334 BIG GAME SHOOTING 
was in hopes that he might still be about, and thought that if 
he would only be good enough to pay a visit to the settlement 
whilst I was there, I might get a good chance of shooting him, 
as the wet weather, I imagined, would make the ground suffi- 
ciently soft to enable me to track him. Not content with 
killing oxen and donkeys at some little distance from the 
settlement, this lion had one night so frightened two valuable 
horses belonging to Mr. Frank Johnson that they had rushed 
at the door of their stable, and breaking the thongs with which 
it was secured, broken out, and run up the hill, where they 
were both killed within a few yards of a dwelling hut usually 
occupied by Mr. Johnson, who was, however, absent at the 
time. The carcase of the one horse was left entirely untouched, 
I was informed, the animal having been killed by a bite at the 
back of the head, the lion making his meal off his other 
victim, which was possibly in better condition. 
My first question after my arrival at Hartley Hills was as 
to whether this lion was still in the district, and I was much 
disappointed to learn that nothing had been heard of him 
lately. I found my old friend Mr. Graham just .packing up 
for a three days’ trip into the country to the west of the 
Umfuli river, where some rich gold reefs had been discovered, 
on which he was anxious to report. That evening I had 
dinner with Dr. Edgelow, and a long chat afterwards, and _ 
as, when it was time to turn in, a drizzly rain was falling, I 
resolved to take possession of Mr. Graham’s hut for the night, 
- instead of going down to my waggon. As it wanted about 
three days to full moon, it would have been a bright moon- 
light night had the weather been fine, but as it was the sky 
was thickly overcast with clouds. Before quitting Dr. Edgelow 
I remarked to him what a beautiful night it was for a lion, 
regarded, of course, from a lion’s point of view, as these 
animals are always most dangerous on dark, rainy nights. My j 
waggon, as I have said before, was standing just at the foot of — 
the rocks, the oxen being tied two and two in the yokes ; but — 
besides the working cattle I hada spare animal that always — 
Seiki atic pitinc batch aaa 
