256 THE LAND OF THE LION 



I am inclined to think that lion usually hunt at a long 

 distance from the place where the family lie up for the 

 day. When the bands are divided up into twos and threes 

 this may not be so. But whenever I came on large bands 

 of lion I never found kills nearby. (I give this for what 

 it may be worth.) My idea is they hunt far away from 

 their lair. When two or more lionesses and a partly 

 grown family accompany one large male, they make a 

 family dwelling place that there is no mistaking. I have 

 examined several of these but never found in or near any 

 of them so much as a scrap of bone or meat. When the 

 lion family jogs homeward it does so very silently. There 

 is no loud grunting indulged in; a very soft, low purring 

 grunt now and then betrays their conclave, that is all. 



When shot into and angered they will grunt as they 

 move off, and snarl as they crouch or wait about in the 

 grass, undecided whether to move on as you advance toward 

 them or no. I incline to believe that these large parties 

 are not as dangerous to follow, when one or two of them 

 are wounded, as a single lion or a lion and lioness, one of 

 them wounded, would be. One of the gang moves on, 

 none of the gang likes being left behind, so, instead of 

 attacking they keep on the move, the wounded bringing 

 up the rear. 



A lion wounded to death will, as I once heard him, 

 roar terribly when roused from his lair and about to charge. 

 But an unwounded lion coming on thrusts the head forward 

 and the ears back, shows his teeth and make no sound but 

 a low snarl. 



The roaring lion is the lion calling to his mate or sig- 

 nalling in some way his presence, either to frighten the 

 game not yet caught or to call a friend to, or warn an 

 enemy from, game that has been caught. 



The distances which that sonorous sound can travel 

 are great. Ordinarily hearing it, you fancy the beast 



