Shortly before ten o’clock the moon had risen so high that the whole glade was illuminated by the beams. I was getting somewhat weary of Pit’s music, when my ear caught a distant sound like the trotting of a number of horses. I could see to a considerable distance, and after about a quarter of an hour I found, as I conjectured might be the case, that the noise proceeded from a herd of zebras advancing towards the glade. Looking through the opening between the mimosa and the ant-hill I could make out all their movements. They came on with the utmost caution. They pricked up their ears and stopped at almost every second step, standing awhile as motionless as if carved in stone. Two of the herd were in front; the rest followed at a little distance. I hardly knew whether to fire at once, or to wake up Pit to help me if necessary, but while I was debating in my mind the fellow gave such a tremendous snore that he woke himself; hearing me call, he started up so suddenly that he pulled down the whole of our canopy of acacia boughs, and made such a commotion that the whole of the zebras scampered off without my getting another fair chance of a shot.
My incorrigible man was not long in falling asleep for the third time. Midnight had now passed without any further signs of sport, and it was past one when I fancied that I could hear, although a long way off, the lowing of buffaloes. The sound appeared to come gradually nearer, but after coming almost close it receded again, making me suppose that the herd had got scent of us and had altered their course. It was hardly worth the trouble I took to tell Pit about their movements, as he only groaned in reply and rolled himself over on to his other side.
After this I confess I began to feel somewhat drowsy myself. Yielding to fatigue I fell into a doze, from which I was aroused by what struck me as the rustling of a coming storm. I listened for quite twenty minutes, making out nothing beyond the fact that the noise came from one of the neighbouring pools; after a while, however, I found out that the shrill trumpet-like splash and roar proceeded from a herd of elephants that were enjoying themselves in the water. To rouse Pit was now indispensable. It was no easy matter to make him aware of his position; he muttered something about my wrapping myself up because the wind was blowing and it was cold. This time, however, I was not to be put off, and by giving him a good shaking I brought him to his feet.
My own desire was to leave our shelter and go and set light to two patches of dry grass that I recollected were close at hand. It was a proceeding that I imagined would have the effect of putting the brutes into a high state of alarm, and would bring about a romantic scene such as is rarely witnessed even in the heart of Africa. Pit, however, could not be induced to view the proposal with any favour; he insisted upon what indeed was quite true, that to accomplish what we intended, we should have to cross a great number of the lion-tracks that we knew were there, and that every step would leave us liable to attack before we could be aware of it. As no representations on my part could stir him, and as the moon had set, and it was very dark, I came to the conclusion that perhaps after all discretion was the better part of valour, and yielded my own wish to his. We both of us watched for a long time, but experiencing nothing to keep our interest alive, we at length, one after the other, began to doze again.
I am certain that I had been asleep for a very short time when I was brought to consciousness by a sound that ever makes one oblivious of any other; the roar of a lion was distinctly followed by the low growl of a lioness, both unquestionably within thirty yards of where I was lounging. My hands were benumbed with cold; it was darker than it had been all night, but I rose and dropped upon my knee prepared to fire, having a most uncomfortable consciousness that in all likelihood the animals had been watching us for some time.
“PIT, ARE YOU ASLEEP?”
It did not now require much effort on my part to wake my servant. At the first recognition of the lion’s roar Pit was on his feet in a second. Standing bolt upright, he laid his hands upon the drooping boughs of the mimosa; his hint was worth taking; to escape the spring of the beasts of prey which were only too probably close upon us, we should not lose an instant in climbing up into the tree; the difficulty was how to get there. I had a flat Scotch cap on my head, a pair of long boots, and an overcoat that reached my knees. To pull off my coat and make it a protection for my face was the work of an instant. Pit pushed me up from behind; then he handed me my gun. In my turn I lent him a helping hand up, and as if by magic we found ourselves elevated in the tree, and at least temporarily safe. Our height from the ground was not more than ten feet, but the night continued so dark, and the grass was so high that it was impossible to make out where it would be of any avail to fire. Until it was nearly morning the lions continued to prowl round about, but when dawn appeared they had made off in the same direction as the buffaloes. We afterwards went to examine the pool; there were no longer any signs either of buffaloes or elephants, except the footprints that plainly showed that at least thirty elephants with their cubs had been there during the night. From Theunissen I learnt that a lion and lioness, no doubt the same, had been heard growling within a stone’s throw of the waggon.
After breakfast next day I set out with Pit to follow up the elephants; finding, however, from the condition of the tracks, that they must have had several miles start, I considered that it would be of no use to persevere in the pursuit. The fact, however, of my having been so close to the elephants the previous night stirred up my eagerness, and although I had quite intended to leave Tamafopa that day, I made up my mind to lie in wait a night by myself as near as I could to the pool in which I had heard them disporting themselves. After a good examination of the place I chose a fine hardekool-tree, nearly fifty feet high, from which to keep my look-out, but the lowest branch of it was so much above the ground, that Pit and Meriko had to hoist me up with some strips of oxhide. Once mounted, I was quite satisfied with the position, as it commanded a complete view of the pond. The night was clear and bright, but decidedly wintry, and after a time I felt the cold very severely. It was verging towards midnight, when my hopes were raised by the sound of the tramp which made me sure that a herd of elephants was approaching; my best anticipations, however, had hardly been excited before they were doomed to disappointment, for the noise of the elephants was followed immediately by the crack of a huge African bullock-whip. The waggon of the hunters came nearer, but the herd had turned off into the bushes, and was before long quite out of hearing. I afterwards heard that it was Kurtin, on his way to meet his brother in the Panda ma Tenka valley, who had thus unwittingly spoiled my night’s entertainment.
My sport on the 17th consisted chiefly in an attempt to dig out an ant-eater. On the night of the 18th we killed a couple of jackals. After passing laboriously over great tracts of sand we arrived at the pools at Tamasetze, where we stayed for a night; a very keen wind was blowing down the glade in which the pools were situated, but I fancied I might get the chance I wanted to secure a sword-antelope. I had the waggon removed to the most sheltered place we could find. We were awakened shortly after midnight by a loud cry from Meriko, who had discovered a snake nestling against his legs; the reptile tried to escape, but he mutilated it so terribly that its skin was useless for my collection.