METHODS OF LION HUNTING 
335 
swamp and slightly ahead of the line of beaters. 
As the lion springs out it is up to the hunter near¬ 
est to it to meet it with the traditional unerring shot. 
In our experience we beat dozens of swamps and 
reed beds. Stephenson would take one side of the 
swamp, I the other, while Akeley with his moving- 
picture machine, would take the side best suited to 
photographic purposes. He got some wonderful 
results, two of which were records of the death of 
two lionesses. 
Upon the first of these occasions the beaters had 
worked down a long stretch of swamp and had 
almost reached the end. Suddenly they showed an 
agitated interest in something in front of them. 
They thought it was a lion until an innocent by¬ 
stander made an unauthorized guess that it was a 
hyena. This reassured the beaters and they ad¬ 
vanced boldly in the belief that it was a harmless 
hyena. My valor rose in proportion and for the 
same reason, and I strolled bravely over to the edge 
of the reeds where a little opening appeared. It 
was something of a shock to see two lions stroll sud¬ 
denly into view. I fired, hitting the last one. Then 
they both disappeared in the reeds ahead. 
It was amazing to note the sudden epidemic of 
caution upon the part of all concerned. The beaters 
refused to advance until Stephenson joined them 
with his big rifle. I moved forward on the side 
lines and the moving-picture machine reeled off 
yards of film. 
A man has to appear brave when a camera is 
