Oct. 1, 1901.] 
THE TROPICAL 
AGEICULTITRIST. 
235 
LION HUNTING IN ZULULAND. 
AN EXCITING EXPEDITION. 
WITBIN THREE YAEDS OF A LION: A FAMILY 
OF SKVKIS" APPEAR : "WILDEBEESTE, 
ZEBRA, AMD HYEf."A : A BIG BAG. 
"We liave received permispion to piiblish the 
following letter wiilten by Mr. C. Manning, 
of Mt, Edgecombe, describing a lion-lmnting 
expi dition in Zululand, in \\ bich he and a 
friend had a most exciting esperience :— 
A luiost immediately on our arrival at the 
Ubombo, Leslie and 1 (Mr. Millei' had not 
turned up), obtained the best information pro- 
cui'able from native sources, as to the usual 
Jair and hunting grounds of the lions, which 
obviously lay up in the thick bashes near to 
where the herds of Vv'ildebeeste roam about 
on the open plains. These and the zebras 
(Burchell's) form the lion's ordinary bill of 
fare. We, primed with the above informa- 
tion, 
ERECTED A SMALL SCHEBM OP TTKMINZA 
THORNS, 
and a few strands of wire, in a very likely- 
looking donga, fringed on all sides with fairly 
heavy timber. Our scherm was about three 
yards square, and we made ourselves fairly 
comfortable for the nights to follow, by means 
of a waterproof sheet, air pillow, and a couple 
of blankets each. We arranged the bait we 
had brought from Nongoma, 12 yards from 
the SI herm, and awaited developments. I 
should have mentioned that, most unfortu- 
nately, the blue lights we had ordered through 
Mr. Miller had not come to hand, owing to 
his delay en route, and we had, therefore, to 
depend on the iise of E C. powder to light up 
the scene when the lions should arrive. As 
the flash of the powder would be only mo- 
mentary, and there was no moon until about 
2 a.m., 'we, after some discussion, decided to 
use S.S.S.C. in our shotguns, and keep our 
•303 rifles as an emergency. 
The first night passed oft" without any event. 
Our living bait, to our consternation, re- 
mained absolutely silent, and we heard only 
the cough-like bellow of the wildebeeste all 
round us, varied occasionally by the weird 
cry of a prowling impisi (hyena). We had 
reckoned on our bait giving the lions some 
evidence of his presence, but no doubt instinct 
warned him from giving himself away, and 
he remained a.s silent as the Sphinx, and quite 
impervious to our occasional littempts to 
rouse him up We put in time next d.' v by 
shooting a wildebeeste bull each, and sent 
the meat to our main camp. The night fol- 
lowing 
THE DENOUEMENT 
came off. We were aroused at 10 o'clock, and 
realised that the opportunity of our lives had 
come. I had only just raised myself on my 
elbow, and had not got hold of my gun, 
when above me, not three yards off, distinct 
against the i^kyline, loomed the body and 
large round head of a lion, who had evidently 
walked vip to reconnoitre our scherm. It was 
only for an instant, however, for, satisfied, 
or the reverse, as to our vicinity, the lion 
glided off like a ghost into the darkness. I 
confess that, for those few seconds, my heart 
30 
appeared likely to knock my ribs in. We 
could hear the savage, hoarse grunt of the 
lions, but the intense darkness veiled the 
scene only 12 yards from us, except for the 
occasional glow of a huge feline s eyes, whiih 
resembled the phosphorescent flash of the giow- 
woiui. We had spread a quantity of powder 
on a box, and matches being handy, Leslie 
struck one, applied it to the foimer and 
night became day. Never shall I foi'get tl'e 
scene which for a few second.s presented, 
itself. The bait was still there, and at the 
first flash of the powder, from the carcase, 
on all sides, spi ang lions, their tawny hides 
looking white as polar bears in the bright 
light. 1 fired at one hugf brute, which was 
lying right across the carcase, and Leslie 
fired a bullet at one which bounded awaj' to 
the right. Then darkness again — darkness 
made more intense by the bright glare of the 
preceding few seconds. What was happen- 
ing? Were the startled lions ru.shing away 
to the deep and wooded hollow below us, 
or were we to feel the crash and impact on 
our slightly-uuilt scherm, of some charging 
and wounded monster ? It was impossible 
to say, and we fat tight, clutching our guns 
in hand, and a.waiting events, Leslie had 
been handicapped by lighting up the powder, 
and did not therefore feel sure of the result 
of his shot, but I knew 1 had been on the 
mark, and a 
LOW GRUKTING, AND ALMOST HUMAN-LIKE 
MOANING 
near us told me that 1 had made no mistake. 
We expected no re-appeaiance of the lions 
that night, but, to < ur amazement, in less 
th;in 15 minutes from our shots, deep ho: ri^e 
grunts, the residing of flesh and the cracking 
of bones, made it evident that the enemy 
entertained no idea of relinquishing the 
"spoils t)f war" It was now my ttirn to 
light up, l)ut the powder had been too heaped 
up, and the flesh wliich resulted on my ap- 
plj'ing the match was barely momentary and 
so vivid that, for a few minutes, I was ab- 
solutely blinded and feared my eyesight had 
gone. Fortunately this was not the case ; but 
1 was effectually prevented from seeing any- 
thing of the lions. Leslie had fired, but appa- 
rently without any effect, for no welcome re- 
sponse answered to the shot. Darkness — 
Egyptian - and again the terrible uncertainty 
of what was happening, or what would happen. 
As seven lions weie ainund (one brushed our 
scherm, as we found by the spoor next day), 
deV' lopments might be exjjected at any 
moment, but agjiin we sat tight as wax and as 
silent and motionless as munmiies, hoping 
that thereby we might yet get another chance 
if fortune were so kind. Th's proved to he 
the case and once more during this eventful 
night were we to hear the low murderous 
grunts and savage snarls of the fierce beats as 
they assembled and squabbled over the dead 
animal. We had an old Zulu kehla with us 
in the scherm and we decided in lo«, whis- 
pe\'ed underto)ies that, to give us an equal 
chance at the lit)ns, Umgeschow should light 
up the powder. He did so, and the nitro 
being now more evenly distributed than 
before, the flash which resulted was the best 
of the three attempts, 
