and for a confiderable length o f time, but they feemed to
go ju il fo much the worfe for it.
U p o n approaching the pool, that had water in it, though
y et at fome diftance from it, my fervants fent me word to
come up fpeedily, and bring fire-arms with me. A lion
had killed one o f the deer, called: Ariel, and had ate a part
o f it, but had retired upon the noife we had made in alighting.
In place o f him, five or fix hyarnas had feized the
carcafe, and feveral others were at the inftant arriving to
join them, and partake o f the prey the lion had abandoned.
I haftened upon the fummons, carrying with me a mulket
and bayonet, and a fliip blunderbufs, with about forty fmall
bullets in it. I crept through the buihes, and under banks
as near to them as poflible, for fear o f being feen ; but the
precaution feemed entirely fuperfluous ; for though they
obferved me approaching, they did not feem difpofed to
leave their prey, but in their turn looked at me, railing the
briftles upon their back, lhaking themfelves as a dog does
when he'comes out o f water, and giv ing a ihort but terrible
grunt. After which they fell to their prey again, as i f they
meant to difpatch their deerfirft, and then come and fettle
their affairs with me. I now began to repent having ventured
alone fo near ; but knowing, with the ihort weapon
I had, the execution depended a good deal upon the diftance,
I ftill crept a little nearer, till I got as favourable a po-
fition as I could wifh behind the root o f a large tree that had
fallen into the lake. Having fet my mulket at my hand,
near and ready, I levelled my blunderbufs at the middle o f
the group, which were feeding voracioully like as many
fwine, with a confiderable noife, and a civil war with each
other. Two o f them fell dead upon the fp o t ; two more
3 died
ftied about twenty yards diftance; but all the reft that could
efcape fled without looking back, or fliewing any kind o f
refentment: I then took m y mufquet in my hand, and
flood, prepared with my bayonet, behind the tree, but fired
no more, not knowing what their humour or difpofition
might be as to a return upon acceflion o f new companions.
A b o u t twenty fmall foxes, and a flock o f feveral hundred
Guinea-fowls, now came’ up from the infide o f the
pool. The fowls lighted immediately, and ran back again
to the water. The foxes retired quickly into the woods,
Whether they had afiembled with a view o f getting a ihare
o f the deer, an animal o f this kind being generally attendant
upon the lion, or whether, as is moil like ly, they were
feeking the Guinea-fowls, I do not know. ' I fufpect it
was the latter, by their n umb e r; for never more than one
a t a time is remarked to accompany the lion.
We obferved a variety o f traps and cages, fome o f them
v e ry ingenious, which the Daveina, or other Arabs, had fet
¡to catch thefe birds, feveral o f which we found dead in
thefe fnares, and fome o f them had not yet been touched
by beafts; and as there was but a fmall diftance between
the traps and the water’s edge, which could only be an-
fwerable to a few days evaporation, we with great rea-
fon inferred, that the Daveina, or fome other Arabs, had
been there a very Ihort time before. We found in the mud
o f the pool large green iheli-fnails, w ith the animals alive in
th em ; fome o f them weighed very near a pound, in nothing,
but fize and thicknefs o f the fliell, different from
common garden-fnails.
Vol. IV, 5 s Not