THE JUNGLES OF SOUTHERN INDIA 143 



appeared and beckoned me forward. I wormed my way 

 to him and followed a short distance ventre a terre. He 

 pointed in front. I could see a tree about twenty-five 

 yards ahead, with a crown of fair size, but nothing else 

 from my position. I moved slightly to the right, and there 

 burst on my vision the sight of a fine old bull standing at 

 an angle towards me, swdshing the flies off with his tail. 

 My position was not a good one for the shoulder shot, but 

 a very short move still further to the right would be suffi- 

 cient, and I proceeded to execute the movement without 

 further reference to the shikari. I attained the desired 

 position and slowly drew up the heavy rifle and sighted on 

 the bull. As I was about to press the trigger the barrels 

 of the rifle were struck violently upwards and a man leapt 

 up at my side and shouted. A startled snort from the bison, 

 followed by a rattle of stones and thud of heavy hooves, 

 and the animal disappeared over the top of the rise and 

 could be heard stampeding down the other side. I turned 

 round furiously. There stood the shikari, almost white 

 through his dusky skin and shaking like an aspen leaf. His 

 was the form that had leapt up beside me, and it was his 

 arm that had struck up the rifle. I had quite a lot to say 

 to him in the heat of the moment, and said it pretty forcibly ; 

 but as I coul^ not speak his language I got no satisfaction 

 at the time, nor at the subsequent enquiry which my friend 

 conducted in my presence. I never had another instance 

 of the kind. 



It was sufficiently evident that the man lost his nerve 

 at the last moment, and we had to leave it at that. But 

 it was a maddening contretemps. The five-hour tramp 

 back was a bad one, and I had not the heart to fire at either 

 of the two very fine sambhar stags we ran into on the way 

 home — one of them the finest head I ever saw in Madras. 



This is a long digression from my day with Anacondu, 

 but it may be useful as a possible experience for others. 



The day in question was typical of others enjoyed in the 

 Southern Presidency. 



We made the usual early start, i.e. middle of the night, 

 2.30 a.m., which, often as I did it, I never could be got to 

 face with any enthusiasm. 



Within a few hundred yards of the little forest rest-house 

 we had just quitted, we were floundering in the miry 

 morass of the high forest and had started on our rough 



