“When we brought the news, there was great consternation and wailing, for the woman who had been taken away was very beautiful. “The next day we danced round the mbuiti, and the mbuiti told us that we should kill the leopard. “So thirty men prepared themselves for the hunt. We cooked the war dish, bled our hands, covered ourselves with our war fetiches, marked our bodies with the ochre of the Alumbi, invoked the spirits of our ancestors to be with us, and departed. “The day before some people came to the place where they had seen the leopard’s foot-prints, and not far off was a tremendous jungle, very thick, and several trees had been brought down by a tornado. The leopard’s lair was there. “At last we came round the lair. Some said the leopard was not there, while others said he was. In the mean time we shouted, and all the time our spears were in readiness, and the dogs were barking; we had a hope that it would spring on one of them, then we would transpierce it with our spears. “When a man who said the leopard was not there first entered the jungle, he had hardly made a step into it, when lo! a terrible cry sprung from among us. The leopard, which was probably watching, with a tremendous leap sprung on the intruder, his claws fastened deeply into his shoulder, and the teeth of his powerful jaws holding the neck of the man, who uttered a fearful shriek. In less time than I can tell you the leopard was covered with the spears that had gone through him; he dropped down dead with the man whom he had killed.” They all shouted, “Yes, this leopard had been once a man who was possessed with witchcraft.” My breath was becoming short with excitement, and I was glad when the story was over, for the sweat was fast coming down from my face. We turned the meat on the other side on the orala, and left our three native dogs, Kambi, Goa and Andeko, to take care of the premises (they were now lying by the fires, enjoying the heat thoroughly), and then we went to sleep. During the night I woke, thinking I heard a booming sound like that of heavy footsteps, when the dogs began to bark, and soon I heard a crash through the forest. It was a herd of elephants which was wandering not far from us, and then the forest resumed its wonted stillness. Now I had remained a long time at the head-waters of the Ovenga—a long time has gone by since the last chapter. Months had been spent in that region, and I thought now of descending the river to visit my settlement of Washington on the sea-side. It was high time. I was still suffering from fever attacks, and had not quinine enough left for a large dose. [Sidenote: _DESIRE TO RETURN._]