THE CAME BIRDS OF INDIA. 531 



" with a whirr of wings, first one and then two other birds got 

 '• up, rocketed np into the air, and, turning, flew down towards 

 " us at a tremendous pace. A. had his bird down with a 

 " ripping shot, but I'm sorry to say I tinkered my first bird 

 " badly, though 1 somewhat retrieved the first shot with my 

 " second as I managed to swing round and get the other bird 

 ''just as she disappeared from sight. As I fired at this, a 

 '• fourth bird got up, but, frightened by our shots, went uphill 

 "and settled again within 100 yards, for though we could not 

 " see her, we heard her go down. 



" Picking up ouv two birds we went on up the ravine, but 

 "thoTiah the do2 feathered constantly we came on no other 

 " bird until we had gone some distance, when we picked up 

 " the scent of the fourth bird, which, on alighting, had evidently 

 " scurried ofi' uphill on foot as fast as she could. The dogs 

 " were after her, however, hot foot, and just as they reached 

 " the crest of the hill, up flew the bird and hurtled down over 

 ■' our heads, biit out of shot. We had not, however, done with 

 "the ravine, for as we got nearly up to the higher end the dogs 

 " shewed there was more business afoot, and after a few 

 "minutes' work amongst the rocks, which here were large and 

 " numerous, drove out another two birds, one of which found 

 " its way within a straight shot from my gun, and the other of 

 " which escaped xV. in between the treetops out of sight of 

 " where he was standing. 



" Leaving the ravine, we proceeded to our next beat, this 

 " time a hillside covered with the same forest as that we had 

 " left, but with the ground much more precipitous and very 

 "rocky. According to our guide, the birds were probably 

 " about half-way up the hill, so we made our plans accordingly. 

 " With dogs the prohahiliUi was that the birds would rise 

 "quickly and fly straight down, without dogs the certainty 

 " would have been that the birds would have run uphill until 

 " they had topped the crest. We, therefore, worked round the 

 " lower part of the hill, A. taking the bottom and I keeping 

 " about 100 feet above him, whilst Jowala and one of thedog& 

 " started in about the same distance above me. We had near- 

 " ly finished the hill, and I had given up all hope of any bird, 

 " when without any notice from the dogs who had worked 

 " well up the hill after somethhi fj for nearly 200 yards back, five 

 " birds got up together, and came spinning down past us, giv- 

 " ing us beautiful shots within easy range. In my eagerness, 

 " however, I stepped forward too quickly on a rolling stone, 

 " and sitting down with a most emphatic bamp emptied both 

 " barrels into the air without a feather falling in response 

 "thereto. A., more fortunate, kept both head and feet, and 



