THE CHACE
BY ABD-EL-KADER.
BY ABD-EL-KADER.
BY ABD-EL-KADER.
It is related that an Arab Sheikh was seated in the centre of a numerous group, when a man who had lost his ass presented himself before him, and asked if any one had seen the animal that had gone astray. The Sheikh immediately turned to those around him, and addressed them in these words:—"Is there any one here to whom the pleasures of the chace are unknown? Who has never pursued the game at the risk of life and limb, if he fell from his horse? Who, without fear of tearing his clothes or his skin, has not thrown himself into the midst of brushwood bristling with thorns, in order to overtake the wolf? Is there any one here who has never experienced the happiness of again meeting, the despair of leaving a woman who was dearly loved?"
One of his hearers answered: "For my part, I have never done, or experienced any of those things you mention."
Looking to the owner of the ass, the sheikh thus spoke: "Behold the beast you were looking for! Lead him away."
The Arabs, indeed, have a saying that "he who has never hunted, nor loved, nor felt emotion at the sound of music, nor prized the perfume of flowers, is not a man, but an ass." With us, war is especially a contest of agility and craft. Consequently the chace is the highest of all pastimes, as the pursuit of savage animals teaches how to pursue men. A poet has written the following eulogy of that art:
"The chace disengages the mind from the cares by which it is harassed. It adds to the vigour of the intelligence, brings joyfulness, dissipates chagrin, and renders useless the science of the physicians by maintaining perpetual health in the human body.
"It forms good horsemen, for it teaches them to spring quickly into their saddles, to alight promptly on the ground, to rush a horse across rocks and precipices, to clear stones and bushes at full gallop, to push on without stopping, even though some part of the harness has been lost or broken.
"Every one who gives himself up to the chace, makes progress day by day in courage, and learns to despise accidents.
"To fully enjoy his favourite diversion, he withdraws from perverse people. He puts falsehood and calumny to the rout, escapes from the corruption of vice, and emancipates himself from those fatal influences which tinge our beards with gray, and burden us, before our time, with the weight of years.
"Days spent in the chace are not counted among the days of one's life."
In the Sahara, the chace is the sole occupation of the chiefs and rich people. When the rainy season sets in,the inhabitants of that region transport themselves to the shores of the small lakes formed by the rain; and, if game get scarce at one spot, they open up a new scene in their wandering life. A legend familiar to every Arab shows with what force the passion for the chace may seize upon the heart of an African.
A man of distinction fired at a gazelle and missed it. In a hasty moment, he took an oath that no food should come near his mouth until he had eaten the animal's liver. Twice again, he fired at the gazelle, and with no better success, but not the less did he continue the pursuit for the whole of that day. At nightfall his strength gave way; but true to his oath, he refused to take any nourishment. His servants, therefore, resumed the chace, which lasted for three days more. At last the gazelle was killed, and its liver brought to the dying Arab, who touched it with its lips and yielded up his last breath.
The Arabs hunt both on foot, and on horseback. A horseman who would chace the hare must take with him a greyhound, which is calledslougui, from Slouguïa, a spot where they were originally produced from the coupling of she-wolves with dogs. The maleslouguilives twenty years, the female twelve. Greyhounds that are able to run a gazelle down are rare. Few of them will give chace either to the hare or to the gazelle, even if those animals pass close to them. Their customary object of pursuit is thebekeur-el-ouhash, which they generally catch by the ham and pull to the ground. It is said that this animal, in trying to recover itself, falls forward on its head and is killed. Sometimes, theslouguiseizes thebekeur-el-ouhashby the throat, and holds it untilthe hunter comes up. Many Arabs hunt this beast on horseback, and strike it from behind with a spear. It is also on horseback that they generally hunt the gazelle, which goes in herds. They select from among its companions the animal they intend to bring down, and shoot it without for a moment pulling up their horse, on which they started at full speed. There is an Arab proverb: "More forgetful than a gazelle." This pretty creature, in fact, appears to have the giddy brains as well as the soft, mysterious glance of woman. The gazelle, if missed, runs a little way further on, and again stops, without heeding the ball which, in another minute, will again seek its life. Some Arabs hunt this animal with the falcon, which is trained to strike at the eyes.
It is especially among the Arabs of the Eshoul country that this variety of sport chiefly prevails. I have there met with a small tribe, called the Es-Lib, who lived entirely on the products of the chace. Their tents were made of the skins of gazelles and ofbekeur-el-ouhash; and their clothing, for the most part, was nothing but the skins of wolves. A member of this little tribe of hunters told me that when he went out to hunt he generally took with him an ass laden with salt. Each time he knocked over a gazelle, he cut its throat, opened the belly, and rubbed the entrails with salt, and then left it to dry on a bush. After a while he retraced his steps, and carried to his family all the animals that he had thus prepared, for in that district there are no beasts of prey to dispute with a hunter for his game. The Es-Lib are so accustomed to feed upon flesh, that the children threw away the biscuits I gave to them, never supposing that they were good to eat.
The hunt in ambush is often practised against both the male and female of thebekeur-el-ouhash. When the great heats have dried up the ponds in the desert, a hole is dug close to the springs whither they resort to drink, and they meet with their death while in the act of quenching their thirst. The chace that demands the greatest intrepidity is that of thelerouy, an animal resembling the gazelle, but larger, though without attaining the size of thebekeur-el-ouhash. Thelerouy, which is likewise called thetis-el-djebel, or mountain goat, frequents rocks and precipices, among which it must be pursued on foot, amid a thousand perils. As these animals have very little speed, any ordinary dog can catch them easily if they descend into the plains. But they have a singular peculiarity, as I am assured. Alerouyclosely pressed by hunters throws itself down a precipice a hundred cubits deep, and falls on its head without receiving any hurt. The age of the animal is known by the knobs on its horns—each knob indicating a year. Both thelerouyand the gazelle have two incisor teeth, but they have not those situated between the incisors and the canine teeth.
Iflerouyhunting be the glory of the pedestrian, ostrich hunting is the glory of the horseman. In the season of the sirocco, when a sort of burning sleep seems to weigh down all nature, when it might be thought that all animated beings must be condemned to repose, the dauntless hunters mount on horseback. Of all animals, the ostrich is known to be the least provided with craft. It never takes a circuitous course, but, confiding in its swiftness alone, endeavours to escape in a line straight as that of an arrow. Five horsemen stationthemselves at intervals of a league in the direction it is certain to take. Each one acts as a relay. When one pulls up, the next clashes off at a gallop in pursuit of the bird, which is thus deprived of a moment's rest, and has to contend against horses that are fresh. The horseman who is the last to start is necessarily the victor, but his victory is not achieved without danger. In falling, the ostrich, by the movement of its wings, inspires the horse with a panic that is often fatal to the rider.
On horses that have to accomplish this terrific running they place only a saddle-cloth, and a saddle of extreme lightness. Some hunters use only wooden stirrups, and an extremely light bit attached to a simple pack-thread. Each one takes with him a small leathern bottle filled with water, and from time to time moistens the bit, in order to keep the animal's mouth tolerably cool. This racing of five horsemen is not, however, the only mode of hunting the ostrich. Sometimes, an Arab who is thoroughly acquainted with the habits of the bird, takes his post by himself close to a spot where it is in the habit of passing—near a mountain defile, for instance—and as soon as the ostrich comes in sight he gives chace at full gallop. But it is rare for a hunter to succeed by himself, as very few horses can overtake the ostrich. However, I once possessed a mare that excelled in this sport.
Although the horse is usually employed in this as in other kinds of hunting, he is not indispensable to man. Craft may sometimes of itself overcome the ostrich. In the laying season the hunters dig holes near the nests, in which they squat down, and kill the parent bird as itcomes to visit its eggs. The Arabs have recourse, likewise, to disguises. Some of them will clothe themselves in the skin of the bird, and thus approach close to those they wish to kill; but hunters, disguised in this fashion, have sometimes, they say, been shot by their own companions. If an ostrich has had a leg broken by a ball, she cannot, like other bipeds, run along, hopping on the other leg. This is because there is no marrow in its bones, and, without marrow, bones will not mend when they have been fractured. The Arabs affirm that the ostrich is deaf, and that the sense of smell replaces that of hearing.
The hyæna is a powerful animal, with formidable jaws, but a coward and afraid of daylight. For the most part it dwells in caves which it finds in ravines and among rocks. It seldom goes abroad but at night, and searches for carrion and dead bodies, and commits such ravages in graveyards, that the Arabs, by way of prevention, bury their dead at a great depth. In some districts they even construct two chambers for a single corpse, which is then interred in the lower one. As a rule, it does not attack the flocks; but sometimes at night, prowling round an encampment, it carries off a dog. The Arabs take little notice of it, though they amuse themselves by hunting it on horseback, and let it be pulled down by their greyhounds, but never pay it the compliment of firing at it. After they have carefully reconnoitred the cave in which it makes its lair, it is no uncommon thing to find Arabs who despise the beast sufficiently to penetrate boldly into its den, after having carefully closed the entrance with their burnouses, so as not to allow any light to enter. Having got thus far,they go up to it, talking with great energy, seize hold of it, gag it, without the slightest resistance on its part—so terrified is it—and then drive it out with heavy blows with a stick. The skin of such a cowardly brute is little esteemed. In many tents they would not permit it to enter, for it can bring nothing but misfortune. The common people eat the flesh, which is not at all good, but they carefully abstain from touching the head or brains—contact with which, they believe, would make them go mad.
Let us leave this ignoble animal, and pass on to one much more to be feared, and the chace of which presents some striking scenes, though its reputation is far from being in the eyes of the Arabs what it is in the imagination of Europeans—I allude to the panther.
The panther is found over the whole surface of Algeria, though it inhabits only wooded coverts, and broken, difficult ground. There are several species. Some never quit the neighbourhood of their lair, and are calleddolly, that is, keeping to the house. Others, again, which are calledberani, or strangers, frequently wander away from the place where they usually dwell, and prowl about the surrounding districts to a considerable distance.
Thedollypanther is larger, stronger, and more dangerous than the other species. Its coat is speckled with spots more elegantly disposed, of a very dark shade, and close to one another. The colours are black, white, and yellow. On the jowl, limbs, and back-bone, there are no spots, but stripes. Those on the jowl are arranged diagonally. The upper points start from the lower eyelids, the nostrils, and the corners of the mouth, anddescend towards the neck, gradually melting away into yellow, and finally lost in the white.
Panthers lap like dogs. They generally roam in couples. In districts that are well peopled, they are never seen in the daytime. In uninhabited regions, although they do go abroad in the day, they hunt only at night. They have not more than two or three cubs. The Arabs are far from regarding the panther with the esteem they accord to the lion. The lion, say they, if attacked, harassed, wounded, and surrounded by enemies, feels his courage heighten in the midst of the uproar and in the thick of the danger. He fearlessly encounters his assailants and fights to the death, while the panther only accepts the combat when it finds no way to retreat. In a word, the lion, as soon as the combat has fairly commenced, never retires, while the panther escapes whenever an opportunity presents itself. Another difference is this—the lion will devour a man, the panther never. The latter generally strikes at his head, lacerates him with its claws, and inflicts terrible bites, and then, preferring the flesh of other animals to that of a son of Adam, it leaves him there and goes in search of other prey. In a country where it is able to supply itself with the flesh of wild boar, sheep, cattle, and game of all kinds, and where it can satiate itself with the carcases of animals, it kills man, not because it is hungry, but in self-defence, as the only way of shaking off an enemy. In the case of the lion, man is often the game in quest of which he stalks abroad; while in that of the panther he is an adversary to be avoided, and never to be provoked. You may pass boldly and confidently close to the thick brushwood that conceals it,and, if you do not begin the attack, it will remain crouched as close as a partridge, even holding in its breath. But if you fire and miss, it will spring upon, bite, and lacerate you, and then, still distrustful of itself, will take itself off.
The Arabs have remarked, from the numbers of persons who have come in collision with panthers, and been wounded without being killed, that it uses only its teeth; its bite being like that of the dog, and injuring only the flesh. The lion, on the other hand, by his violent shaking, breaks the bones of the victim he holds in his powerful jaws. When the panther has inflicted its bite, it does not trouble itself as to its being fatal or otherwise, but makes off with fear and caution. The lion grows more and more furious, and returns to the attack again and again. It is not enough that the enemy be disabled—he must feel the whole weight of a lion's wrath. The lion bounds into adouar, and plunders boldly, at his leisure. He seizes his share without any concealment; he has no fear; he is exercising his right, the right of the strongest. The panther covers its advance, glides, creeps, crawls along like a thief, accompanied by shame and fear. The panther's spring, when enraged, is like a flash of lightning; but after that tremendous effort, its pace is less swift than that of an ordinary horse. If a panther be surrounded, tracked down, and hard pressed—maddened by terror rather than by rage—it will spring on the tree in which the hunters are stationed, and close with them. But at another time, if only one or two men are lying in ambush, and it be not shut in on all sides and a path is left for escape, it forgets its power and runs away. Everywhere and at all times, the lion is a dangerous enemy,to encounter whom is a terrible undertaking; whereas no one need dread the panther unless he has first attacked it. The cry of the latter animal resembles the clear, shrill, impotent neigh of the mule, and is in no way calculated to inspire terror like the roar of the lion, which is as the growling of thunder. But it is quick and agile, and its movements baffle the eye. If the natural disposition of the panther leads it to spare, or at least to avoid, man, and to choose for its prey animals wild or tame, such as sheep, cows, gazelles, and antelopes, that cannot defend themselves, it is equally instructed by instinct to modify its mode of attack upon animals whose habits or courage render them difficult or dangerous to assail—against such, it has usually recourse to surprise. It will not attack a horse in the centre of adouar. Its habitual circumspection and cowardice will restrain it from seeking to seize upon a prey that might be rescued in time, or promptly avenged. Even when out grazing, a horse by itself might escape by galloping off; but if it has not been seen, or suspected, if with a single bound it can fall upon the horse, he is lost.
Nor is the wild boar an easy victim. If it be full grown, and have had warning, and there be room enough, it will defend itself successfully. At times, indeed, it comes off absolutely victorious—the Arabs having found panthers in desert places, ripped up by a boar's tusks. A frequent struggle, perhaps the only one which the panther openly engages in, is with the porcupine; but the latter, though it grows to a considerable size in Africa, is more formidable in appearance than in reality. It has indeed, the property of bristling up its long, hard, sharp-pointed quills, which it can eventhrow to some distance; but these arms cannot save it. The slightest wound completely paralyses the muscular contractions by means of which it places itself in a state of defence: besides, it cannot do anything without something to fall back upon, such as a tree or a stone.
However timorous and apt to run away the panther may be under ordinary circumstances, it becomes really dangerous if its cubs have been carried off in its absence—or under its very eyes by force, which only happens when the hunters are in considerable numbers. At such times it will sometimes perish in the attempt to save them—at least, thedolly, or larger species will do so; but theberrani, or small panther, makes off, uttering the while lamentable cries. The cubs, thus torn from their mother, are given to chiefs residing in towns, to Sultans, Pashas, and Beys; but they are never kept in a tribe, for when still quite young they are dangerous even in their play, and no sort of attention will ever tame them or guarantee the master of the tent, or his wives and children, from a momentary outburst of fury on the part of the perfidious and capricious brute. We may mention, however, that in certainzaouïaslions are tamed by marabouts and led up and down the tribes. Thus summoning curiosity to the aid of charity, they augment the amount of the alms which they beg for their congregation. The most celebratedzaouïain which tame lions are kept is that of Sidi-Mohammed-ben-Aouda, a tribe of the Flittas in the province of Oran.
With this special exception the Arabs—and it is a characteristic trait worthy of note—never rear any but inoffensive animals. There is not a tent without a gazelle, an antelope, a jackal, an ostrich, or a falcon;but in nodouaris a savage beast ever to be seen, such as a hyæna, a panther, or a lion. Some tribes take pleasure in rearing a young wild boar, under the idea that it amuses the horses, which like its smell. The little pig is faithful and always in motion. When the tribe is changing ground, it trots about, grunting joyously in the midst of the other animals, and accompanies the sheep and the calves to the pasture. It is called "the father of good fortune," and strangely enough, it is a lucky omen to meet a wild boar on issuing from one's tent. Prior to Mohammed the Arabs used to eat swine's flesh, but the Prophet forbade it to them, as well as the blood of animals and the flesh of every creature that has not been bled.
The panther, as I have already remarked, seldom goes abroad during the day; but if, by chance, shepherds or travellers happen to alight upon one near an inhabited neighbourhood, they utter in shrill tonesha houa!"there it is!" These cries are repeated with incredible rapidity. The entire population swarms forth—horse and foot, armed with whatever first comes to hand, guns, sticks, swords, spears, or pistols, and followed by their dogs and greyhounds. Surrounding on every side the spot whither the beast has retired, generally difficult ground, covered with thick high brushwood, they attack it fearlessly and usually end by killing it. It rarely happens that it escapes while it is light.
But when, instead of this sudden outbreak of an entire population against an unexpected enemy, a genuine hunt is projected, certain preparations are made before starting. It is true, the panther will run away if it has the chance, but it is always possible that it may showfight; and although, in the long run, it is sure to be mastered without a single casualty on the side of the hunters, it is as well to guard against the wounds it may inflict, however insignificant in themselves. It usually flies at the head. Against the lacerations of its teeth and claws a sufficient defence is the thick woollen cap, theshashia, the numerous folds of the haïk, the hood of the burnous, and the long, coarse camel's rope. But the enemy may with a single bound spring on to a horse's croup, and with one blow on the head with its paw knock over, stun, and even kill the rider. On this account they not unfrequently don a helmet—a helmet of modest pretentions, which at other times serves as a kettle.
The panther is also killed, like the lion, from an ambush. A hole is dug in the earth and covered over with branches, through which an opening is made for the rifle of the concealed hunter, who fires at the distance of about fifteen paces, as the animal approaches to devour the carcase of a sheep or goat placed there for that purpose. But lest the brute, if only wounded, should spring upon themelebda, as the hunter's hiding place is called, the latter is always provided with two or three guns, and perhaps with pistols likewise. At other times a gun is fastened to a tree, and at the muzzle of the barrel is fixed a bait, to which a string is tied, that passes round the tree and is attached to the trigger—so that if the bait be pulled at all forcibly the gun is sure to go off. And if the panther is not shot dead, it is certain to be wounded, and the hunters set off in pursuit, guided by the tracks of blood it leaves on its path. There is yet another mode of killing the panther, whichis by surprising it while sleeping. Should it happen to be awake, it is merely a disappointment, not a danger, for it runs away at sight of a man.
But whatever be the nature of the sport in which the Arabs indulge, the least timorous are liable to superstitious fears. As it is not always possible to relinquish an enterprise when they have once entered upon it, they endeavour by all means to avoid chances of sinister omen. On the other hand they become emboldened, and take courage if, on setting out, they are greeted by one of those encounters which are reputed fortunate—with a jackal in the morning for instance, or with a wild boar in the evening.
Let thy morning be with a jackal,And thy evening with a wild boar.
Let thy morning be with a jackal,And thy evening with a wild boar.
Let thy morning be with a jackal,And thy evening with a wild boar.
Let thy morning be with a jackal,
And thy evening with a wild boar.
A hare or a fox is of ill omen; as is, also, a single crow, or a white mare. A still worse and more detestable omen is the sight of an old woman. But it is a good chance for whoever sees two crows or a mare of any colour; and, above all, success, glory, and plunder, await thegoumthat, when starting on an expedition, is met by a beautiful young and noble maiden, who will uncover her bosom and show one of her breasts. It is the custom; and if the damsel were to refuse this blessing to the warriors of her tribe, they would dismount to compel her, were she the daughter of the chief and though he were himself at the head of thegoum—all the better, indeed, if her birth were so exalted, for the nobler the damsel, the happier the augury. In the west, young girls loosen their girdle. If, in the morning, you hear affectionate and courteous words, you will havea pleasant day; but it will be the reverse if on first awaking you are greeted with an imprecation or an insult. Do not go out to hunt on a Tuesday, a Thursday, or a Friday.
We now come to the sport that is really worthy to sharpen the intelligence and inflame the souls of warriors. The Arab hunter acts upon the aggressive with the lion. In this daring enterprise there is all the more merit, because in Africa the lion is a formidable monster, regarding whom there exist many mysterious and terrible legends, with which an awe-struck superstition surrounds his dread Majesty. With that keenness of insight which characterises them, the Arabs have made a series of observations on the subject of the lion that are worthy of being collected and preserved.
In the daytime the lion rarely seeks to attack man. Very commonly, indeed, if a traveller happens to pass near him, he turns aside his head and affects not to see him. At the same time, if any one, walking close to the bush in which he is couched, be rash enough to cry aloudra hena—"he is there!"—the lion will at once spring upon his denouncer and the disturber of his repose. As night comes on, his humour completely changes. When the sun has set, it is perilous to venture into a wild, woody, and broken country. It is there the lion lies in ambush—it is there he is met on the path-ways, which he intercepts by barring all further advance with his body. The Arabs thus describe some of the nocturnal scenes which are continually happening. If a solitary individual, a courier, traveller, or letter-carrier, chancing to meet a lion, possess a courage of the highest temper, he will walk straight towards theanimal, brandishing his sword or gun, but carefully abstaining from using the one or the other. He simply cries out: "Oh, the robber! the highway-man! the son of a mother who never said No! Dost thou think to frighten me? Thou canst not know, then, that I am so-and-so, the son of so-and-so? Get up, and let me proceed on my journey." The lion waits till the man has come close up to him, and then goes off to lie down again a thousand paces farther on. The traveller has to endure a long series of terrific trials. Each time that he quits the path, the lion disappears, but only for an instant. Directly afterwards he again presents himself, and all his movements are accompanied by horrible noises. He breaks off innumerable branches with his tail. He roars, howls, growls, and emits gusts of poisonous breath. He plays with the subject of his fantastic and manifold attacks, and keeps him constantly suspended between fear and hope, like a cat playing with a mouse. If a man involved in such a difficulty does not allow his courage to fail him, if—to use an Arab phrase—he succeeds in firmly holding his soul, the lion will finally leave him, and seek his fortune elsewhere. But if, on the contrary, the latter perceives that he has to deal with a man whose countenance betrays his fear, whose voice trembles, and who dares not articulate a word, he repeats over and over again, in order to terrify him still more, the manœuvre above described. He will approach him, push him out of the way with his shoulder, cross his path every other minute, and amuse himself with him in various ways, until at last he devours his victim already half dead with terror.
There is really nothing incredible in the facts thusstated by the Arabs. The ascendancy of courage over animals is indisputable. The professional robbers who roam abroad at night, armed to the teeth, instead of shunning the lion, cry out to him if they meet with him: "I am not what thou seekest. I am a robber like thyself; pass on, or, if it please thee, let us rob in company." It is said that the lion sometimes follows them, and attempts an assault on thedouartowards which they are bending their steps. It is even affirmed that this good understanding between the robbers and the lions frequently displays itself in a striking manner. Robbers have been seen, when taking their meals, to treat the lions as other people treat their dogs, and throw to them at a certain distance the feet and entrails of the animals they themselves are eating.
Women likewise have been known successfully to have recourse to intrepidity in opposing a lion. They have run after him when engaged in carrying off a ewe, and have forced him to let go his prey by giving him a shower of blows with a cudgel, crying aloud all the time: "Ah, robber! son of a robber!" The Arabs say that the lion is seized with shame, and makes off as quickly as possible. This trait shows that in the eyes of the Arabs the lion is a peculiar sort of creature midway between men and beasts, which, by reason of its strength, appears to them to be endowed with a special order of intelligence. The following legend, intended to explain how it is that the lion allows a sheep to escape him more easily than any other prey, is a confirmation of this belief. Enumerating one day the various feats his strength enabled him to accomplish, the lion remarked: "An sha Allah—if it be the will ofAllah—I can carry off a horse without distressing myself.An sha Allah, I can carry off a heifer, without being prevented from running by its weight." But when he came to the ewe, he deemed it so much beneath him that he omitted the pious formula, "if it be the will of Allah;" and, to punish him, Allah condemned him to be never able to do more than drag it along.
There are several modes of hunting the lion. When one makes his appearance in the midst of a tribe, his presence is indicated by a multitude of signs of all kinds. The earth shakes, as it were, with roarings. Then a series of losses and accidents take place. A heifer, or a colt is carried off, or a man is missing. The alarm spreads through all the tents. The women tremble for their property and for their children. Lamentations arise on all sides, and the hunters decree the death of their troublesome neighbour. It is published in the market-places that on such a day and at such an hour, all who are capable of joining in the chace, whether on horseback or on foot, must assemble in arms at an appointed spot. Prior to this, the thicket has been discovered to which the lion retires during the day. Everything being ready, the hunters set out, the men on foot leading the way. When they have arrived within fifty paces of the bush in which they expect to find the enemy, they halt and await him. Closing up, they form three deep, the second rank ready to fill up the gaps in the first if succour be necessary, while the third, firm and compact, and composed of capital marksmen, forms an invincible reserve. Then commences a strange spectacle. The front rank begin to insult the lion, and even send a few balls into his hiding place tomake him come out: "Look at him who boasts of being the bravest of all, and yet dares not show himself before men! It is not he—it is not the lion—it is a cowardly thief, and may Allah curse him!" The animal sometimes comes while they are abusing him in this manner, and, looking round serenely on all sides, yawns and stretches himself, and appears perfectly insensible to what is passing around him.
One or two balls now hit him, upon which, magnificent in his audacity, he stalks forth and stands in front of the bush which sheltered him. Not a word is spoken. The lion roars, rolls his glaring eyes, draws back, crouches down, again rises up, and by the movements of his tail and body snaps off all the branches that surround him. The front rank discharge their pieces, whereupon the monster bounds forward, and generally falls dead beneath the fire of the second rank, who step forward and fill up the intervals left in the first. This is the critical moment, for the lion resigns the contest only when a ball has struck him in the head, or in the heart. It is no rare thing to see him continue the fight with ten or a dozen balls through his body. In other words, he is seldom overpowered until he has killed or wounded some of his foot assailants. The horsemen who accompany the expedition have nothing to do, so long as their foe does not quit the broken ground. Their part commences when, as occasionally happens, the men on foot have succeeded in driving out the lion upon a plateau, or into the plain. The combat then assumes a new aspect, full of interest and originality. Each horseman, according to his hardihood and agility, spurs on his horse at full speed, fires at the lion as at anordinary mark, at a short distance, and, wheeling his horse round the moment he has fired, gallops off to reload his piece before making a second assault. The lion, attacked on all sides and wounded at every moment, faces about in every direction, rushes forward, flees, returns, and falls, but only after a glorious struggle. His defeat, indeed, must inevitably terminate in his death, for against horsemen mounted on Arab horses success is impossible. He makes but three terrific bounds, after which his pace is by no means swift, and an ordinary horse will distance him without trouble. To form a just idea of such a combat, it is absolutely necessary to have witnessed one. Every horseman hurls an imprecation; there is a wild confusion of sounds, the burnouses fly out, the powder thunders, the hunters crowd together or scatter widely apart. The lion roars, the balls whistle, and the whole forms a scene of movement and animation. But notwithstanding all this tumult, accidents are very unusual. The hunters have little to fear, unless a fall from their horse throws them under the paw of their enemy, or—which is more frequent misadventure—they are hit by a friendly but ill-directed ball.
Such is the most picturesque, the most warlike aspect that lion-hunting assumes. Other measures, however, are sometimes adopted, both more sure and more speedily efficacious. The Arabs have observed that on the morrow after he has carried off and devoured sheep or oxen, the lion, suffering from a weak digestion, remains in his lair, fatigued, oppressed with sleep, and incapable of moving. When a place that is usually disquieted with roaring is undisturbed for a whole night, it maybe inferred that the formidable inhabitant who dwells therein is plunged in this state of lethargy. Upon this, a man of devoted courage, following the tracks that lead to the covert in which the monster is concealed, will go up to him, take a steady aim, and shoot him dead upon the spot with a ball between the two eyes. Kaddour-ben-Mohammed, of the Oulad-Messelem, a section of the Ounougha, is reputed to have killed several lions in this manner.
Recourse is likewise had to various forms of ambush. The Arabs sometimes excavate a hole in the path the lion usually takes, and cover it with thin woodwork, which the animal breaks by its weight and is caught in the trap. At other times they dig close to a dead body a hole covered by thick boards, between which a small opening is left to allow the barrel of a gun to pass through. In this hole, ormelebda, the hunter squats down, and when the lion approaches the body, he takes a careful aim and fires. Not unfrequently the lion, if he has not been struck down, throws himself on themelebda, shatters the barrier, and devours the hunter behind his demolished rampart. On other occasions, again, a single man will undertake an adventurous and heroic enterprise, recalling the feats of chivalry. Si-Mohammed-Esnoussi, a man of approved veracity, who inhabited the Djebel-Guerzoul, near Tiaret, thus describes his own mode of going to work:
"I used to mount a good horse and proceed to the forest on a bright moonlight night. In those days I was a capital shot, and my ball never fell to the ground. Then I began to cry aloud several times,Ould el ataïah!—'Daughter of a mother who yields herself up!'—Thelion would come forth, and direct his steps towards the spot whence issued the cry; and at that moment I fired at him. Occasionally the same thicket would contain several lions, who would issue forth all together. If one of these brutes approached me from behind, I would turn my head and fire at him over the back of my saddle, and then go off at full gallop in the fear that I might have missed him. If I was attacked in front, I wheeled my horse round and repeated the manœuvre."
The people of that district affirm that the number of lions killed by Mohammed-ben-Esnoussi amounted to nearly a hundred. This intrepid hunter was still alive in the year 1253 [A. D. 1836]. When I saw him, he had lost his eyesight. May he participate in the mercy of Allah!
A yet more dangerous sport than hunting the lion himself, is hunting a lion's cubs. There are individuals, however, adventurous enough to undertake even this hazardous enterprise. Every day, about three or four in the afternoon, the lion and lioness quit their lair to make a distant reconnaissance, with the object, no doubt, of procuring food for their litter. They may be seen upon the summit of an eminence, examining thedouars, and taking note of the smoke that issues from them, and of the position of the flocks. After uttering some horrible roars, an invaluable warning to the surrounding population, they again disappear. It is during this absence that the hunters cautiously make their way to the cubs and carry them off, taking care to gag them closely, for their cries would not fail to bring back the old ones, who would never forgive the outrage. After an exploit of this nature the entire neighbourhood isobliged to be doubly vigilant. For seven or eight days the lions rush about in all directions, roaring fearfully. The lion under such circumstances is a truly terrible monster. At such a time the eye must not encounter the eye.
The flesh of the lion, though sometimes eaten, is not good, but his skin is a valued gift, and presented only to Sultans and illustrious chiefs, and occasionally, to marabouts andzaouïas. The Arabs fancy that it is good to sleep upon one, as it drives away the demons, conjures up good fortune, and averts certain diseases. Lion's claws, mounted in silver, are used as ornaments by women; while the skin of his forehead is a talisman worn by some persons on their head to preserve the energy and audacity of their brain. In short, lion-hunting is held in high repute among the Arabs. Every combat with that animal may take the device:Kill or Die!He who kills him, eats him—says the proverb—and he who kills him not is eaten by him. In this spirit they bestow on any one who has killed a lion, this laconic and virile eulogy:Hadak houa—"that one is he!" A popular belief illustrates the grandeur of the part played by the lion in the life and imagination of the Arabs. When a lion roars, they pretend that they can readily distinguish the following words:Ahna ou ben-el mera—"I and the son of woman." Now, as he twice repeatsben-el mera, and only once saysahna, they conclude that he recognizes no superior save the son of woman.