396 
ELEPHANT-HUNTING IN EAST AFRICA 
CHAP. 
time to make the kraal secure. Of course, with so few hands, 
it was not possible to remedy this defect in one day, especially 
as Juma and his two men did not get back till the evening ; 
however, it was made as strong as could be managed under the 
circumstances, in the hope of keeping the donkeys in ; and, at 
sundown, those that had been recovered were put in and the 
entrance closed, as securely as could be contrived, with big 
thorny boughs. 
I could, of course, do nothing myself but look on and 
encourage my men. To attempt to look for the lions would, 
even had I been whole, have been quite useless without dogs 
(even Pice had died in Kere) in the thickets that surrounded 
us in every direction. Had I been able to shoot, I might have 
posted myself in some position whence I could watch the dead 
donkey all night, after securing it in some way to prevent its 
being dragged, so as to ensure as far as possible the lions 
remaining by it, should they come at all, until the moon rose, 
which would not be till after ten that night. Even that might 
not have been successful, as the night proved cloudy and dark, 
while the place where the kraal had been was overshadowed by 
trees ; but, as it was, I did not, of course, attempt anything of 
the kind. 
We had been obliged to use all the branches of which the 
“ boma ” had been made for the new one, cutting more to add 
to them ; and, even working their hardest all day, my few men 
(including cook and all) could not construct such a fence as to 
make me feel much confidence that the panic-stricken donkeys 
could not burst through, if frightened again, formidable though 
the barricade of branches looked. Hence there was no time 
to build any barrier round the carcase, to allow of my setting a 
gun in the only way it can be usefully done over a kill ; and 
the only thing I could do to-day was to set one baited with 
meat in the way I always adopt with success when the depre¬ 
dator whose end it is wished to compass is a hyena. Having 
done that, I thought it best to remove the dead donkey, so 
