54 MARKHOR SHOOTING 



got the rifle ready and had stones thrown into the cave. 

 No result. We did not proceed to extremities, as I was 

 not anxious to shoot her, for the youngsters would certainly 

 have died of starvation. Higher up the ridge we came to 

 a forest of birch and fir, with rocky places here and there 

 — ^just the spots for markhor, but we could not find a sign 

 of them. We went up higher, close to the snow-line, saw 

 nothing, and descended into the valley. A short distance 

 down we passed many places where markhor droppings lay 

 in heaps, but all of old date. 



Next day we were out again at five o'clock. Soon after 

 seven we sat down on the first spur, and searched the hill- 

 sides carefully, but saw nothing. My predecessor must 

 have frightened all the game farther up, for, though he 

 bagged nothing, he had had a good many shots. We now 

 changed our direction and toiled straight up till we 

 reached a ridge of flat slate rocks, four and a half hours 

 from starting. This was the greatest grind I yet had, 

 going straight up without a halt. When I got to the pine 

 forest I was thoroughly done. This seemed to me to be 

 quite over-doing the business; two days at least should 

 have been spent over the extent of ground we did this 

 morning. I saw traces of markhor now and then, but all 

 old, I was certain we had come too high ; this ground 

 must be their headquarters later on, in July perhaps, 

 when it gets very hot lower down. It was too cold for 

 them so high up just now : there was a good deal of snow 

 lying about still. All the places we visited were splendid 

 for markhor, and they must be numerous here at the 

 proper season. Mirza Khan was in the habit of hunting 

 them later in the year, when he had harvested his corn and 

 came up to the grassy slopes to graze his goats during the 

 rutting season (October). He had found them here then, 

 and so concluded they would be found in the same place 



