Dr Livingstone’s Adventure with a Lion.

Cromwell Argus, Volume I, Issue 38, 3 August 1870, Page 6

Dr Livingstone’s Adventure with a Lion.

''The following extract from Dr Livingstone’s account of his adventures in Africa, during one of his early visits, may be new to some of our readers ; 7 In going round the end of the saw one of the beasts sitting on a piece, fofc rock as before, but this time ho had a little bush in front. Being about thirty yards off, I took a good aim at his body through the bush, and fired both barrels into it. The men then called out, “ He is shot—-he is shot!” Others cried, “He has been shot by another man, too ! Let us go to him !” I did not see anyone else shoot at him, but I saw the lion’s tail erected in anger behind the bush, and, turning to thdl people, said : “ Stop a little, till I Mai again.” When in the act of down the bullets, I heard a shout. Standing and looking half-round, I saw I i the lion just in the act of springing upon < me. I was upon a little height; he caught ! me by:the shoulder as he sprung, and we; both came to the ground below together.! Growling horribly close to my ear, he shook me as a terrier dog does a rat. This shock produced a stupor similar to that which: seems to be felt by a mouse after the first shake of a cat. It caused a sort of dreaminess, in which there was no senso of pain, nor feeling of terror, though quife conscious of all that was happening. I t was like what patients partially under thle influence of chloroform describe, who s«e all the operation, but feel not the knife. This singular condition was not the reSil^ 3 of any mental process. The shake 'mm}- 9 ? hilated fear, and allowed no sense* o{^oir- H E ror in looking round at the beast. This peculiar state’is probably produced in ill animals killed by the carnivora ; fefi* jrf>: so, is a merciful provision by thej bpl4s> lent Creator for lessening the pain;o|jgea jjf Turning round to relieve myself fl 5# weight, as he had one paw on the my head,.l saw his eyes directed to’wa d# Mebalew, who was trying to shoot him at a distance of ten or fifteen yards. IHa gun, a flint one, missed fire in both bawds; the lion immediately left me, and attacking Melabew, bit his thigh. Another mLn, whose life I had saved before, after he liad been tossed by a buffalo, attended! to spear the lion while he was bitiiig v j& b»r; lew. He left Mebalew, and 1 hyit man by the shoulders, but at the bullets he had received took effect i md he fell down dead. The whole was the l work of a few minutes, and must have been bis paroxysm of dying rage. In order to take out the charm from him, the iLktala on the following day made albugo, lonfire over the carcase, which waa.jdeclj to be that of the largest lion L' seen. Besides crunching the bone s| nt r splinters, he left eleven teeth wounds* the upper part of my arm. The wo um i from the animal’s teeth resembles a f’ 1 , shot wound. It is generally foliolf Utl great deal of sloughing and discharge, pains are felt periodically even I had on a tartan jacket on and I believe that it wiped off^H^theTj^ 11 ’ from the teeth that pierced the flesh ;f f* 3 my two companions in this affray ]L both suffered from the peculiar picj/ 0 while I hare escaped with only the inL ; ▼enience of a false joint in the limb. man whose shoulder was wounded 1 me his wound actually burst forth af£T ( on the same month of the following JJJp 1 This curious point deserves tha,istte4si&J [ 0 f inquirers. 1/fM,