1889-90-] ^ District in tJie Himalayas. 293 



Gurhwal, the part nearest the plains. Bishop Heber says 

 that tigers make their way up to the snowy range, and other 

 writers have copied his statement. This is possible, but I 

 never heard of such a thing, and do not believe it occurs 

 oftener than once perhaps in a century. With regard to 

 leopards, the case is very different. They are common every- 

 where, and are great destroyers of dogs. In the plains of 

 India, every village swarms with dogs. In Gurhwal, village 

 dogs are rare, being generally soon eaten by leopards. Euro- 

 pean travellers in Gurhwal often bring up dogs with them 

 from the plains, but they are very apt to lose them. Some 

 day, generally some evening about dusk, when the dog is 

 running along, it may be only a few feet from his master, the 

 noise of a spring is heard, and a leopard is seen, but only for 

 one second ; the next, it disappears behind the bushes with 

 the dog in its mouth. Next to dogs, the favourite food of 

 leopards is monkeys. Another interesting animal, much 

 dreaded by the natives, but fortunately not very common, 

 is the wild dog {Cuon rutilans), differing from the true dog 

 somewhat in its dentition. This creature hunts in packs, like 

 the wolves of Siberia, but it does so normally, while they only 

 do it occasionally. Owing to the systematic way in which 

 a pack work together, the wild dog is dreaded by all other 

 animals. Once it has chosen its prey, escape is all but im- 

 possible. Fortunately it is rare. I have more than once 

 heard from natives about packs they had seen, but I have 

 never myself seen a wild dog. Jackals are common, but are 

 not dangerous, as they do not combine in packs. Wolves, 

 which are so common in the plains of India, are, curiously 

 enough, unknown, or at least exceedingly rare, in the hills. 

 Of Eodents, squirrels are common, especially the flying squirrel 

 {Pteromys inornatus). The marmot is common in lofty moun- 

 tains. I killed one at 16,000 feet. Mice, rats, and field-mice 

 are very common, and the curious tailless Lagomys Eoylei is 

 found, but is not common. The porcupine {Ilystrix lonyi- 

 cauda) is common. This animal is the pest of gardens. It 

 burrows under the enclosing walls, and, once in, makes short 

 work of all the vegetables growing inside. The beast itself 

 is good to eat. Porcupine flesh is very nice indeed, but beasts 

 of prey avoid an animal so protected by sharp spines. A 



