224 STRENGTH OF THE LION. 



quietly on, while Maqueto was now for making his adieu ; 

 but Inkau seemed indignant, and asked him why he left 

 us. Maqueto said he had no gun. Inkau pointed to his 

 assagies, which, however, Maqueto explained, were as 

 nothing for attacking a lion. The controversy was getting 

 warm, when I interfered, and said that we should not want 

 Maqueto' s company, but should be better without it. 



We then went on with the spoor, which took us over 

 some freshly-burned ground, and down towards a deep 

 kloof, with high square rocks sticking up round the edges. 

 We found that the lion had scarcely allowed the cow's 

 body to drag on the ground, but had apparently carried 

 it along quite easily, and as though of no weight. The 

 Zulu breed of cattle are smaller than the English, the 

 cows not being even so large as an Alderney ; still it was 

 a good weight to jog along with in his mouth. We went 

 down the kloof with great care, listening after each dozen 

 steps ; but there was not a sound to be heard, no crunching 

 of cow's bones, or other indication of the lion's presence. 

 We soon came to the remains of the cow, very little, how- 

 ever, being left; for a lion had dined first, wolves and 

 jackals afterwards, and vultures had then cleared up the 

 scraps. I proposed to Inkau that we should lie in wait 

 for the cow-slayer's return, and, if necessary, sleep on the 

 ground ; but to this he seemed to have a great objection, as, 

 like most Kaffirs, he disliked to work all night if he could 

 avoid it. We cautiously walked through the long grass, 

 and examined the kloof to the extreme end : as we came 

 back, and got near the remains of the carcass, we threw 

 some stones into a bush that we had not passed near. Just as 



