CHAPTEK III. 
Fever — A big fight — A daring lion^ — Charged by a lion — Death of a 
leopard — Three lions reported — ^Troublesome natives. 
Next morning a man came running in to say a large 
snake lay coiled up asleep in a high tree. I could not see 
his head, so when a large crowd of villagers had collected, 
I fired at its body, when two large pieces came wriggling 
down to the ground, amidst the applause of the astonished 
natives. It measured feet in length, and was an 
African cobra. My boy and my cook further enlivened the 
morning by falling out with each other. They were careful, 
however, first to hide their knives, and preferred to fight 
with words only. ‘ You’re a liar I’ shouted my boy. ‘ You’re 
a d liar !’ hissed my cook. ' You sell the master’s 
coffee !’ roared my boy. ‘ You sleep all day, and steal his 
stores at night,’ retorted the cook. ‘ You think of nothing 
but your billy ’ (belly), sneered the boy. ‘ And you helped 
to eat your mother,’ answered the cook, when he could think 
of nothing better to say. The noise became deafening, 
some of the men taking the boy’s part, and others the cook’s. 
Seizing a saucepan full of boiling water, I threw the lot, 
pan and all, right into the middle of the crowd, which in 
consequence quickly dispersed. 
Early next morning I went with two men to a lake 
called Abdin Libah. Seeing a lot of duck upon it, I hid in 
some reeds on the bank whilst the men drove them over me. 
They came over me three or four times before they finally 
left the lake, offering very sporting shots. I made one of 
