FIRST GLIMPSE OF A WILD LION 
93 
The dry creek bed lay in the course of our home¬ 
ward march, and we resolved to take a final look at 
it. There seemed no likelihood that the lion was 
there, and I walked into the place with the su¬ 
preme courage of one who doesn’t expect to find 
anything hostile. My head gunbearer and I had 
crossed and were walking down in the grass at one 
side. My second gunbearer was on the opposite 
side, and the stillness of death hung over the burn¬ 
ing plain. 
There was not a sign of life in any direction. 
The second gunbearer was instructed to set fire to 
the grass in the hope of awakening some protest 
from the lion in case he was still in the vicinity. 
There was a dry crackling of flames, and before we 
could count ten a deep growl came from somewhere 
in front of me, evidently on one of the edges of the 
creek bed. The second gunbearer was the first to 
locate him, and he signaled for me to come over 
on his side of the creek. In a moment I had dashed 
down and had climbed out on the other side and was 
eagerly gazing at a clump of bushes indicated by 
the Kikuyu. At first I could distinguish nothing, 
but soon I saw the tawny flanks and the lashing tail 
of the lion. His head was hidden by the bushes. 
At that time we were about a hundred yards from 
him and it was necessary to circle off to a point 
where the rest of his body could be seen. A little 
side ravine intervened, and I had to cross it and 
come directly down through the clump of bushes. 
The grass was high, and it was not until I had come 
