26 THE FRONTIER DISTRICT OF ASTOR 



these insects are liveliest. In the morning and evening, 

 when the cold impairs their activity, the markhor is not loth 

 to take advantage of the opportunity. The old bucks are 

 decidedly lazy, and if a flock be watched, a decided stiffness 

 and slowness of movement will soon discover the seniors. 

 The younger bucks are full of life and play, quick in their 

 movements, and have a set-to after every dozen mouthfuls 

 of grass ; the elders are always feeding or resting. The 

 native shikaris say the old bucks keep these youngsters 

 with them for the sake of their keener sense of sight and 

 smell ; they are quicker to detect danger, and so warn 

 their seniors. 



The ibex {Gapra sihirica) is called Kll in Astor {Kd in 

 Kashmir), hil mdzdro and kil ai for male and female. He 

 is much more plentiful and more easily found, stalked, and 

 shot than the markhor. Sterndale's description of him is 

 as follows : — 



" General colour light brownish, with a dark stripe down 

 the back in summer, dirty yellowish-white in winter ; the 

 beard, which is from six to eight inches long, is black ; 

 the horns, which are like the European ibex, are long and 

 scimitar-shaped, curving over the neck, flattened at the 

 sides, and strongly ridged in front; from forty to fifty 

 inches in length. Under the hair, which is about two 

 inches long, is a soft down, which is highly prized for the 

 manufacturer of the fine soft cloth called Mse. Size, 

 height at shoulder, about 44 inches (11 hands)." 



The ibex is not the ungainly animal I have styled 

 the markhor. He is lord of the mountain-tops, and looks 

 every inch the monarch of all he surveys. But I must 

 protest against the caricature of this animal at page 445 

 in Sterndale's book. The head shows none of the massive- 

 ness of the living animal ; and where, oh, where is the 

 beard " from six to eight inches long " ? As for the legs 



