or circle of gunpowder, and having taken this precaution,
I anxiously waited the lions’ approach.
These dreadful animals, knowing, I presume, the force
of our troop, advanced very slowly, and with caution,
approaching on every side of us with an equal pace,
and growling in hideous concert, so as to resemble
an earthquake, or some similar convulsion of the world.
When they had at length advanced and steeped all their
paws in the tar, they put their noses to it, smelling
it as if it were blood, and daubed their great bushy
hair and whiskers with it equal to their paws.
At that very instant, when, in concert, they were
to give the mortal dart upon us, I discharged a pistol
at the train of gunpowder, which instantly exploded
on every side, made all the lions recoil in general
uproar, and take to flight with the utmost precipitation.
In an instant we could behold them scattered through
the woods at some distance, roaring in agony, and
moving about like so many Will-o’-the-Wisps,
their paws and faces all on fire from the tar and
the gun-powder. I then ordered a general pursuit:
we followed them on every side through the woods, their
own light serving as our guide, until, before the
rising of the sun, we followed into their fastnesses
and shot or otherwise destroyed every one of them,
and during the whole of our journey after we never
heard the roaring of a lion, nor did any wild beast
presume to make another attack upon our party, which
shows the excellence of immediate presence of mind,
and the terror inspired into the savage enemies by
a proper and well-timed proceeding.
We at length arrived on the confines of an immeasurable
desert—an immense plain, extending on every
side of us like an ocean. Not a tree, nor a shrub,
nor a blade of grass was to be seen, but all appeared
an extreme fine sand, mixed with gold-dust and little
sparkling pearls.
The gold-dust and pearls appeared to us of little
value, because we could have no expectation of returning
to England for a considerable time. We observed,
at a great distance, something like a smoke arising
just over the verge of the horizon, and looking with
our telescopes we perceived it to be a whirlwind tearing
up the sand and tossing it about in the heavens with
frightful impetuosity. I immediately ordered my
company to erect a mound around us of a great size,
which we did with astonishing labour and perseverance,
and then roofed it over with certain planks and timber,
which we had with us for the purpose. Our labour
was scarcely finished when the sand came rolling in
like the waves of the sea; ’twas a storm and
river of sand united. It continued to advance
in the same direction, without intermission, for three
days, and completely covered over the mound we had
erected, and buried us all within. The intense
heat of the place was intolerable; but guessing, by
the cessation of the noise, that the storm was passed,
we set about digging a passage to the light of day
again, which we effected in a very short time, and