His aim was true, the whole forepart of his body landed
on the shelf and he hung there. Then he slipped.
We distinctly heard his claws scrape the hard, smooth
rock. He fell, turning a somersault, struck twenty
feet below on the rough slant, bounded from that to
fall down, striking suddenly and then to roll, a yellow
wheel that lodged behind a rock and stretched out
to move no more.
The hounds were silent; Jim and I were silent; a few
little stones rattled, then were still. The dead
silence of the canyon seemed to pay tribute to the
lion’s unquenchable spirit and to the freedom
he had earned to the last.
How long Jim and I sat there we never knew. The
second tragedy, not so pitiful but as heart sickening
as the first, crushed our spirits.
“Shore he was a game lion,” said Jim.
“An’ I’ll have to get his skin.”
“I’m all in, Jim. I couldn’t
climb out of that hole.” I said.
“You needn’t. Rest a little, take
a good drink an’ leave your canteen here for
me; then get your things back there on the trail an’
climb out. We’re not far from West Point.
I’ll go back after the first lion’s skin
an’ then climb straight up. You lead my
horse to the point where you came off the rim.”
He clattered along the gorge knocking the stones and
started down. I watched him letting himself over
the end of the huge slabs until he passed out of my
sight. A good, long drink revived me and I began
the ascent.
From that moment on time did not matter to me.
I forgot all about it. I felt only my leaden
feet and my laboring chest and dripping skin.
I did not even notice the additional weight of my rifle
and camera though they must have overburdened me.
I kept my eyes on the lion runway and plunged away
with short steps. To look at these towering walls
would have been to surrender.
At last, stumbling, bursting, sick, I gained the rim
and had to rest before I could mount. When I
did get into the saddle I almost fell from it.
Jones and Emett were waiting for me at the promontory
where I had tied my horse, and were soon acquainted
with the particulars of my adventure, and that Jim
would probably not get out for hours. We made
tracks for camp, and never did a place rouse in me
such a sense of gratefulness. Emett got dinner
and left on the fire a kettle of potato stew for Jim.
It was almost dark when that worthy came riding into
camp. We never said a word as he threw the two
lion skins on the ground.
“Fellows, you shore have missed the wind-up!”
he exclaimed.
We all looked at him and he looked at us.
“Was there any more?” I asked weakly.
