XVII CAMPING AT EL BOGOI 401 



experience, how it ought to be done ; and when, immediately 

 after sunset, I went down to put the cartridge in and cock the 

 gun (it was one of the porters' Snider carbines), I felt that the 

 trap was well laid. The place was a most suitable one for the 

 purpose, as there was hardly another opening, and such as there 

 were we had endeavoured to block up. Only two donkeys 

 turned up that day, and these we tied to trees instead of putting 

 them in the kraal. 



The camp was hushed that night ; not an Ndorobo was 

 there, and my men were very quiet. It was again cloudy and 

 dark ; but nothing happened till about 3 A.M. Then the 

 stillness was suddenly broken by the loud explosion of the gun 

 in the gully, followed almost simultaneously by savage growls 

 and horrible groaning roars. At first the outburst of angry 

 sounds was appalling, but though the noises continued with 

 slight pauses for a considerable time, by degrees they became 

 fainter and the intervals longer, until at last they died away 

 altogether. There could be no doubt that one of the lions had 

 shot itself ; and what made me hopeful that the result had been 

 fatal was the fact that all the uproar proceeded evidently from 

 one spot, and that close to where the gun had been set. From 

 the time when it ceased up to daybreak, the only sounds that 

 could be heard there were occasional low grunts and the 

 crunching of bones. These I supposed were produced by 

 hyenas, which had been howling about, and one of which I saw, 

 as soon as it got light, slinking off with distended belly, but 

 it proved otherwise. 



As soon as it was fully light I went to see what had 

 happened, followed by two or three of the men with their guns. 

 On reaching the bank of the gully, which on our side sloped 

 gradually (the opposite one being steep), so that I could over- 

 look the narrow grassy space between our edge and the thicket 

 under the tree where the gun was set, I caught sight of a lion's 

 ear sticking up among the grass. Though it did not move, I 

 thought it best to make sure, so fired a shot into the spot 



2 D 



