Ill CAMPING AT MOUNT KENIA 73 



shot at her chest. I did not neglect it. I had already taken 

 my double .577 from Squareface and slipped in two hollow 

 bullet cartridges (a most reliable way to be armed against lions) 

 so I at once sent one of these smashing balls just into the 

 junction of the neck and chest, dropping her stone dead. But 

 the first lioness was not dead yet ; so, not wishing to waste 

 more of my valuable cartridges, I took my " cripple-stopper " 

 (as I call a Martini-Henry one of my men always carries for 

 finishing off disabled elephants) and watched her a little while. 

 To my surprise she stood up, and as she took a step I put a 

 bullet into her shoulder, rolling her over again, growling and 

 flinging her tail in the air. She now lay quite still for some 

 time, so we went close up and I looked carefully at her with 

 my glass at a distance of only some dozen yards. I could see 

 her breathing regularly still, but as I felt sure she was helpless 

 and at the point of death, w^e went round to inspect the other, 

 which lay only a few yards on the far side of the first. We 

 stood over this one, and were talking quite loud and considering 

 whether we could get her under a tree to skin, when we heard 

 the other lioness growl, and, looking round, I saw she had 

 somewhat shifted her position. I at once gave her a raking 

 shot from in front of and above her, finishing her tough life ; 

 but before going right up to her and kicking her, I chucked a 

 stone on to her head as a test. 



It was a hot job skinning them in the sun among the lava. 

 The lioness I had to give four bullets to was a very old one, 

 though in good condition ; the other in her prime and very fat. 

 The fat came in handy to add to my stock of rhino and elephant 

 fat for my lamp. But before skinning them I looked across 

 the green plain below us ; and there, on the far side, skirting 

 just inside the scattered bush, I saw a whole troop of lions, led 

 by a grand old male, the rest either females or immature males, 

 evidently coming from the zebra carcases. I counted up to 

 ten, and then, before I had finished, they got mixed up among 

 the bushes ; but I am certain there were at the very least (to 



