Democratic Sentinel, Volume 17, Number 47, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 8 December 1893 — Shooting a Lion, [ARTICLE]

Shooting a Lion,

Then from behind the carnet then came a huge gray thing. It was the lion, but too far for a certain shot. As he crouohed with extended paws and elevated back, his head near the ground, and glaring at me in defianoe. I slowly raised my rifle for a careful shot, for he seemed upon the point of charging. But as I did so he turned and lumbered off, and the shot I despatched to hasten his movements only struck the aand. Then began the chase. My horse was out of sight behind, but I was soon in the saddle and away. Meantime the two mounted natives had taken up the chase, and after running the lion for two miles, he went to bay in a thicket of mimosa trees. Branishing their spears, and keeping at a respectful distance on their active little horses, the men hurled at him what were no doubt the most insulting and scornful epithets. Fara came up as I was dismounting, just in time to hold my horse. As I approached the clump of trees, rifle in hand, it was a moment or two before I could distinguish the lion; when I did so he was crouching full length behind a many-stemmed mimosa, facing me, and evidently in charging mood, as he was swaying his body and working his tail from side to side with great impetuosity. As I walked round outside the dump to get a flanking shot, he kept turning and facing me. Bo at last I sat down and fired twice at his head between the stems; and reloading like lightning, I rested the rifle on a bush, and fired once more. Upon receiving this shot, he left his bush and came straight at me as fast as possible, without giving me time reload the right barrel. When he was about five yards off, I gave him my last barrel in the chest, and jumped aside, and instantly everything was hidden in a cloud of dust. My last shot had broken his charge, and caused him to swerve round. When the dust settled, I saw him under the same bush as before, but badly hit; he was my lion now, and, running up to within easy range, I put two bullets into his shoulder, which finished him.—[Century.