[This lesson, and the two following, are taken from the Adventures of Gerard the Lion Killer, translated from the French by Charles E. Whitehead. Gerard is an officer in the French army employed in Algeria, in North Africa, which is now a French province. Being a man of courage and an admirable marksman, he succeeded in killing a great number of lions, and thus acquired a high reputation both among his own countrymen and the natives of the country. Lions commit such ravages among their cattle that he who destroys one becomes a great benefactor to the public. Gerard's adventures have been recently published in Paris, where they have attracted much attention. They are written in a very spirited style, and his daring feats are modestly narrated.]

On the 4th of August, 1844, I received an invitation from the inhabitants of Mahou'na,* the lion's paradise, which I immediately accepted: on my arrival about sunset, I found the village surrounded by immense piles of light wood, arranged for the reception of the lion, that paid them nightly calls. I forbade their being kindled, and immediately selected the place I intended to occupy, in order to waylay him that very night, in case he should come as usual to prey on the herds.

Having by careful searching found the route by which the animal usually came, I took my seat directly in his path, in spite of the remonstrances of the Arabs. Finding me fixed in my purpose, they brought me mats and cushions; and a smoking repast was soon placed by the side of the couch that was to serve me for the night. My hosts remained with me till a late hour, telling many tragic stories of the strength and ferocity of the lion. As midnight approached, the party broke up, with many prayers for my success. I remained on the watch with a native corporal in the French service, named Saadi, whose brother was chief of this country. He was armed with a carbine, and I with a double barrelled rifle.

About one o'clock in the morning, my Arab friend, little accustomed to these night watches, pleaded guilty to being very sleepy, and stretched himself out behind me, where, to do him justice, he slept most soundly, I know many brave men who

* Mahouna is a place in the province of Guelma, in Algeria.

would not have done as much, while lying in wait for a lion. I had taken the precaution to have all the dogs tied up under the tents, so as to quiet their customary clamor; and now, in the dead silence around me, I could detect the faintest noise or motion.

Up to this time the heavens had been serene, and the moon clear; but soon clouds gathered in the west, and came scud

.ng past before a warm, sultry wind; and a little later the sky was all overcast, the moon disappeared, and the thunder rolled round us in heavy peals, announcing a coming tempest. Then the rain fell in torrents, and drenching my companion, he awoke, and we consulted for a moment about returning. But while we were talking, an Arab called out from the tents, "Beware! the lion will come with the storm."

This decided me to remain at my post, and I covered the locks of my gun with the skirts of my coat. Soon the rain ceased; flashes of lightning played round the distant horizon; and the moon, brighter than ever, came in and out from the fleecy clouds over our heads. I took advantage of every one of these brief moments of clear sky to survey the country about me, and to examine every clump of trees or fallen log and it was in one of these short luminous intervals that all of a sudden I thought I saw the lion. I waited breathless till the moon came out again. Yes, it was he! standing motionless only a few paces from the camp.

Accustomed to see fires lighted at every tent, to hear a hundred dogs barking in terror, and to see the men hurling lighted brands at him, he, without doubt, was at a loss to explain the rather suspicious silence that reigned around him.

While I was turning slowly round, in order to take better aim, without being seen by the animal, a cloud shut out the moon. I was seated with my left elbow on my knee, my rifle at my shoulder, watching by turns the lion, that I only recognized as a confused mass, and the passing cloud, the extent of which I anxiously contemplated.

At length it passed by; and the moonlight, dearer to me

than the most beautiful sunshine, illumined the scene, and again showed me the lion, still standing in the same place. I saw him the better because he was so much raised above me; and he loomed up proudly magnificent, standing as he was in majestic repose, with his head high in air, and his flowing mane undulating in the wind and falling to his knees. It was a black lion, of noble form and the largest size. As he presented his side to me, I aimed just behind his shoulder, and fired.

I heard a fierce roar of mingled pain and rage echoing up the hills with the report of my gun, and then from under the smoke I saw the lion bounding upon me.

Saadi, roused the second time that night from his slumbers, sprang to his gun, and was about to fire over my shoulder. With a motion of my arm I pushed aside the barrel of his gun, and when the beast, still roaring furiously, was within three steps of me, I fired my second barrel directly into his breast.

Before I could seize my companion's gun, the lion rolled at my feet, bathing them in the blood that gushed in torrents from his throat. He had fallen so near me that I could have touched him from where I stood.

In looking for my balls, I found the first one just behind the shoulder, where I had intended it to hit; but the second, that had been fired in haste, and almost at hazard, had given the mortal wound. From this moment I learned that it is not enough to aim correctly in order to kill a lion, and that it is a feat infinitely more serious than I had at first supposed.

It was a long while before the Arabs could believe that the lion was really dead, or venture into the presence of the fallen monarch of the forest. But when assured that their dread enemy, from whom they had suffered so much, could no longer harm them, they overwhelmed me with thanks and congratulations.

The men, with stately grace, kissed the hem of my garment, or my rifle that lay at my side, saying, "May God strengthen your arm and bless you."

The women kissed my hand, saying, "God bless the mother that bore you."

The mothers lifted up their children in their arms, that they might touch me and kiss me, saying, "Don't be afraid; he only harms the lion; he is our friend and brother."

I can say, with all sincerity, that there were no voices so sweet as those which named my mother's name, that asked me her age, and when I had left her, if I ever heard from her now when far away, if I wanted to see her, and if she were ever coming to their country; and that ended their questions by invoking a thousand blessings on her honored head.

The death of the lion had truly been a blessing, since it summoned up to my mind such pleasant remembrances of a far-away home, and of a mother whom I so dearly loved. No sweeter praise could have been bestowed; no greater triumph could have been won.

XXXIV. - HUBERT, THE TAME LION.

GERARD.

In the month of February, 1846, I found two lion's cubs in the forest, a male and a female. The former, to which I gave the name of Hubert, was a third larger than his sister; and his dignified deportment and gentle grace won all hearts at first sight. While the little lioness shunned all observation, and received the caresses showered upon her only with blows and scratches, Hubert stretched himself out on the hearth, and looked round with a quiet air of wonder, without the least apparent wildness.

When I rejoined the army, I took with me my two adopted children. The female soon departed this life, and went where the good lions go. Her early demise, in the bud of her youthful days, was owing to a difficulty in teething-a process of nature very dangerous to the leonine family, unaided as they are generally by suitable medical advice. But her brother

grew apace; and as day after day brought forth some new evidence of childish grace, he became beloved by all who knew him.

I write these lines with a chastened sorrow, to recall the many acts and infantile graces of my child Hubert, that will be a pleasant memory, not only to myself, but to the many comrades of his early days, whose lonely hours were enlivened by his quaint gambols and affectionate caresses.

When Hubert first joined the squadron, his name was entered on a little book as a second rate private of dragoons, awaiting promotion. Every thing he did of any moment was immediately recorded in this book, together with all his marches and campaigns.

As he grew older and stronger, he grew dangerous; and his excess of animal spirits betrayed him into many acts of mischief. In the spring of 1847, he was condemned to perpetual imprisonment; and I, his dearest friend, was charged with the execution of the sentence. Hubert soon found him

self the lonely tenant of an iron cage.

With the first days of his imprisonment, I would occasionally come to his cage in the evening to while away some of his lonely hours. As soon as the door was opened, he would bound joyously out; and then, after kissing each other in the tenderest manner, we would commence a game of hide-andseek. One evening, however, he embraced me so lovingly that I should have been crushed had not my comrades run to my aid, and with their scabbards relieved me from his formidable caresses. This was the last time that we indulged in this game together; and yet I can do my friend the justice to say that I never saw the least bad intent on his part, for whenever he was gambolling with me, or any other of his acquaintances, he always avoided using his teeth or claws; and his manners were ever most kind and affectionate.

In the autumn of 1847, it was determined that Hubert should be sent to Paris; and I was ordered to accompany him. The captain of the vessel that carried us across the Mediter