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On our road through the thick jungle, I was startled by a rush
close to me: for the moment I thought it was a lion, but almost
at the same instant I saw a fine nellut dashing away before me,
and I killed it immediately with a bullet through the back of the
neck. This was great luck, and we now required two camels, as in
two shots I had killed a lioness and a nellut (A. Strepsiceros).

We remained for some time at our delightful camp at Delladilla.
Every day, from sunrise to sunset, I was either on foot or in the
saddle, without rest, except upon Sundays, which I generally
passed at home, with the relaxation of fishing in the beautiful
river Settite. There was an immense quantity of large game, and
I had made a mixed bag of elephants, hippopotami, buffaloes,
rhinoceros, giraffes, and great numbers of the large antelopes.
Lions, although numerous, were exceedingly difficult to bag;
there was no chance but the extreme risk of creeping through the
thickest jungle. Upon two or three occasions I had shot them by
crawling into their very dens, where they had dragged their prey;
and I must acknowledge that they were much more frightened of me
than I was of them. I had generally obtained a most difficult and
unsatisfactory shot at close quarters; sometimes I rolled them
over with a mortal wound, and they disappeared to die in
impenetrable jungle; but at all times fortune was on my side. On
moonlight nights I generally lay in wait for these animals with
great patience; sometimes I shot hippopotami, and used a
hind-quarter as a bait for lions, while I watched in ambush at
about twenty yards distance; but the hyaenas generally appeared
like evil spirits, and dragged away the bait before the lions had
a chance. I never fired at these scavengers, as they are most
useful creatures, and are contemptible as game. My Arabs had made
their fortune, as I had given them all the meat of the various
animals, which they dried and transported to Geera, together with
fat, hides, &c. It would be wearying to enumerate the happy
hunting-days passed throughout this country. We were never ill
for a moment; although the thermometer was seldom below 88
degrees during the day, the country was healthy, as it was
intensely dry, and therefore free from malaria: at night the
thermometer averaged 70 degrees, which was a delightful
temperature for those who exist in the open air.

As our camp was full of meat, either dried or in the process of
drying in festoons upon the trees, we had been a great attraction
to the beasts of prey, who constantly prowled around our thorn
fence during the night. One night in particular a lion attempted
to enter, but had been repulsed by the Tokrooris, who pelted him
with firebrands; my people woke me up and begged me to shoot him,
but, as it was perfectly impossible to fire correctly through the
hedge of thorns, I refused to be disturbed, but I promised to
hunt for him on the following day. Throughout the entire night
the lion prowled around the camp, growling and uttering his
peculiar guttural sigh. Not one of my people slept, as they
declared he would bound into the camp and take somebody, unless
they kept up the watch-fires and drove him away with brands. The
next day, before sunrise, I called Hassan and Hadji Ali, whom I
lectured severely upon their cowardice on a former occasion, and
I received their promise to follow me to death. I entrusted them
with my two Reillys No. 10; and with my little Fletcher in hand,
I determined to spend the whole day in searching every thicket of
the forest for lions, as I felt convinced that the animal that
had disturbed us during the night was concealed somewhere within
the neighbouring jungle.

The whole day passed fruitlessly; I had crept through the
thickest thorns in vain; having abundance of meat, I had refused
the most tempting shots at buffaloes and large antelopes, as I
had devoted myself exclusively to lions. I was much disappointed,
as the evening had arrived without a shot having been fired, and
as the sun had nearly set, I wandered slowly towards home.
Passing through alternate open glades of a few yards width,
hemmed in on all sides by thick jungle, I was carelessly carrying
my rifle upon my shoulder, as I pushed my way through the
opposing thorns, when a sudden roar, just before me, at once
brought the rifle upon full cock, and I saw a magnificent lion
standing in the middle of the glade, about ten yards from me: he
had been lying on the ground, and had started to his feet upon
hearing me approach through the jungle. For an instant he stood
in an attitude of attention, as we were hardly visible; but at
the same moment I took a quick but sure shot with the little
Fletcher. He gave a convulsive bound, but rolled over backwards:
before he could recover himself, I fired the left-hand barrel. It
was a glorious sight. I had advanced a few steps into the glade,
and Hassan had quickly handed me a spare rifle, while Taher Noor
stood by me sword in hand. The lion in the greatest fury, with
his shaggy mane bristled in the air, roared with death-like
growls, as open-mouthed he endeavoured to charge upon us; but he
dragged his hind-quarters upon the ground, and I saw immediately
that the little Fletcher had broken his spine. In his tremendous
exertions to attack, he rolled over and over, gnashing his
horrible jaws, and tearing holes in the sandy ground at each blow
of his tremendous paws, that would have crushed a man's skull
like an egg-shell. Seeing that he was hors de combat, I took it
coolly, as it was already dusk, and the lion having rolled into
a dark and thick bush, I thought it would be advisable to defer
the final attack, as he would be dead before morning. We were not
ten minutes' walk from the camp, at which we quickly arrived, and
my men greatly rejoiced at the discomfiture of their enemy, as
they were convinced that he was the same lion that had attempted
to enter the zareeba.

On the following morning, before sunrise, I started with nearly
all my people and a powerful camel, with the intention of
bringing the lion home entire. I rode my horse Tetel, who had
frequently shown great courage, and I wished to prove whether he
would advance to the body of a lion.

Upon arrival near the spot which we supposed to have been the
scene of the encounter, we were rather puzzled, as there was
nothing to distinguish the locality; one place exactly resembled
another, as the country was flat and sandy, interspersed with
thick jungle of green nabbuk; we accordingly spread out to beat
for the lion. Presently Hadji Ali cried out: "There he lies
dead!" and I immediately rode to the spot, together with the
people. A tremendous roar greeted us, as the lion started to his
fore-feet, and with his beautiful mane erect, and his great hazel
eyes flashing fire, he gave a succession of deep short roars, and
challenged us to fight. This was a grand picture; he looked like
a true lord of the forest, but I pitied the poor brute, as he was
helpless, and, although his spirit was game to the last, his
strength was paralysed by a broken back.

It was a glorious opportunity for the horse. At the first
unexpected roar, the camel had bolted with its rider; the horse
had for a moment started on one side, and the men had scattered;
but in an instant I had reined Tetel up, and I now rode straight
towards the lion, who courted the encounter about twenty paces
distant. I halted exactly opposite the noble-looking beast, who,
seeing me in advance of the party, increased his rage, and
growled deeply, fixing his glance upon the horse. I now patted
Tetel on the neck, and spoke to him coaxingly; he gazed intently
at the lion, erected his mane, and snorted, but showed no signs
of retreat. "Bravo! old boy!" I said, and, encouraging him by
caressing his neck with my hand, I touched his flank gently with
my heel; I let him just feel my hand upon the rein, and with a
"Come along, old lad," Tetel slowly but resolutely advanced step
by step towards the infuriated lion, that greeted him with
continued growls. The horse several times snorted loudly, and
stared fixedly at the terrible face before him; but as I
constantly patted and coaxed him, he did not refuse to advance.
I checked him when within about six yards from the lion. This
would have made a magnificent picture, as the horse, with
astounding courage, faced the lion at bay; both animals kept
their eyes fixed upon each other, the one beaming with rage, the
other with cool determination. This was enough--I dropped the
reins upon his neck; it was a signal that Tetel perfectly
understood, and he stood firm as a rock; for he knew that I was
about to fire. I took aim at the head of the glorious but
distressed lion, and a bullet from the little Fletcher dropped
him dead. Tetel never flinched at a shot. I now dismounted, and
having patted and coaxed the horse, I led him up to the body of
the lion, which I also patted, and then gave my hand to the horse
to smell. He snorted once or twice, and as I released my hold of
the reins, and left him entirely free, he slowly lowered his
head, and sniffed the mane of the dead lion: he then turned a few
paces upon one side, and commenced eating the withered grass
beneath the nabbuk bushes. My Arabs were perfectly delighted with
this extraordinary instance of courage exhibited by the horse. I
had known that the beast was disabled, but Tetel had advanced
boldly towards the angry jaws of a lion that appeared about to
spring. The camel was now brought to the spot and blindfolded,
while we endeavoured to secure the lion upon its back. As the
camel knelt, it required the united exertions of eight men,
including myself, to raise the ponderous animal, and to secure it
across the saddle.

Although so active and cat-like in its movements, a full-grown
lion weighs about five hundred and fifty pounds. Having secured
it, we shortly arrived in camp; the coup d'oeil was beautiful, as
the camel entered the inclosure with the shaggy head and massive
paws of the dead lion hanging upon one flank, while the tail
nearly descended to the ground upon the opposite side. It was
laid at full length before my wife, to whom the claws were
dedicated as a trophy to be worn around the neck as a talisman.
Not only are the claws prized by the Arabs, but the moustache of
the lion is carefully preserved and sewn in a leather envelope,
to be worn as an amulet; such a charm is supposed to protect the
wearer from the attacks of wild animals.

In all probability, this was the lion that was in the habit of
visiting our camp, as from that date, although the roars of such
animals were our nightly music, we were never afterwards visited
so closely.

As game was plentiful, the lions were exceedingly fat, and we
preserved a large quantity of this for our lamps. When it was
boiled down it was well adapted for burning, as it remained
nearly liquid.

We had a large supply of various kinds of fat, including that of
elephants, hippopotami, lions, and rhinoceros; but our stock of
soap was exhausted, therefore I determined to convert a quantity
of our grease into that very necessary article.

Soap-boiling is not so easy as may be imagined; it requires not
only much attention, but the quality is dependent upon the proper
mixture of the alkalis. Sixty parts of potash and forty of lime
are, I believe, the proportions for common soap. I had neither
lime nor potash, but I shortly procured both. The hegleek tree
(Balanites Egyptiaca) was extremely rich in potash; therefore I
burned a large quantity, and made a strong ley with the ashes;
this I concentrated by boiling. There was no limestone; but the
river produced a plentiful supply of large oyster-shells, that,
if burned, would yield excellent lime. Accordingly I constructed
a kiln, with the assistance of the white ants. The country was
infested with these creatures, which had erected their dwellings
in all directions; these were cones from six to ten feet high,
formed of clay so thoroughly cemented by a glutinous preparation
of the insects, that it was harder than sun-baked brick. I
selected an egg-shaped hill, and cut off the top, exactly as we
take off the slice from an egg. My Tokrooris then worked hard,
and with a hoe and their lances, they hollowed it out to the
base, in spite of the attacks of the ants, which punished the
legs of the intruders considerably. I now made a draught-hole
from the outside base, at right angles with the bottom of the
hollow cone. My kiln was perfect. I loaded it with wood, upon
which I piled about six bushels of oyster-shells, which I then
covered with fuel, and kept it burning for twenty-four hours.
This produced excellent lime, and I commenced my soap-boiling. We
possessed an immense copper pot of Egyptian manufacture, in
addition to a large and deep copper basin called a "teshti."
These would contain about ten gallons. The ley having been boiled
down to great strength, I added a quantity of lime, and the
necessary fat. It required ten hours' boiling, combined with
careful management of the fire, as it would frequently ascend
like foam, and overflow the edge of the utensils. However, at
length, having been constantly stirred, it turned to soap. Before
it became cold, I formed it into cakes and balls with my hands,
and the result of the manufacture was a weight of about forty
pounds of most excellent soap, of a very sporting description,
"Savon a la bete feroce." We thus washed with rhinoceros soap;
our lamp was trimmed with oil of lions; our butter for cooking
purposes was the fat of hippopotami, while our pomade was made
from the marrow of buffaloes and antelopes, scented with the
blossoms of mimosas. We were entirely independent, as our whole
party had subsisted upon the produce of the rod and the rifle.

We were now destined to be deprived of two members of the party.
Mahomet had become simply unbearable, and he was so impertinent
that I was obliged to take a thin cane from one of the Arabs and
administer a little physical advice. An evil spirit possessed the
man, and he bolted off with some of the camel men who were
returning to Geera with dried meat.*

* Some months afterwards he found his way to Khartoum,
where he was imprisoned by the Governor for having
deserted. He subsequently engaged himself as a soldier
in a slave-hunting expedition on the White Nile; and
some years later, on our return from the Albert N'yanza,
we met him in Shooa, on 3 degrees north latitude. He
had repented--hardships and discipline had effected a
change--and, like the prodigal son, he returned. I
forgave him, and took him with us to Khartoum, where
we left him a sadder but a wiser man. He had many near
relations during his long journey, all of whom had
stolen some souvenir of their cousin, and left him
almost naked. He also met Achmet, his "mothers brother's
cousin's sister's mother's son," who turned up after
some years at Gondokoro as a slave-hunter; he had
joined an expedition, and, like all other blackguards,
he had chosen the White Nile regions for his career.
He was the proprietor of twenty slaves, he had assisted
in the murder of a number of unfortunate negroes, and
he was a prosperous and respectable individual.

Our great loss was Barrake. She had persisted in eating the fruit
of the hegleek, although she had suffered from dysentery upon
several occasions. She was at length attacked with congestion of
the liver. My wife took the greatest care of her, and for weeks
she had given her the entire produce of the goats, hoping that
milk would keep up her strength; but she died after great
suffering, and we buried the poor creature, and moved our camp.

CHAPTER XVII.

WE REACH THE ROYAN.

HAVING explored the Settite into the gorge of the mountain chain
of Abyssinia, we now turned due south from our camp of
Delladilla, and at a distance of twelve miles we reached the
river Royan. The intervening country was the high and flat
table-land of rich soil, that characterises the course of the
Settite and Atbara rivers; this land was covered with hegleek
trees of considerable size, and the descent to the Royan was
through a valley, torn and washed by the rains, similar in
appearance to that of the Settite, but upon a small scale, as the
entire width did not exceed a mile.

Descending the rugged ground, we arrived at the margin of the
river. At this season (February) the bed was perfectly dry sand,
about ninety yards from bank to bank, and the high-water mark
upon the perpendicular sides was a little above nine feet deep.
The inclination was extremely rapid: thus the Royan during the
rainy season must be a most frightful torrent, that supplies a
large body of water to the Settite, but which runs dry almost
immediately upon the cessation of the rains.

We descended the bank in a spot that had been broken down by
elephants, and continued our course up stream along the sandy
bed, which formed an excellent road. The surface was imprinted
with the footsteps of every variety of game, and numerous holes
about two feet deep had been dug in the sand by the antelopes and
baboons to procure water. Great numbers of the oterop, a small
reddish-brown antelope without horns (Calotragus Montanus) were
drinking at these little watering-places, and did not appear to
heed us. We disturbed many nellut and tetel upon the banks, and
after having marched about four miles along the river's bed, we
halted at a beautiful open forest of large trees at the junction
of Hor Mai Gubba. This was a considerable torrent, which is
tributary to the Royan; at this spot it had cut through a white
sandstone cliff, about eighty feet perpendicular: thus upon
either side it was walled in. The word Gubba is Abyssinian for
the nabbuk, therefore the torrent was the Nabbuk River: this
flowed past the village of Mai Gubba, which is the head-quarters
of Mek Nimmur, from which we were not twenty-five miles distant.
We camped in a forest of the largest trees that we had as yet
seen in Africa, and as we had observed the fresh tracks of
horses, on the sand, some of my Arabs went in search of the
aggageers of Taher Sheriff's party, whom they had expected to
meet at this point. While they were gone, I took a few men to
beat the low jungle within the forest for francolin partridge,
numbers of which I had seen running through the covert. I went up
the dry bed of the river at the junction of the Hor Gubba, while
they drove towards me, and I was compelled to fire as fast as I
could load, as these beautiful birds flew across the ravine. I
shot five brace almost immediately. There is no better game bird
than the francolin: the flesh is white, and of a most delicate
and rich flavour. My shots had attracted the aggageers, and
shortly after my return to camp they arrived with my Arabs, as
they had been stationed on the opposite side of the Royan in a
forest within a quarter of a mile of us. Taher Sheriff was
delighted to see us free from the company of Abou Do. His party
had killed several elephants, and had captured two young ones;
also, two young rhinoceroses, three giraffes, and several young
antelopes; these were to be sold to Johann Schmidt, who
contracted to supply the Italian agent at Cassala. I agreed to
have a long day's hunt with Taher Sheriff; we were to start
before sunrise, as he wished to ride to a spot about twenty-five
miles distant, up the course of the Royan, that was a favourite
resort for elephants.

That evening we had a delicious dinner of francolin partridges.
This species is rather larger than the French partridge: it is
dark brown, mottled with black feathers, with a red mark around
the eye, and double spurs.

There was a small but deep pool of water in the bed of the river,
beneath the high bank about two hundred paces from our camp; this
was a mere hole of about twenty feet square, and I expected that
large game might come to drink during the night. Accordingly, I
determined to watch for elephants, as their tracks were numerous
throughout the bed of the river. My wife and two gun-bearers
accompanied me, and we sat behind an immense tree that grew on
the bank, exactly about the drinking place. I watched for hours,
until I fell asleep, as did my men likewise: my wife alone was
awake, and a sudden tug at my sleeve attracted my attention. The
moon was bright, and she had heard a noise upon the branches of
the tree above us: there were no leaves, therefore I quickly
observed some large animal upon a thick bough. My Tokrooris had
awoke, and they declared it to be a baboon. I knew this to be
impossible, as the baboon is never solitary, and I was just
preparing to fire, when down jumped a large leopard within a few
feet of us, and vanished before I had time to shoot. It must have
winded our party, and quietly ascended the tree to reconnoitre.
Nothing but hyaenas came to the pool, therefore we returned to
camp.

According to my agreement, I went to the aggageers' camp at 5
A.M. with Hadji Ali and Hassan, both mounted on my two horses,
Aggahr and Gazelle, while I rode Tetel. Taher Sheriff requested
me not to shoot at anything, as the shots might alarm and scare
away elephants; therefore I merely carried my little Fletcher, in
case of meeting the Base, who hunted in this country. The
aggageers mounted their horses; each man carried an empty
water-skin slung to his saddle, to be filled at the river should
it be necessary to quit its banks. We started along the upward
course of the Royan.

For seven hours we rode, sometimes along the bed of the river
between lofty overhanging rocks, or through borders of fine
forest-trees; at other times we cut off a bend of the stream, and
rode for some miles through beautiful country diversified with
hills, and abounding in enormous baobab-trees (Adansonia
digitata). At length we entered the mountains at the foot of the
great chain. Here the views were superb. The Royan was no longer
a stream of ninety or a hundred yards in width, but it was
reduced to a simple mountain torrent about forty yards across,
blocked in many places by masses of rock, while at others it had
formed broad pools, all of which were now perfectly dry, and
exhibited a bed of glaring sand. Numerous mountain ravines joined
the main channel, and as the inclination was extremely rapid,
there could be little doubt that the violent storms of the rainy
season, descending from the great chain of mountains, would, by
concentrating in the Royan, suddenly give birth to an impetuous
torrent, that would materially affect the volume of the Settite.
The entire country bore witness to the effect of violent rains,
as the surface was torn and water-worn.

We had ridden nearly thirty miles, having seen large quantities
of game, including antelopes, buffaloes, giraffes, and
rhinoceroses, none of which we had hunted, as we were in search
of elephants. This was the country where the aggageers had
expected, without fail, to find their game.

They now turned away from the Royan, and descended a sandy valley
at the foot of the mountains, the bottom of which appeared to
have been overflowed during the wet season. Here were large
strips of forest, and numerous sandy watercourses, along the dry
bed of which we quickly discovered the deep tracks of elephants.
They had been digging fresh holes in the sand in search of water,
in which welcome basins we found a good supply; we dismounted,
and rested the horses for half an hour, while the hunters
followed up the tracks on the bed of the stream. Upon their
return, they reported the elephants as having wandered off upon
the rocky ground, that rendered further tracking impossible. We
accordingly remounted, and, upon arrival at the spot where they
had lost the tracks, we continued along the bed of the stream. We
had ridden about a mile, and were beginning to despair, when
suddenly we turned a sharp angle in the watercourse, and Taher
Sheriff, who was leading, immediately reined in his horse, and
backed him towards the party. I followed his example, and we were
at once concealed by the sharp bend of the river. He now
whispered, that a bull elephant was drinking from a hole it had
scooped in the sand, not far round the corner. Without the
slightest confusion, the hunters at once fell quietly into their
respective places, Taher Sheriff leading, while I followed
closely in the line, with my Tokrooris bringing up the rear; we
were a party of seven horses.

Upon turning the corner, we at once perceived the elephant, that
was still drinking. It was a fine bull; the enormous ears were
thrown forward, as the head was lowered in the act of drawing up
the water through the trunk; these shaded the eyes, and, with the
wind favourable, we advanced noiselessly upon the sand to within
twenty yards before we were perceived. The elephant then threw up
its head, and, with the ears flapping forward, it raised its
trunk for an instant, and then slowly, but easily, ascended the
steep bank, and retreated. The aggageers now halted for about a
minute to confer together, and then followed in their original
order up the crumbled bank. We were now on most unfavourable
ground; the fire that had cleared the country we had hitherto
traversed had been stopped by the bed of the torrent. We were
thus plunged at once into withered grass above our heads, unless
we stood in the stirrups; the ground was strewed with fragments
of rock, and altogether it was ill-adapted for riding. However,
Taher Sheriff broke into a trot, followed by the entire party, as
the elephant was not in sight. We ascended a hill, and when near
the summit, we perceived the elephant about eighty yards ahead.
It was looking behind during its retreat, by swinging its huge
head from side to side, and upon seeing us approach, it turned
suddenly round and halted. "Be ready, and take care of the
rocks!" said Taher Sheriff, as I rode forward by his side. Hardly
had he uttered these words of caution, when the bull gave a
vicious jerk with its head, and with a shrill scream it charged
down upon us with the greatest fury. Away we all went, helter
skelter, through the dry grass, which whistled in my ears, over
the hidden rocks, at full gallop, with the elephant tearing after
us for about a hundred and eighty yards at a tremendous pace.
Tetel was a sure-footed horse, and, being unshod, he never
slipped upon the stones. Thus, as we all scattered in different
directions, the elephant became confused, and relinquished the
chase; it had been very near me at one time, and in such ground
I was not sorry when it gave up the hunt. We now quickly united,
and again followed the elephant, that had once more retreated.
Advancing at a canter, we shortly came in view. Upon seeing the
horses, the bull deliberately entered a stronghold composed of
rocky and uneven ground, in the clefts of which grew thinly a few
leafless trees, the thickness of a man's leg. It then turned
boldly towards us, and stood determinedly at bay.

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