A LION HUNT 49 



though, the fires were fed for two hours they met with no 

 responding signals and, beheving that we had failed to get 

 in touch, we returned crestfallen to the village where we 

 camped the night. 



Serikin Kudu is a village entirely made by a settlement of 

 slaves that have escaped from the King of Wase. They 

 have no chief, and I found the same rule, or rather want of 

 rule, obtaining in a village of runaway slaves on the Eiver 

 Yei. The fact of the two similar instances struck me as 

 interesting. Evidently slaves, representing the class on 

 which the burden of a despotic government falls most 

 heavily, on being freed, instinctively turn to socialism for 

 the remedy of their political evils. 



Next day my brother returned to Ibi to make other plans 

 with Talbot, but fortunately found that he had seen our 

 signals although we were unable to see his answering fires. 

 I remained two days on the ridge to work the bush for birds. 

 Here I found the distribution identical with the Senegambian 

 fauna. 



On the second day Gosling passed through, returning 

 from his hunting expedition at Lafan Gisseri. We had 

 mid-day " chop " together, and then he continued his 

 journey back to Ibi. 



At this time the natives talked much to me concerning 

 the misdeeds of some man-eating lions. They were a male 

 and female, and had chosen the Yelua-Loko road for their 

 hunting-ground, which they worked with such success that 

 the caravan traflic had been completely paralysed. Quite 

 recently in an attack they made on a caravan, encamped at 

 Tapkin Dorina (the pool of the hippopotami) they had 



