452 MamMatia OF INDIA. 
hair, and the male has a short stiff mane on the neck and withers. The 
hair is short, thick, and coarse.” 
Colonel Douglas Hamilton, writing to the late Brigadier-General 
McMaster, says: “I think Jerdon’s description is good, but I should 
call the saddles of the old males grizzled with white, and not pale 
reddish-brown. A real old ‘saddle-back’ has a white saddle and 
amost jet-black points. He makes a mistake about the length of the 
tail, 6 or 7 inches; it isnot more than 3 inches.” 
S1zE.—Height at shoulder, 41 to 42 inches. Jerdon gives 32 to 34, 
but he appears to have under-estimated the animal, unless it be a 
misprint for 42 and 44; although he questions Colonel W. Campbell’s 
measurements of length and height, the former of which does seem 
excessive (6 feet 5 inches, including tail, probably taken from a skin), 
but the latter, 42 inches, is corroborated by Colonel Hamilton and 
several others. 
The size of the horns is given by ees as occasionally 15 inches, 
rarely more than 12. Colonel Douglas Hamilton says, 9 mches in 
circumference and 15 to 15% or 15% in length is the average of a large 
horn. General McMaster writes, referring to the latter opinion: 
‘* Both he and I know of one 16 inches in length, shot by a well-known 
South {Indian sportsman of the Madras Civil Service, and in February 
1869 at Ootacamund, he and I measured the horn of a magnificent 
buck ibex, shot within 15 or 20 mules of that place. The exact 
measurements of this mighty horn were 17 inches in length, and 
9? in circumference at the base.” 
Jerdon states that this goat chiefly frequents the northern and western 
slopes of the Neilgherries, where the hills run down in a succession of 
steep stony slopes or rocky ridges to the high table-land of Mysore and 
the Wynaad, both of which districts are themselves hilly. It is occa- 
sionally seen on the summit of the northern and western faces, but 
more generally some distance down, at an elevation of 4000 to 6000 feet, 
and, if carefully looked for, the herd may be seen feeding on an open 
grassy glade at the foot of some precipice. ‘I have,” he adds, ‘‘seen above 
twenty individuals in a flock occasionally, but more generally not more 
than six or seven: With the large herds there is almost always one 
very large old male conspicuous by his nearly black colour.” 
Colonel D. Hamilton says he has seen 120 pass out of one valley, 
which he thinks were probably the aggregate of several herds, but he 
has counted sixty and sixty-five in a herd, and thirty-five in another, 
without a single adult buck amongst them. In the South of Lndia 
Observer for the 3rd and 17th of September, 1868, will be found most 
interesting descriptions of ibex-shooting by “ Hawkeye ” whose letters 
are largely quoted by McMaster ; but ‘T can only find space for one 
extract here, interesting to both sportsman and naturalist :— 
