TITE INDIAN BISON. 303 



during the day. Under a burning sun one has no appetite for dry 

 f'ed like cold vensiou or a tough fowl. Biscuits are au abomina- 

 tion. Cold bison tongue is juicy and good, so are tinned sausages 

 ^ud sheep's tongue. Preserved green ginger isagreat pick-me-up, 

 mtd I always take some with me. Pickled white onions are also a 

 stand-by. These will be canned in a large leather bag which will 

 also hold yeur skinning knives, tobacco, reserve of cartridges and 

 a.uy other little things you may fancy you want. Never carry a knife 

 en your foelt^ it is quite useless. I always carry my field glasses on 

 my belt -and not slung over the shoulder. They are then always at 

 fcand, and yoa can drop them back into their case in a moment, 

 Half-a-doEeu cartridgres on the belt, and as many more in your pocket 

 will be enough. A reserve of another dozen should be in the bag. 

 Thus accoutred you will sally forth on horseback, accompanied by half- 

 a-dozen men, of whom twe will carry the water, one your bag, one 

 the camera aud two yeur battery. You will first have a look at the 

 water hole near your camp (for you always camp near water), and if 

 there are no tracks there, you will leisurely proceed through the 

 jungle to the next water, which is perhaps several miles off. One 

 man, carrying your Express rifle ready loaded, will walk immediately 

 in front of youT horse, the others behind. You may very likely 

 ^)ut up or sight a stag or four-horned antelope, and can at once 

 dismount aud fire, or take a shot, which is generally unsuccessful, 

 from horseback. As you proceed you keep a sharp look -out for 

 <Heer and for tracks, and are often disappointed by fiuding what at 

 first sight appear to be fresh tracks turn cut to be a day teo eld. 

 You may wander about in this way all day and see neither hoof 

 nor horn or animal >of any description. The jungle man with subtle 

 flattery will account for this by telling you that having heard your 

 Honour's name they have fled. On other days you will see stags that 

 have shed their horns or small parcels of hinds, or get on the tracks 

 <of a herd that after hours of tracking you get up to only to fiud 

 that there is no head worth shooting in the herd ; but at last the 

 fresh print of a gigantic solitary bull will gladden your eyes, and 

 in that case, if it is net too late in the day to come up with him, it 

 is your own fault if you do not bringhim to book. With a little practice 

 the track of the day is easily distinguishable from the track of 

 the day before. Where the ground is bare it is as hard as iron, but 

 there is always a layer of dust on it which takes a clear impression of 

 the foot; in the middle there is a slight ridge of dust pinched up 



