bush. Leaving the men outside, and being closely followed by 
two gun-bearers, I got within 15 yards of the lions before I 
could make out the form of the dead zebra in the dark shade, 
but could see no lions. The lioness, which had been lying 
down behind the kill, at that moment stood up, but as I only 
saw a small patch of tawny colour through the dense foliage, 
I could not tell whether it was a lion or lioness, still less 
whether it was a chest, shoulder, or hind-quarter in the gloom. 
As, however, the lions were evidently aware of my presence, there 
was no time to be lost, so, kneeling down, I took a deliberate 
shot at the tawny patch. The result was fairly satisfactory, 
though decidedly alarming, as she—for it was the lioness— 
reared up on her hind legs with a terrific roar, fell backwards, 
and disappeared from view behind the carcase of the zebra. 
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