NE ee MRR es ai er Ee 
THE LION IN SOUTH AFRICA 343 
In less than five minutes after I had put the saddle on my horse 
we were down at the little stream across which we had followed 
the lion on the preceding day. Here the ground became stony, 
and we lost the spoor. John was looking about near the edge 
of the shallow water, and I had turned my horse’s head to look 
along the bank higher up, when the unmistakable growl of a 
lion issued from the bushes beyond the rivulet, and at the same 
time John said ‘ Daar’s hij’ (‘ There heis’). I was off my horse 
in an instant to be ready for a shot, when he turned round and 
trotted away, and John ran to try and catch him. I thought 
the luck was all against me, as I expected the lion would make 
off and get clean away; but I ran forward, trying to get a sight 
of him, when -he suddenly made his appearance in the bush 
about fifty yards away, and catching sight of me, came straight 
towards me at a rapid pace, holding his head low and growling 
savagely. I suppose he wanted to frighten me, but he could 
not have done a kinder thing. He came right on to the further 
bank of the little stream just where it formed a pool of water, 
and stood there amongst some rocks growling and whisking 
_ his tail about, and always keeping his eyes fixed upon me. Of 
course he gave me a splendid shot, and in another instant I 
hit him, between the neck and the shoulder in the side of his 
chest, with a 360-grain expanding bullet. As I pulled the 
trigger I felt pretty sure he was mine. With a loud roar he 
reared right up, and coming over sideways fell off the rock on 
which he had been standing into the pool of water below him. 
The water was over three feet deep, and for an instant he dis- 
appeared entirely from view, but the next instant regaining his 
feet, stood on the bottom with his head and shoulders above 
the surface. I now came towards him, when again seeing me 
he came plunging through the water towards me growling 
angrily. But his strength was fast failing him, and I saw it 
_ was all he could do to reach the bank, so I did not fire, as I was 
anxious not to make holes in his skin. He just managed to 
get up the bank, when I finished him with a shot through the 
lungs, to which he instantly succumbed. He proved to be a 
