If The Whole Body Of Lion
Anecdote, From The Days Of The Assyrian Kings
Till The Last Year Of The
Nineteenth century, were
collated and brought together, it would not equal
in tragedy or atrocity, in savageness or in sheer
Insolent contempt for man, armed or unarmed,
white or black, the story of these two beasts.
"To what a distance the whole story carries
us back, and how impossible it becomes to
account for the survival of primitive man against
this kind of foe! For fire - which has hitherto
been regarded as his main safeguard against the
carnivora - these cared nothing. It is curious
that the Tsavo lions were not killed by poison,
for strychnine is easily used, and with effect.
(I may mention that poison was tried, but without effect. The
poisoned carcases of transport animals which had died from the
bite of the tsetse fly were placed in likely spots, but the wily man-eaters
would not touch them, and much preferred live men to dead
donkeys.)
Poison may have been used early in the history
of man, for its powers are employed with strange
skill by the men in the tropical forest, both in
American and West Central Africa. But there
is no evidence that the old inhabitants of Europe,
or of Assyria or Asia Minor, ever killed lions or
wolves by this means. They looked to the King
or chief, or some champion, to kill these monsters
for them. It was not the sport but the duty of.
Kings, and was in itself a title to be a ruler of
men.
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