152 



" as I moved, attracted the notice of the ibex, and suddenly he looked 

 " back and up towards me. He was not more than eighty or ninety 

 " yards below, I leaned against the rock, my shikar dress blend- 

 " ing with the dark-grey of the stone and burnt up grass so com- 

 " pletely as to deceive even my lynx-eyed prey. Long, long he 

 " looked, till my very knees trembled with anxiety. At last the 

 " turned his head, but I knew better than to move, being sure he 

 " would have another look. He did so, and it proved to be his last, 

 " for when he again turned his head away, I quietly subsided and 

 " in another moment the buck died on his rocky bed. On many 

 " other occasions the advantage of a suitable dress has been fully 

 " proved. A neutral tint is preferable, as blending better with 

 " surrounding objects ; the color of withered heather is perhaps 

 " the best. 



" On the higher ranges of the Annamullays, ibex are, I am in- 

 " formed, very numerous ; herds of hundreds sometimes being seen. 

 " Colonel Hamilton, hi his report on those mountains, describes 

 " how the native tribes on those regions drive the animals through 

 " the numerous passes they frequent, and by erecting barriers with 

 '* open passages here and there, catch a great many in nooses 

 " made of the ground rattan, placed in the openings. It is difficult to 

 " believe what Jerdon states regarding the ibex found near Cochin ; 

 " their familiarity and tameness as he describes, (vide page 290, 

 " Jerdon's Mammals of India) at the temple being so utterly opposed 

 " to their habits as observed by sportsmen ; nevertheless it is or was 

 " a fact, for I remember well, hearing Colonel Frederick Cotton cor- 

 " roborate what Jerdon now says about the animals frequenting 

 " the church referred to, for he (Colonel Cotton) found one on his 

 " visit to that locality actually reposing within the porch of the 

 " building. Here, so impatient are they of the presence of their 

 " enemy man that the very faintest taint in the air will send them 

 " headlong down the steep slopes of the mountain, seeking refuge and 

 " safety in precipitate flight. Although so wary in their habits, 

 " these animals are at times not so difficult to stalk as the samber ; 

 " with the wind favorable, they can usually be easily approached 

 " from above as already described. Their conduct also when sud- 

 " denly alarmed by the crack of a rifle is curious. Instead of a speedy 



