Sporting Trips of a Subaltern 



refer, of course, to my own objects. I believe the 

 Colonial office had others ! 



I had hit him with both barrels, breaking a 

 fore leg and getting him through the quarters. I 

 took his head and skin off, and, returning to camp, 

 sent my six carriers to get the meat for them- 

 selves. Five came back before long, laden, and 

 said the sixth had cut off so much that he was 

 lagging a bit. They said they had heard a leopard, 

 attracted probably by the smell of blood. 



Now, here is a strange thing, that sixth carrier 

 was never heard of again. The kill was scarcely a 

 mile and a half, I suppose, from camp, and when 

 he didn't come in I rode back and hunted every- 

 where, firing shots at last, but not a trace of him 

 or his tracks could we find. I was so long hunt- 

 ing for him that I rode back to Lokoja in the dark 

 at last. He was a recently enlisted soldier, and 

 perhaps, wanting to desert, thought that when he 

 had some good chunks of meat to help him on his 

 way home was a chance. Against that, however, 

 one must set the fact that he had a wife at head- 

 quarters ; perhaps, though, he had another some- 

 where else, and wanted a little change. I think 

 the others were in with his plans a bit, and the 

 leopard story was to put me off the scent ; but of 

 course, if he was lagging with freshly killed meat 

 " quien sabe " ! Anyway, my men had to carry 

 extra loads, and my " Sar Leone " boy Samuel 



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