opposite one to where I sat)
was all one mass of green leaves. All at once, just as I was shifting
myself to a safer place among the roots, the leaves suddenly shook and
parted, and out popped the great yellow head and fierce eyes of an
enormous lion.

I don't think I ever got such a fright in my life. My gun had gone to
the bottom along with the boat, and the only weapon I had left was a
short hunting knife, which against such a beast as that would be of no
more use than a bodkin. I fairly gave myself up for lost, making sure
that in another moment he'd spring forward and tear me to bits.

But whether it was that he had already gorged himself with prey, or
whether (as I suspect) he was really frightened at finding himself in
such a scrape, he showed no disposition to attack me, so long at least
as I remained still. The instant I made any movement, however, he would
begin roaring and lashing his tail, as if he were going to fall on me at
once. So, to avoid provoking him, I was forced to remain stock-still,
although sitting so long in one position cramped me dreadfully.

There we sat, Mr. Lion and I, staring at each other with all our
might--a very picturesque group, no doubt, if there had been anybody
there to see it. Down, down the stream we went, the banks seeming to
race past us as if we were going by train, while all around broken
timber, wagon wheels, trees, bushes, and the carcasses of drowned horses
and cattle, went whirling past us upon the thick brown water.

All at once I noticed that the lion seemed to be getting strangely
restless, turning his great head from side to side in a nervous kind of
way, as if he saw or heard something that he didn't like. At first I
couldn't imagine what on earth was the matter with him, but presently I
caught a sound which scared me much worse than it had done the lion. Far
in the distance I could hear a dull, booming roar, which I had heard too
often not to recognize at once: we were nearing a water-fall!

I had seen the Great Falls of the Fish River more than once, and the
bare thought of being carried over those tremendous precipices made my
very blood run cold. Yet being devoured by a lion would hardly be much
of an improvement; and as I hadn't the ghost of a chance of being able
to swim ashore, there really seemed to be no other alternative.

Faster and faster we went; louder and louder grew the roar of the
cataract. The lion seemed to have quite given himself up for lo