ng his
master to face the danger alone. Once the man hesitated, turned again,
took two or three paces, as if to follow, and then stopped. At this
moment a tremendous roar rang through the thicket. It decided the
matter, and Luji never halted until he gained the edge of the mahunoo
grove, and, rifle in hand, climbed up a tree, where he sat patiently
waiting the _denouement_.

Foot by foot, yard by yard, the more determined soldier now alone worked
his way on, the growlings and snappings growing more and more distinct,
until at last he reached the foot of a large "masuku" tree, whose roots
ran down the bank into the bed of the stream, the action of running
water having bared them. Suddenly a roar which sounded close to him
made him crouch down. It was the same which had decided Luji's retreat.
He almost fancied the beating of his own heart could be heard, mixed
with the snarling and snapping of some wild animals, and the rending of
flesh. His breath seemed to come quick, as, grasping the tap-root of
the tree with the left hand, slowly and cautiously he raised himself to
a level with the bank. It was a splendid sight for an African hunter.
An open space in the bush lay before him, and at the further end, where
a narrow path seemed to lead into the forest, lay the headless and torn
carcase of a horse. An English saddle with its broken girths had fallen
from its back, while to the right an enormous lioness, turned from him,
was gently moving her tail to and fro like a great cat, as she
contemplated her two cubs rending the dead horse.

Slowly and with great care bringing up his rifle, the hunter aimed
deliberately behind the shoulder, knowing that there the shot must prove
mortal, the lioness not being ten paces away as he pulled the trigger.
Hearing some noise, the watchful animal sprang up just as the report
rang out, and the ball, striking too low, instead of killing, wounded
her. The next moment lioness and man were rolling together at the
bottom of the gully, the growl of the wounded animal ringing savagely
among the rocks and bushes. Gripping the helpless hunter by the
shoulder, the lioness sprang with him up the bank. The trusty rifle lay
at the bottom of the nullah, but still the man did not lose his presence
of mind. The pistols at his belt might yet serve him. Slipping his
hand down, he found they were gone, doubtless dropped also in the
nullah, and then only a shout of agony came from his lips as he