358 
AFRICAN GAME TRAILS 
eerie adventure with a man-eating lion. He was camped 
near Kilimakiu, and after nightfall the alarm was raised 
that a lion was near by. He came out of his tent, more 
wood was thrown on the fire, and he heard footsteps re¬ 
treating, but could not make out whether they were those 
of a lion or a hyena. Going back to his tent he lay down on 
his bed with his face turned toward the tent wall. Just as 
he was falling to sleep the canvas was pushed almost into 
his face by the head of some creature outside; immediately 
afterward he heard the sound of a heavy animal galloping, 
and then the scream of one of his porters whom the lion 
had seized and was dragging off into the darkness. Rush¬ 
ing out with his rifle he fired toward the sounds, shooting 
high; the lion let go his hold and made off, and the man 
ultimately recovered. 
It has been said that lions are monogamous and that 
they mate for life. If this were so they would almost 
always be found in pairs, a lion and a lioness. They are 
sometimes so found; but it is much more common to come 
across a lioness and her cubs, an old lion with several lion¬ 
esses and their young (for they are often polygamous), 
a single lion or lioness, or a couple of lions or lionesses, or 
a small troop, either all lions or all lionesses, or of mixed 
sexes. These facts are not compatible with the romantic 
theory in question. 
We tried to get the Nandi to stay with us for a few days 
and beat for lions; but this they refused to do, unless they 
were also to kill them; and I did not care to assist as a 
mere spectator at any more lion hunts, no matter how ex¬ 
citing—though to do so once was well worth while. So we 
moved on by ourselves, camping in likely places. In the 
