he mother leopard with a kid in her mouth.

The fierce creature had paused, wondering who was the intruder who had
dared to place himself at the very door of her home. This pause of the
leopard gave the hunter time to recover his coolness and to take good
and sure aim; her head and shoulders being just over the rocky ridge
were clearly marked out upon the sky-line. Slowly raising his rifle
then, he fired, the leopard leaping into the air, while with the report
of the weapon came the natives who had been stationed at the other
entrances of the cave, all eager to see what had happened, and quite
forgetting the little bush-boy, who must have heard the report of the
weapon, too, and been in some anxiety as to the result. On the ground
lay the body of the dead kid, but the leopard herself, only wounded, had
disappeared, having got into the thick bush that clothed the sides of
the kloof.

Feeling thankful that the fierce creature had not made a dash for her
den, the Englishman hastily called to the boy, desiring him to come out
immediately, whether successful or not in his search. This was
absolutely necessary, as in the long run the wounded animal would
certainly return to the cave, though in the first moment of alarm she
had escaped in another direction.

But there was no reply from the boy. 'Come along, boy; come along; never
mind the cubs,' repeated the Englishman, peering into the dark mouth of
the cave, and desperately anxious to have done with this unpleasant
adventure.

'All right, master,' was at length heard in hollow tones, yet with a
dash of triumph in them; 'all right, I have got the young ones;' and in
a few minutes first one brown leg appeared, then a second, for the
brave little fellow had to travel backwards, the hole being too narrow
and winding to admit of turning. At length he appeared, gasping for
breath, but full of delight, and carrying two little growling and
spitting cubs. Hastily securing the prey and reloading his rifle, the
Englishman and his attendants made for home as fast as they could. They
reached the camp in safety, while the female leopard was found dead the
next day some distance up the kloof.

[Illustration: "The little bush-boy appeared, carrying two growling
cubs."]

The little bush-boy was well rewarded for his pluck, and taken into the
Englishman's service; but the reward he seemed to appreciate most was a
hearty meal off the dead kid, for good food did not often come in his
wa