TO THE UASIN GISHU 
357 
From the moment when he charged until his death I 
doubt whether ten seconds had elapsed, perhaps less; but 
what a ten seconds! The first half dozen spears had done 
the work. Three of the spear blades had gone clear through 
the body, the points projecting several inches; and these, 
and one or two others, including the one he had seized in 
his jaws, had been twisted out of shape in the terrible death 
struggle. 
We at once attended to the two wounded men. Treat¬ 
ing their wounds with antiseptic was painful, and so, 
while the operation was in progress, I told them, through 
Kirke, that I would give each a heifer. A Nandi prizes 
his cattle rather more than his wives; and each sufferer 
smiled broadly at the news, and forgot all about the pain of 
his wounds. 
Then the warriors, raising their shields above their 
heads, and chanting the deep-toned victory song, marched 
with a slow, dancing step around the dead body of the lion; 
and this savage dance of triumph ended a scene of as fierce 
interest and excitement as I ever hope to see. 
The Nandi marched back by themselves, carrying the 
two wounded men on their shields. We rode to camp by 
a roundabout way, on the chance that we might see another 
lion. The afternoon waned and we cast long shadows 
before us as we rode across the vast lonely plain. The 
game stared at us as we passed; a cold wind blew in our 
faces, and the tall grass waved ceaselessly; the sun set be¬ 
hind a sullen cloud bank; and then, just at nightfall, the 
tents glimmered white through the dusk. 
Tarlton’s partner, Newland—also an Australian, and 
as fine a fellow as Tarlton himself—once had a rather 
