LIONS 
165 
lions, because otherwise the lions would have finished this single 
buck at a meal, we searched around for signs of other aasvogels 
sitting on trees within range of sight. While looking about, 
there appeared, about six hundred yards off down the valley, 
what seemed at first sight to be a blue wildebeest. I imme¬ 
diately started to stalk down on the beast, but before I had 
gone three hundred yards recognised that my blue wildebeest 
was a large, full-maned, black lion, who trotted off to a thick 
bush lower down : this mistake was pardonable, for the lion 
much resembled the appearance of a wildebeest at long range. 
I gave chase at a smart run, but could not get within decent 
range before he disappeared. While running, however, two 
lionesses that I had passed started up behind me from their 
lair in the long grass, and made off sulkily at a trot down the 
valley, amongst some scattered little bushes where only short 
grass was growing. As soon as they reached the bushes they 
broke into a slow, heavy walk, not likely to take them far, which 
I no sooner realised, than, putting on a good spurt and keeping 
in cover behind some larger bushes, I came out about eighty yards 
from a lioness that was standing gorged with meat, just dis¬ 
playing her body, while the head was hidden, held low behind 
a little bush. Much out of breath as I was, making the shoot¬ 
ing unsteady, I still put out the long Swinburne-Henry, and 
pulled for the neck. The bullet went in on the shoulder and 
rolled her over for a moment. She rose immediately, giving 
a scratch with both paws, one after the other, that sent sand and 
grass flying into the air; then, as she saw me, with a hasty move 
pulling herself together, she went bounding off into a thicket 
on the right. I was just going to let her have another bullet 
when, looking to the left, I saw another lioness, with head erect 
and very wide awake, watching my movements, but before I 
could get a shot she also bounded into a thicket close by on 
that side. The first lioness now set up a roaring in the bush, 
which I judged, from its lessening strength, meant that she was 
weakening. I yelled for my boys—who had during these pro¬ 
ceedings remained at a safe distance—to help me look around, 
