AND AMERICAN RURAL SPORTS. 
57 
and had driven the native Hottentots a considerable dis- 
tance into the interior, amongst dry and barren tracts. 
This is the ordinary course of colonization. In 1705, 
the Landdrost, (a local magistrate,) Jos. Sterreberg Kupt, 
proceeded on a journey into the country, to procure some 
young oxen for the Dutch East India Company; and he has 
left a very interesting Journal of his expedition, which has 
been translated from the original Dutch, and published by 
the Rev. Dr. Philip in his truly valuable Researches in 
South Africa. The account which the Landdrost gives of 
the adventure of his company with a Lion, is altogether so 
curious, that we extract it without abridgment: — 
“ Our wagons, which were obliged to take a circuitous 
route, arrived at last, and we pitched our tent a musket- 
shot from the kraal; and after having arranged every 
thing, went to rest, but were soon disturbed; for, about 
midnight, the cattle and horses which were standing be- 
tween the wagons, began to start and run, and one of the 
drivers to shout, on which every one ran out of the tent 
with his gun. About thirty paces from the tent stood a 
Lion, which, on seeing us, walked very deliberately about 
thirty paces farther, behind a small thorn-bush, carrying 
something with him, which I took to be a young ox. We 
fired more than sixty shots at that bush, and pierced it 
stoutly, without perceiving any movement. The southeast 
wind blew strong, the sky was clear, and the moon shone 
very bright, so that we could perceive every thing at that 
distance. After the cattle had been quieted again, and I 
had looked over every thing, I missed the sentry from be- 
fore the tent, Jan Smit, from Antwerp, belonging to the 
Groene Kloof. We called as loudly as possible, but in vain — 
nobody answered; from which I concluded that the Lion 
had carried him off. Three or four men then advanced 
very cautiously to the bush, which stood right opposite the 
door of the tent, to see if they could discover any thing 
of the man, but returned helter-skelter, for the Lion, who 
was there still, rose up, and began to roar. They found 
there the musket of the sentry, which was cocked, and 
also his cap and shoes. 
“We fired again about a hundred shots at the bush, 
(which was sixty paces from the tent, and only thirty paces 
from the wagons, and at which we were aide to point as at 
a target,) without perceiving any thing of the Lion, from 
which we concluded that he was killed, or had run away. 
This induced the marksman, Jan Stamansz, to go and see 
if he was there still or not, taking with him a firebrand. 
But as soon as he approached the bush, the Lion roared 
terribly, and leapt at him, on which he threw the firebrand 
at him, and the other people having fired about ten shots, 
he retired directly to his former place behind that bush. 
“ The firebrand which he had thrown at the Lion, had 
P 
fallen in the midst of the bush, and, favoured by the strong 
south-east wind, it began to burn with a great flame, so 
that we could see very clearly into and through it. We 
continued our firing into it; the night passed away, and the 
day began to break, which animated every one to aim at 
the Lion, because he could not go from thence without 
exposing himself entirely, as the bush stood directly 
against a steep kloof. Seven men, posted on the farthest 
wagons, watched him to take aim at him if he should come 
out. 
“ At last, before it became quite light, he walked up the 
hill with the man in his mouth, when about forty shots 
were fired at him, without hitting him, although some 
were very near. Every time this happened, he turned 
round towards the tent, and came roaring towards us; and 
I am of opinion, that if he had been hit, he would have 
rushed on the people and the tent. 
“When it became broad day-light., we perceived, by 
the blood, and a piece of the clothes of the man, that the 
Lion had taken him away, and carried him with him. We 
also found behind the bush, the place where the Lion had 
been keeping the man, and it appeared impossible that no 
ball should have hit him, as we found in that place several 
balls beaten flat. We concluded that he was wounded, and 
not far from this. The people, therefore, requested per- 
mission to go in search of the man’s corpse, in order to 
bury it, supposing that, by our continual firing, the Lion 
would not have had time to devour much of it. I gave 
pel-mission to some, on condition that they should take a 
good party of armed Hottentots with them, and made 
them promise that they would not run into danger, but 
keep a good look out, and be circumspect. On this seven 
of them, assisted by forty-three armed Hottentots, fol- 
lowed the track, and found the Lion about half a league 
farther on, lying behind a little bush. On the shout of the 
Hottentots he sprang up and ran away, on which they all 
pursued him. At last, the beast turned round, and rushed, 
roaring terribly, amongst the crowd. The people, fatigued 
and out of breath with their running, fired and missed him, 
on which he made directly towards them. The captain, 
or chief head of the kraal, here did a brave act in aid of two 
of the people whom the Lion attacked. The gun of one of 
them missed fire, and the other missed his aim, on which 
the captain threw himself between the Lion and the people 
so close, that the Lion struck his claws into the caross 
(mantle) of the Hottentot. But he was too agile for him, 
doffed his caross, and stabbed him with an assagai. In- 
stantly, the other Hottentots hastened on, and adorned him 
with their assagais, so that he looked like a jaorcupine. 
Notwithstanding this, he did not leave off roaring and 
leaping, and bit off some of the assagais, till the marksman, 
