JAN’S STORY 
47 
powder flask in her mouth”; and I put the powder flask in 
her mouth and she bit it full of holes—here it is—and all the 
time I could hardly breathe, for her claws were stuck in my 
chest here, look, and a lion is heavy! When at last I got 
my knife out, holding it between my fingers, some devil said 
to me: “ Put it in her eye, Jan ”; and I put it in her eye with 
all my force, but mighty! then she bit me sore and scratched 
me more. Look at these marks! Then I got angry and 
rose on one knee to wrestle with her and she threw me down, 
but I was a strong wrestler as a young man, and I rose again 
and gained my two knees, holding her by the shoulders, and 
ducking my head against her neck so that she could not 
bite me, and then she clawed me here and here—showing 
several terrific parallel marks under each arm. Ah God, it 
was not a fair fight! She had too many claws and teeth, 
but my heart was big, and I cared not for the wounds, and 
wrestled with her till I threw her on her back, and then all 
the devils in hell could not hold me as I jumped on her like 
a wild beast and buried my fingers in her throat. Fight is 
fight, oh people, and a man with a heart will fight until he 
dies! ’ He fairly shrieked and stamped on the ground to give 
emphasis to his words as his eyes rolled wildly, and his breath 
came sharp and quick, as in the battle he was fighting over 
again. ‘ And then she clawed me in the sides here, look, men 
who are not afraid of wounds! look and see what a man can 
carry and live! And then the lion lay still,’ he continued in 
subdued tones; ‘ I knew she was dying from the first shot, 
and held her there, but she moved not; and looking round I saw 
my hat lying here and my gun lying there, and I lay still and 
then suddenly loosed the lion’—with a jerk of his hands— 
‘ and ran home, picking up my hat on the way. I could run, 
for my legs were unhurt, but the gun I could not carry, for 
my arms were too sore. When I got home, the Bushman was 
telling my wife how the lion had eaten me, and the last he saw 
of me was my two feet kicking in the lion’s mouth. I would 
have beaten him for deserting me, but I was bitten and scratched 
