But When The Large Camp Moved
Ahead With The Railway, Matters Altered
Considerably.
I was then left with only some few hundred
men to complete the permanent works; and as
all the remaining workmen were naturally camped
together, the attentions of the lions became more
apparent and made a deeper impression.
A
regular panic consequently ensued, and it required
all my powers of persuasion to induce the men to
stay on. In fact, I succeeded in doing so only by
allowing them to knock off all regular work until
they had built exceptionally thick and high bomas
round each camp. Within these enclosures fires
were kept burning all night, and it was also the
duty of the night-watchman to keep clattering
half a dozen empty oil tins suspended from a
convenient tree. These he manipulated by means
of a long rope, while sitting in safety within his
tent; and the frightful noise thus produced was
kept up at frequent intervals during the night in
the hopes of terrifying away the man-eaters.
In spite of all these precautions, however, the
lions would not be denied, and men continued to
disappear.
When the railhead workmen moved on, their
hospital camp was left behind. It stood rather
apart from the other camps, in a clearing about
three-quarters of a mile from my hut, but was
protected by a good thick fence and to all
appearance was quite secure. It seemed, however, as
if barriers were of no avail against the "demons",
for before very long one of them found a weak
spot in the boma and broke through.
Enter page number
PreviousNext
Page 26 of 247
Words from 7346 to 7613
of 68125
