WITH FLASH-LIGHT AND RIFLE 



to his heels and stopped only when he was safe within 

 the camp. Some of the Wanyamwesi tribes feed on 

 the flesh of lions. They believe that it imparts to them 

 strength and courage. The nine lions caught by me 

 during those three nights were consequently duly 

 buried in the stomachs of my Wanyamwesi men. After 

 the seventh lion had been thus disposed of, their leader 

 declared that they were tired of these "delicatessen" 

 and longed for ordinary game — an African case of tou- 

 jour s pcrdrix ! 



I had often wished to bring adult lions, caught in the 

 wilderness, to Europe, and the managers of the Berlin 

 zoological gardens had placed portable cages at my dis- 

 posal. But I could not carry out my intention, since it 

 was impossible to transport by carriers, from the depths 

 of the wilderness to the coast, animals weighing up to 

 five hundred pounds in cages of three hundred pounds. 



The Romans stocked their cages with adult animals 

 caught in the wilderness, though, on the other hand, a 

 great number of the multitude of animals needed for the 

 arena were, no doubt, bred and raised in captivity. 



The lions in our menageries and zoological gardens 

 claimed to be "forest-bred" were captured young and 

 grew up in captivity. 



A lion born in the wilderness but full - grown in 

 captivity can give to the visitor of zoological gardens 

 only a faint idea of what the " king of the desert" really 

 is in a state of liberty, ruling the free, great, wild steppe. 



230 



