the bullocks, not very far
apart, one of them quite dead, the other gazing up appealingly in the
faces of those who approached him, and ready to salute them with a
piteous bellow.

"Poor brute," said the doctor, taking a revolver from his belt, and
walking close up to the wounded bullock, he placed the muzzle right in
the centre of its forehead as the poor beast raised its head feebly, and
fired.

"Oh!" ejaculated the boys, as if with one breath, and while the poor
animal's head was beginning to subside back to the blood-stained grass
upon which it had lain the doctor fired again, and the mutilated animal
sank back motionless with a deep, heavy sigh.

"An act of mercy," said the doctor quietly.

"Yes," said Sir James gravely. "It seems cruel, boys, but it would have
been far worse to have left him there to be tortured by the flies and
attacked by vultures and hyaenas."

By this time Buck Denham had come up, and while the two boys were still
mentally hesitating as to the mercy of the act, which seemed terribly
repellent, he said, "That's right, boss. I just ketched sight of a
couple of those owry birds coming along, and if it hadn't been for the
trees they would have been at work before now. I'd bet a pipe of
tobacco that a pack of those laughing beauties the hyaenas are following
the crows and will be hard at work as soon as we are on the trek."

Farther in the forest Mak soon found the body of the other lion, which
had left its trail as it crawled away to die; but it was still warm, and
had hardly had time to stiffen, looking still so life-like with its
unglazed eyes that it was approached rather nervously, every rifle in
the party being directed at the huge brute. But no trigger was drawn,
for proof was given at once of its power to do mischief having lapsed by
the action of the black, who leaped upon it with a shout and indulged
himself with a sort of dance of triumph.

"Here, you come off," cried Buck. "Spoor. Spoor."

The black nodded, and stooping low he began to quarter the ground and
point out footprint after footprint, till the driver gave it as his
opinion that they had been attacked by quite a large party of the savage
beasts.

"You see, gen'lemen, there's the big pads and some about half the size.
I should say that there was a couple of families been scenting my
bullocks. Seems to me like two lionesses and their half-grown cubs."

"But the two big lions?" said Mark eagerly.

"Oh, I wasn