A rhino “coming on.” 
From a photograph by Kermit Roosevelt. 
brush on these hills were huge euphorbias, 
aloes bearing masses of orange flowers, and 
a cactus-like ground plant with pretty pink 
blossoms. All kinds of game from the 
plains, even rhino, had wandered over these 
hill-tops. 
But what especially interested us was 
that we immediately found fresh beds of 
lions, and one regular lair. Again and 
again, as we beat cautiously through the 
bushes, the rank smell of the beasts smote 
our nostrils. At last, as we sat at the foot 
of one koppie, Kermit spied through his 
glasses a lion on the side of the koppie op¬ 
posite, the last and biggest; and up it we 
climbed. On the very summit was a mass 
of cleft and broken bowlders, and while on 
these Kermit put up two lions from the 
bushes which crowded beneath them. I 
missed a running shot at the lioness, as she 
made off through the brush. He probably 
hit the lion, and, very cautiously, with 
rifles' at the ready, we beat through the 
thick cover in hopes to find it; but in vain. 
Then we began a hunt for the lioness, as 
apparently she had not left the koppie. 
Soon one of the gun bearers, who was 
standing on a big stone, peering under some 
thick bushes, beckoned excitedly to me; and 
when I jumped up beside him he pointed 
Vol. XLVII.—42 
at the lioness. In a second I made her 
out. The sleek sinister creature lay not 
ten paces off, her sinuous body following the 
curves of the rock as she crouched flat look¬ 
ing straight at me. A stone covered the 
lower part, and the left of the upper part, of 
her head; but I saw her two unwinking 
green eyes looking into mine. As she could 
have reached me in two springs, perhaps in 
one, I wished to shoot straight; but I had 
to avoid the rock which covered the lower 
part of her face, and moreover I fired a little 
too much to the left. The bullet went 
through the side of her head, and in be¬ 
tween the neck and shoulder, inflicting a 
mortal, but not immediately fatal, wound. 
However it knocked her off the little ledge 
on which she was lying, and instead of 
charging she rushed up hill. We promptly 
followed, and again clambered up the mass 
of bowlders at the top. Peering over the 
one on which I had climbed there was the 
lioness directly at its foot, not twelve feet 
away, lying flat on her belly; I could only 
see the aftermost third of her back. I at 
once fired into her spine; with appalling 
grunts she dragged herself a few paces 
down hill; and another bullet behind the 
shoulder finished her. 
She was skinned as rapidly as possible; 
401 
