Along the Chiri we saw many hippopotami and crocodiles. The former are hunted by the natives for their flesh, the latter are killed on account of their venomous character. When any of these creatures appeared, the men were very anxious that I should fire on them, and as we never slept soundly at night, the shooting was an agreeable excitement which revived us for the day. One hippopotamus came against our boat with all its might, and gave us a shock which would have certainly upset a smaller craft. After passing, it looked back as if to see how much damage it had done. At times we had much conversation with the “boys”. They formed a singing class, and made rapid progress. There were with us, Bismarck, Armasao, Lasertha, and Rondao. Bismarck was the philosopher of the party. The boatmen have a habit of whistling for wind, and he explained it thus, “When you have a friend far away, you call on him when you wish him to come”. But notwithstanding their whistling, the wind was often slow in coming. At midnight on the 5th of July, we were awakened by an awful screaming. My first impression was that we were drifting down the river, while the boys were trying to awaken us. I was surprised at this, since I had taken special pains with the anchor that night. But as the noise continued, I perceived that it was a terrible cry of distress—at the same time the dog we had brought from Quilimane (which was known by the name of Elton), was barking furiously. Before I had time to understand the situation, little Lasertha shouted out in a voice tremulous with fear, “O master, master, take my hand”. This he said in Portuguese. Then Bismarck entered by the stern of the boat. “What is it, Bismarck?” “Lions, lions.” “Are all the men in the boat?” “No.” For the first time in my life, there flashed across my mind the depth of meaning expressed by the simile of “the roaring-lion, seeking whom he may devour”. My rifle which lay loaded beside me, I at once discharged, not with the idea of shooting the lions, which could not be well seen in the darkness, but in order to scare them. Most of the men were in the boat in a moment. They acted with great presence of mind. I often wondered why in the excitement they had not tried to pull the boat ashore before raising the anchor! All swam to the boat with the exception of Armasao, who waited till it was pulled nearer. He seemed more afraid of the crocodiles in the water, than of the lions on the bank. Of course, beds and cooking gear were left behind in the terrible race for life. After all were safe, the lions set up a hideous roaring, which continued for hours. I asked whether Elton was in the boat, and understood he was. But when we put back in the morning, Bismarck called out in a piteous voice, “Elton die!” and held up the dead creature before me. He had not been devoured by the lion, and the body had no mark except in the region of the heart. This noble dog had been the means of saving the life of at least one of our men.