Part 17 (2/2)
”Memsahib,” he smiled politely, ”I think perhaps youto tell the cook, through Mahoh old buffalo steak pounded, boarding-house style This evidently puzzled all hands They turned to in an earnest discussion of what it was all about, anyway Billy understood Swahili well enough at that tiather that they could not understand the Meious rite, or a piece of revenge? They gave it up
”All right,” said Mahomet patiently at last ”He say he do it WHICH ONE IS IT?”
Part of our supplies co Billy decided to have a grand celebration, so she passed out a tin ether with suitable instructions for a fruit pudding In a little while the cook returned
”Nataka m'tund-I want fruit,” said he
Billy pointed out, severely, that he already had fruit He went away shaking his head Evening and the pudding caratulated Billy on her culinary enterprise Being hungry, we took big ations The rhubarb can proved to be an old one containing heavy gun grease!
When finally we parted with our faithful cook we bought hi it he sluan to weep violently, rocking back and forth in an excess of grief
”Why, what is it?” we inquired, alar down his cheeks, ”I wanted a watch!”
One e of a grass-grown savannah, with a low hill to our right and another about four hundred yards ahead Suddenly two rhinoceroses cah grass, and stood looking uncertainly in our direction
”Look out! Rhinos!” I warned instantly
”Why-why!” gasped Billy in an astonished tone of voice, ”they have lanced in her direction She was staring, not to her left, but straight ahead I followed the direction of her gaze, to see three lionsacross the face of the hill
Instantly we dropped off our horses We wanted a shot at those lions very much indeed, but were ha, snorting, and e weposition and opened fire on the disappearing lions It was most distinctly a case of divided attention, one eye on thoseto attend to the always delicate operation of aligning sights and signalling froer Our faithful gunbearers crouched by us, the heavy guns ready
One rhino seemed either peaceable or stupid He showed no inclination either to attack or to depart, but illing to back whatever play his friend an to think he ht a moment, and then, followed by his cohty yards ahile we continued our long range practice at the lions over their backs
In this ere not winningthe Ross cartridge through the rooveless oval bore It was little accurate beyond a hundred yards Me it for the ”lion gun,” and kept just out of reach with the long-range Springfield I had no tiue the matter with him The 405 has a trajectory like a rainbow at that distance, and I was guessing at it, and not field andof one of the beasts We saw him lift his paw and shake it, but he did not e was probably confined to a siood shot anyway Then they disappeared over the top of the hill
We walked forward, regretting rhinos Thirty yards ahead of nificent old lion reared his head from a low bush He evidently intendedHowever, B had killed only one lion and I wanted very ht on the middle of his chest, and uttered a fervent wish to myself that B would hurry up In about ten seconds the ned the job
At B's shot the lion fell over, but was iet at us Thenthat his hind quarters were paralyzed He was aat us full ood look at a lion in action B took up a co position on an ant hill to one side with his rifle levelled F and I advanced slowly side by side
At twelve feet from the wounded beast stopped, F unlimbered the kodak, while I held the bead of the 405 between the lion's eyes, ready to press trigger at the first forward ht Thus we took several exposures in the two cameras Unfortunately one of the cameras fell in the river the next day The other contained but one exposure
While not so spectacular as some of those spoiled, it shows very well the erectof the ears of an angry lion You rowling
We backed away, and B put in the finishi+ng shot The first bullet, we then found, had penetrated the kidneys, thus inflicting a temporary paralysis
When we came to skin him we found an old-fashi+oned lead bullet between the bones of his right forepaw The entrance wound had so entirely healed over that hardly the trace of a scar remained From what I know of the character of these beasts, I have no doubt that this ancient injury furnished the reason for his staying to attack us instead of departing with the other three lions over the hill
Following the course of the river, we one afternoon caame that had been down to water The river, a quite iht, and an equally iht ahead They were forced to cross our front, quite close, within the hundred yards We stopped to watch thehtened, bounding spas easily and unconcernedly; still others to a few-even stopping for acreatures, as always, bounced along absolutely stiff-legged, exactly like wooden aniround and rebounding high, without a bend of the knee nor an apparent effort of theanis for the most efficient travel The same is true of human babies as well In this herd were, we esti near the foothills I ca frorip, probably on alighting, the tarsus had slipped through the crotch beyond the joint, the eagle had fallen forward, and had never been able to flop itself back to an upright position!