48 SERVICE AND SPORT IN THE SUDAN 



of hartebeest, which, however, moved off before I got 

 near them, lured me out of camp. The place was 

 ahve with golden -crested crane. On my return I 

 found my men all looking to the west, and they told 

 me that there were lions in sight. I scarcely believed 

 them till, following the sound of a grunt, I located 

 through my glasses four lions about five hundred 

 yards off. Our camp was on the edge of a plain 

 about one and a half by half a mile in size. The lions 

 were engaged in stalking a stray hartebeest. Whenever 

 the latter tried to break away to its herd by the plain 

 one of the lions would dash out and give a loud 

 " ough ! " Whenever he made for the woods he saw 

 his pursuers loping rapidly towards him. 



Need I say that the moment I saw a chance of 

 securing my first lion I wasted no time in loading my 

 rifle. Shouting to the men, who, seeing my inten- 

 tion, wanted either to dissuade me or, failing that, to 

 accompany me, to remain where they were, and load- 

 ing as I ran, I made for the opposite side of the plain. 

 When the lions saw me they gave a loud roar ; two 

 of them cantered off, and another two went into a 

 patch of high grass. I reached it in a minute or so, 

 and was just walking into it when, like a whiskered 

 Jack-in-the-box, with a snarl a lion sat up. Much 

 quicker than he, I sat down, and aiming at his head, 

 ten yards away, I fired ; he dropped and sat up 

 again, and I fired again, and all was still. I was 

 certain he was dead, but feared to go into the grass, 

 as I thought the other lion was there too. As I was 

 hesitating, half-a-dozen of my men turned up. When 



