Some Hundreds Of Them Stopped
The First Passing Train By Throwing Themselves On
The Rails In Front Of The Engine, And Then,
Swarming On To The Trucks And Throwing In
Their Possessions Anyhow, They Fled From The
Accursed Spot.
After this the railway works were completely
stopped; and for the next three weeks practically
nothing was done but build "lion-proof" huts for
those workmen who had had sufficient courage
to remain.
It was a strange and amusing sight
to see these shelters perched on the top of
water-tanks, roofs and girders - anywhere for
safety - while some even went so far as to dig pits
inside their tents, into which they descended at
night, covering the top over with heavy logs of
wood. Every good-sized tree in the camp had
as many beds lashed on to it as its branches
would bear - and sometimes more. I remember
that one night when the camp was attacked,
so many men swarmed on to one particular tree
that down it came with a crash, hurling its
terror-stricken load of shrieking coolies close to
the very lions they were trying to avoid. Fortunately
for them, a victim had already been
secured, and the brutes were too busy devouring
him to pay attention to anything else.
CHAPTER VII
THE DISTRICT OFFICER'S NARROW ESCAPE
Some little time before the flight of the
workmen, I had written to Mr. Whitehead, the
District Officer, asking him to come up and assist
me in my campaign against the lions, and to
bring with him any of his askaris (native soldiers)
that he could spare.
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