"Oh," cried Mark at last, "a lion must have leaped upon him and pulled him down while he was going his rounds." "Not likely, sir," said Buck Denham, "with the ponies and all them bullocks about." "Then where can he be?" cried Mark. "Don't you think a lion may have leaped upon him when he was making up the fire?" "Might, sir," said the man, "but lions are not likely to go near a fire. I want the day to break, so that we may follow the spoor. What I am hoping is that Peter may have been scared, and will turn up as soon as it is day and he feels safe." "That's what we all hope," said Mark, speaking for the rest. "Yes, sir; but the worst of it is that when you want the sun to rise it takes such a long time before it will." "Yes," said the doctor, who had been silently listening for a few minutes; "let's call the roll, and learn the extent of our losses." "Oh, I can pretty well tell you that, sir," said Denham: "the four ponies, and eight-and-forty of my draught oxen." "No, no, man!" said the doctor. "Not so bad as that?" "Well, not quite, sir, for I hope we may pick up some of them here and there;" and he gave Mark, who was close at hand, a nudge with his elbow. As the man ceased speaking the doctor began his roll call, as he termed it: four men did not answer to their names. "This is bad--very bad," said the doctor, in a pained voice. "I should be loth to think that Dance neglected his duty in keeping up the fire, and rendered us exposed to this attack of lions." "Well, sir, it do seem rather hard to lay it on to a man who may have got it badly, but I am afraid he let that fire out, for first thing after I come, when I looked torst where it should have been all was black as black." "Oh, tut, tut, tut!" ejaculated Sir James. "Then there's that man Brown." "He lay down to sleep close beside me, sir. I don't feel much fear about him." "And the Hottentot?" "Well, he was lying just behind Dunn Brown, and my black close to him. They'll turn up, sir, soon as it is daylight. I'm most skeart about Keeper Dance. You see, he's quite new to the country, sir.--Hah-h-h!" continued the man, drawing a deep breath. "That's better! Here's this morning coming, and welcome as the flowers of May, as the country folks say in old England. Here, Dan, my lad, we have had a bad night of it, but we shall want some breakfast all the same. What do you say to putting the billy on to boil?" "Ay, ay, mate!" cried the man addressed; and he made for the end of the nearest waggon to fetch a bucket and the great tin kettle, while the Illaka joined him on the instant. "Breakfast!" said Mark, with a look of disgust. "After such a night as this?" "Well, sir, it's not to be sneezed at," said the big driver good-humouredly, "and we shall work all the better at following up the spoor after a good mug or two of tea. Say, Mr Dean, sir, don't you feel as if a drop would do you good?" "Yes; but what a horrid night!"