illE INDIAN BISON, 301 



being fired at without charging 1 . Bison generally lie down about 

 10 a.m., but sometimes they do not appear to lie down at all, 

 especially if the day is cloudy. I have seen them grazing at all 

 hours of the day. I have found them at water in the morning, 

 middle of the day, and afternoon ; though they usually drink in the 

 evening or early morning, I have tracked both herds and solitary bulls 

 from early morning, and only came up to them late in the afternoon 

 and found they bad never lain down, though this is not common. 

 There is nothing that teaches you the habits of animals better than 

 wandering through the jungles stalking. If you keep your eyes open, 

 you get a good knowledge of the favourite haunts of tigers, panthers 

 and bears, which you can turn to good account in future years ; but 

 when stalking, I think it is advisable to stick to it. If you are after 

 tigers leave stalking, except perhaps an occasional day, alone. 

 Moreover, in the extensive jungles which bison love, although there 

 are plenty of game killing tigers, &c., they are more difficult to come 

 to terms with, than the cattle killers on the borders of cultivation, 

 where you will not find bison. One of the charms of bison stalking is 

 that you frequently come across sambur, cheetul and in the sal forests 

 swamp deer and occasionally larger game, and can without detriment 

 to your sport fire at anything you feel inclined to. In my opinion a 

 bison is not disturbed by a shot unless fired within half a mile of him, 

 and if he is alarmed by a distant shot, he does not go very far. In the 

 hot weather most of the stags have shed their horns, but a small 

 number sti 11 carry their heads. When tracking bison I always fire at a 

 good stag, if I come across one. The small four-horned antelope you 

 can also knock over, and keep yourself pretty well supplied with fresh 

 meat. It is good practice to shoot them running. Bears are often 

 seen in the early morning and in the evening among the bison hills. 

 I have shot more than a half-a-dozen when stalking ; once I bagged a 

 tiger, and have seen others, and have also had shots at panther. Pig 

 and neilgai you will also see, but it is no use firing at them. The 

 ground is generally quite unrideable. You cannot afford to run the 

 risk of laming your horse, I once speared an old boar the same morn- 

 ing I shot a bison, but he got away into a steep ravine on the edge of 

 which I speared him. In the sal forests bison and buffalo are found 

 on the same ground. I have shot both on the same day. Such red 

 letter days are few and far between, and there are many blank days on 

 which you see nothing. I have been ten days out from morning to 

 night without a shot, although I might have had two or throe shots 



