TRADITIONS OF BUSHMEN. 177 
and, going to one side, she threw off her skin 
petticoat, when a perfect lion rnshed out into 
the plain; it bounded and crept among the 
bushes towards the wild horses, and, springing 
upon one of them, it fell, and the lion lapped its 
blood. The lion then came back to where the 
child was crying, and the man called from the 
tree, " Enough, enough, don't hurt me, put off 
your lion's shape, and I'll never ask to see this 
again." 
16 The lion looked at him and growled. " I'll 
remain here till I die," said the man, "if you 
don't become a woman again. The mane and 
tail then began to disappear; the lion went 
towards the bush where the skin petticoat lay; 
it was slipped on, and the woman, in her proper 
shape, took up the child. The man descended, 
partook of the horse's flesh, but never again 
asked the woman to catch game for him." 
Such are the miraculous extravagancies, with 
which they feed their wild imaginations, and 
wile away their tedious hours of inactivity; and, 
if we except sorcery and witchcraft which are 
commo^ amongst them, these appear to be the 
only vestages of tradition or religion which can 
be discerned. 
Their language is inarticulate to all except 
themselves ; and, even then, one party will ex- 
press themselves in a dialect which another, 
