Game Animals of India, etc. 



is borne in mind, it is little wonder that, when religious 

 prejudices do not interfere, war to the death is waged 

 against them. 



Man is, however, by no means the only enemy 

 against whom the nilgai has to be on its guard. Tigers, 

 as in the instance quoted above, wound or kill a large 

 number, even of full-grown bulls, while the younger 

 members of the herd fall victims to the stealthy advance 

 of the leopard. Wild dogs, too, probably capture a 

 certain number, especially as they are more easy to run 

 down than are sambar and other large deer. 



It must not, however, be inferred from the last 

 statement that nilgai are by any means slow movers. 

 On the contrary, when they are found in country of a 

 sufficiently open nature to admit of their being ridden 

 down and speared, the heavy gallop of even an old bull 

 will call forth the best efforts of a good horse, while on 

 hard ground it is more than probable that a cow in 

 prime condition would get away from her pursuer. 

 However lightly esteemed at the present day, nilgai- 

 hunting (probably on horseback) was a favourite 

 sport of the Mogul emperors of India ; and, as 

 we learn from Bernier's account, it was practised by 

 Aurungzeb on his bi-annual progress between Delhi 

 and Kashmir. At that date the animals are stated to 

 have been extraordinarily abundant in certain parts of 

 the country. 



Although old bulls can never be depended upon, 

 and are always apt to make themselves disagreeable, 

 nilgai, if captured at a sufficiently early age, can be 

 readily tamed and broken to harness ; and if it were 

 worth while, and the animals were sufficiently abundant, 

 there is little doubt that they would make as useful 

 beasts of burden and draught as reindeer. 



Like most ruminants which inhabit open and sandy 

 districts, nilgai can exist with but a small supply of 

 water ; and it is probable that, in the cold season at 

 least, they drink only every second or third day, and 



170 



