Hunting in Many Lands 



true that I have done all my shooting with a 

 .44 caliber Winchester carbine, which was en- 

 tirely too light for the purpose. 



The yak is not a dangerous animal except 

 in the case of a solitary bull, which will some- 

 times charge a few yards at a time, till he falls 

 dead at the hunter's feet, riddled with bullets. 

 When in large bands yaks run at the first shot, 

 rushing down ravines, through snow banks and 

 across rivers, without a moment's hesitation, in 

 a wild stampede. 



Mongol and Tibetan hunters say that one 

 must never shoot at a solitary yak whose horns 

 have a backward curve, as he will certainly 

 prove dangerous when wounded ; but the same 

 beast may be shot at with impunity if in a 

 band. In fact, the natives never shoot at 

 yaks except when in a good-sized bunch. Na- 

 tives usually hunt them by twos and threes, 

 and, after stalking to within a hundred yards 

 or even less, they all blaze away at the same 

 time. 



The number of yaks on the plateaus north 

 of Tibet is very considerable, but there are no 

 such herds as were seen of buffaloes on our 

 plains until within a few years. I have never 

 seen over 300 in a herd, but Col. Prjevalsky 



266 



