"I have now to mention a most melancholy event which occurred. Two days
after we had recommenced our travels, in passing through some high
grass, we stumbled on a lion, which was devouring a gnu. Romer, who
happened to be some ten yards foremost of the three, was so alarmed
that he fired at the animal, which we had agreed never to do, as it was
folly to enrage so powerful a beast, when our party was so small. The
lion was slightly wounded; he gave a roar that might have been heard
for a mile, sprang upon Romer, and with one blow of his paw knocked him
off the saddle into the bushes. Our horses, which were frightened,
wheeled round and fled, for the animal was evidently about to attack
us. As it was, he did make one bound in our direction; we could not
pull up until we had gone half a mile; and when we did, we saw the lion
had torn down the horse which Romer had ridden, and was dragging away
the carcass to the right at a sort of a canter, without any apparent
effort on his part. We waited till he was well off, and then rode back
to the spot where Romer had fallen: we soon found him, but he was quite
dead; the blow with the lion's paw had fractured his skull.
"I ought to have said that the Gorraguas told us not to travel by
night, but by day; and we had done so in consequence of their advice. I
believe it was very good advice, notwithstanding this unfortunate
accident, for we found that when we had travelled all night the lions
had more than once followed us the whole time; and indeed I have often
thought since that we were altogether indebted to his mercy who
ordereth all things, both in heaven and earth, that we escaped so well
as we did. Three days after poor Romer's death we first saw the wide
ocean again. We kept near the coast, but we soon found that we could
not obtain the supply of game, or fuel for our fires at night, so well
as we could in the interior, and we agreed to get away from the coast
again. We had a dreary plain to pass over, and we were quite faint for
want of food - for we had been without any for nearly two days - when
we came upon an ostrich. Hastings put his horse to his speed, but it
was of no use - the ostrich ran much faster than the horse could. I
remained behind, and, to my great joy, discovered his nest, with
thirteen large eggs in it. Hastings soon came back, with his horse
panting and out of wind. We sat down, lighted a fire, and roasted two
of the eggs: we made a good dinner of them, and having put four more on
our saddle-bows, we continued our journey. At last, one forenoon, we
saw the Table Mountain, and were as glad to see it as if we had seen
the white cliffs of Old England. We pushed on our horses with the hopes
of being once more comfortably in prison before night; when, as we
neared the bay, we noticed that English colours were flying on board of
the vessels in the road. This surprised us very much; but soon after
that we met an English soldier, who told us that the Cape had been
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