Genesis - 'Our Police Superintendent, Mr Ryall, decided to wait up for the lion, and invited two friends to share his vigil: and so the three: Ryall, an Austrian named Huebner and an Italian, Parenti, set off for Kima determined to account for the man-eater. They were comfortably settled in Mr Ryall's inspection carriage, and had it shunted on to the siding - there to wait and watch through the darkness.

This was the story related to me by one of the two who got through that night of terror:- Ryall suggested they should watch in turns, and they agreed. Huebner stowed himself away on the top bunk, as his was to be the last watch, while Parenti, wrapped in his blankets, lay on the floor of the carriage. Ryall, with his rifle across his knee sat in a chair by the open window, the end door of the carriage being also open. Just as he was dropping to sleep, Parenti heard Ryall remark that a couple of rats were playing about in the dark, as he could see their eyes shining. Next came a tremendous commotion, and on attempting to rise, Parenti found himself pinned to the floor, and was nearly suffocated by a great weight on his chest. A second later there was the lion's sinister growl, and the bulky Huebner rolled off the bunk on top of the beast, thus adding his weight to the smothering Parenti beneath - but only for a moment as Huebner took refuge in the servant's compartment. Parenti was desperately striving to push upwards and actually placed his hands on the soft underside of the lion as it stood on him, the warmth of the beast and the awful smell dazed him for a while and when he next succeeded in looking up he saw that the carriage door had slid to shutting him in and the lion was disappearing through the window, dragging Ryall with him.

Parenti now tried to get into the servants' compartment but the door was securely bolted and Huebner refused to open then in his excitement, Parenti jumped through the open window and made for the station calling out to the Indian Babu to come out and fetch a lantern, but naturally everybody in the station was badly scared and it was some little time before a search party started to nervously hunt around among the bush. The dimly burning lantern evidently unsettled the lion for close by they found the body of poor Ryall, badly mauled. Had Parenti not insisted on the search, no trace would ever have been found of the lion's victim; as it was, the body was reverently laid to rest in the Nairobi cemetery.

Playne - Local Agent for Max Klein in Mombasa. Their Head Offices were in Marseilles and New York

Gazette - 7/4/15 - Liable for Jury service, Mombasa - Cav. A. Parenti, Max Klein

North - Trader & Italian Vice-Consul at Mombasa, brought first mules from Ethiopia to BEA 1898; arr. Entebbe from Kisumu representing the Italian Trading Co. 28/2/1903; arr. Mombasa from Uganda 20/4/1903; sold out business to Max Klein & Co of Marseille to remain manager at Mombasa July 1904

EAHB 1904 - Mombasa & Kilindini Residents - Parenti, A. - Vasco da Gama Street

EAHB 1907 - A. Parenti - Mombasa (Max Klein & Co)

EAHB 1905 - Max Klein & Co., Mombasa

Max Klein. Brought first mules into EA from Ethiopia, and was famous for being in the Railway carriage with Capt. Ryall when a lion dragged Ryall's body away, as related in the 'Man-Eaters of Tsavo'