36 Notes on Sonth African Hunting, 
Our start North. 
Old solitary lions are known by the name of 
mannikins. In some parts they are numerous 
and very savage. Man being the most helpless 
animal in existence, these lions go for ” men 
whenever they can. Young lions, too, some¬ 
times get a taste of human blood, and become 
man-eaters. Mr. Ericssen, the hunter and 
explorer, told me that he had come across one 
district, where there were five or six of these 
man-eaters about; and that consequently the 
natives made stockades to sleep in. For three 
nights running at one or other of the stockades, 
someone slept too near the poles, and before 
morning was dragged out between the poles by 
one of these lions. 
On the 17th June, Trooper Ayton and I left 
the wagons to ride the distance to the Falls. 
We had each a horse, and we put some coffee, 
tobacco, and biltong (meat dried to the shape, 
consistency, and flavor of a walking stick) on a 
pack-horse, together with a little meal and 
biscuit. We possessed also an utter ignorance 
of the native language, and a firm trust in 
Providence. The first thing that happened 
naturally was that the pack-horse declined to be 
