AMONG THE LIONS

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 73, Issue 34, 10 February 1930, Page 9

AMONG THE LIONS

HUNTERS WITHOUT GUNS STALKING WITH A CAMERA If anyone deserves the title of court photographer to King Leo it is surely Mr Cherry Kearton, who has spent so many years camera-stalking in Central Africa. Now he has produced another wonderful picture book, containing a host of portraits and stories of the royal family and their subjects. Mr Kearton never carries weapons when he stalks big game, partly because he hates butchery, and partly because he thinks he is safer unarmed.

The rhinoceros, in spite of weighing two tons, is a playful, timid fellow. Mr Kearton has seen two or three chasing one another round a waterholo like colossal kittens, and he has seen a pair stampede for five miles because a fox terrier yapped at their heels.

A wounded elephant will charge the enemy, twist his trunk round a man’s body, and batter him to death against a tree. On the other hand, Mr Kearton caused a whole herd to disperse by giving three hand claps. There were 40 elephants within a few yards of Mr and Mrs Kearton, yet the human beings did not hear a sound as the monsters moved off into the forest.

The leopard will only attack if he can, for he is the only creature except man who kills for the sheer lust of killing. But there is a glorious uncertainty about lions, because one lion may be as timid as a rabbit and another as fierce as a leopard. They are seldom man-killers, but you can never be sure that the lion before you only eats four-footed creatures. Once Mr Kearton found the remains of a native who had unmistakably been killed by a lion within the last 12 hours. That afternoon he came round a small hillock and suddenly saw five lions feeding on a dead gazelle. They were about 200 yards away, and the only cover was grass a foot high.

Mr Kearton bade his native boy return to camp and fetch the camera and his friends, while he stayed to watch the lions. He thought that were too busy to look about, but he was, as he says, completely’ and nearly finally wrong!

After a while a big lioness yawned, turned her head, and saw Mr Kearton At once she got up and advanced a few yards, while the four lions followed slowly. To run away would have been to invite a charge, to remain would have been fatal. There could be little doubt that the lioness was a man-killer.

Down went Mr Kearton on the ground and away he crawled as fast and flat as he could. After a bit he leaped to his feet. The five were coming on, but his leap startled them into stopping for a moment. Then they advanced again, and he dropped into the grass once more.

But Mr Kearton found that the lions were coming on faster than he was retreating. Once, when he looked up, he could not see them. Then they, too, were crawling through the grass, and might be within charging distance! Down went his head, and off ho crawled until a sound from another direction caused him to rejoice. The native and his friends came up, and at the sight of numbers the lions slunk away.