3i6 
WILD BEASTS AND THEIR WA VS 
CHAP. 
damage to the paw. We have seen that the cheetah 
strikes the haunch of a black-buck when coursing at 
full speed, and it is highly probable that the lion 
would exert its prodigious strength in the same 
manner, to stun the hind-quarters by the stroke, and, 
by throwing the animal upon one side, to expose the 
throat to the grip of the powerful jaws. All beasts 
of prey occasionally meet with dangerous anta¬ 
gonists, and should the first spring fail, the lion may 
find an adversary worthy of its fangs in a staunch old 
African buffalo, in which case the battle would be 
worth a journey to be witnessed. I once discovered 
the dislocated skeleton of a buffalo almost inter¬ 
mingled with the broken bones of a lion, the skull 
of which was lying near, while the skull of the 
buffalo, devoid of the nasal bones, was lying 
within a few feet distant, gnawed by jackals and 
hyenas. The ground had been deeply trampled, 
showing the desperate character of the recent 
struggle, which had terminated in the death of both 
combatants. It is highly probable that two lions 
had simultaneously attacked the buffalo, who had 
succumbed after having vanquished one assailant. 
This is a very common practice among lions, to 
hunt in company. Mr. Oswell in South Africa had 
a peculiar example of this when in a day’s hunting 
his friend Major Vardon had wounded a bull buffalo, 
which had retreated within the forest. The two 
hunters carefully followed the blood-track, but after 
a short advance they were startled by a succession 
of loud roars, which betokened lions close at hand. 
