MY FIRST STALK i8i 



tion to kiangs and nyans at close quarters. The boy with 

 me, however, was not beaten. I understood him to mean 

 that the game had crossed over to a valley, and he proposed 

 to follow them ; so we bent our backs for the sky-line 

 again, the noonday sun punishing me most unmercifully. 

 We saw the nyan again, far down below us, going in as 

 leisurely a fashion as usual, four a good distance ahead, 

 and the other three lagging behind. The flock had 

 evidently separated : the first four were making for 

 some distant place of safety, while the three laggards 

 showed signs of soon lying up. So I had something 

 to eat, and resumed the hunt. The three were now 

 out of sight, having entered one of the numerous side 

 nalas on the left of the main valley ; the other four, still 

 travelling easily, were now about two miles off. Getting 

 off the hillside into the bed of the dry watercourse at the 

 bottom, we proceeded downwards very slowly and with 

 great caution. We passed many side valleys on the left — 

 regular pockets — opening into the main line of drainage, 

 and were always disappointed when we peeped cautiously 

 in and found each one empty. This sustained suspense, 

 with the sun pouring into the close valley, was beginning 

 to tell on me, when the boy, who was picking out the way, 

 two paces in front, dropped as if he had been shot. He 

 was a born stalker ; he had got a glimpse of one nyan in 

 one of the small valleys on the hillside. He dropped so 

 quickly that the animal did not see him, though he was on 

 the hill above us. We drew back, went up the back of 

 the hill, and within ten minutes of sighting him I was in 

 position. 



When I looked over, only one sheep was to be seen. 

 The distance was certainly over 150 yards when I fired 

 at the sitting nyan, but the bullet struck over him, though 

 the hundred yards sight was used. The sheep bolted away 



