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above 50 years ; will, I fear, before another century passes away, 

 be applicable to Southern India ; for it is rapidly disappearing before 

 the progress of civilization and agriculture. This perhaps should 

 not be regretted, but one may be permitted to hope that, before the 

 bison disappears from our forests it may be domesticated. This 

 however seems most improbable for, as Jerdon says, all attempts 

 hitherto made to rear the young gaur have failed, the animal never 

 living over the third year. The reason of this probably is, that it is 

 almost impossible to provide the captive with a fit substitute for the 

 cool, damp and shady cover afforded by the deep forest, dense clumps 

 of bamboo and long grass in which it loves to dwell when free. 



Although, like Jerdon, page 304, I have known instances where 

 bison have been killed at above 6,000 feet of elevation ; I fancy 

 that, could they find cover deep and secluded enough to suit them, 

 they would be as comfortable on the plains as on hilly ground. 



Mighty as is this magnificent animal and headlong as is his rush 

 when he crashes through forest after being alarmed he can, like 

 all other wild creatures, creep very silently through cover when he 

 pleases. I was one of a party of, I think, seven brother officers 

 who were posted at the edge of a wood, into which beaters had 

 been turned. The instant the drive commenced, a solitary bull 

 bison made his way silently past three of us, of whom, to my shame 

 be it said, I was the first, before he was discovered. Then and on 

 being wounded, he broke through the forest with a most startling 

 crash, bearing down in his agony all obstacles as if they were grass ; 

 amongst others, sweeping low, in his blind and furious rush, a couple 

 of stout saplings, each thicker than a man's arm and high in pro- 

 portion, of the strong, close-grained and heavy " saul" tree, 

 " shorea robusta" is, I believe, the scientific name ; literally, as 

 we could see from the marks of his blood on the stems, by running 

 them down. We afterwards found that he must have remained 

 for some time watching me from a thick clump of bamboos within 

 a few yards, 20 at most, of the spot where I was standing. I then 

 remembered that, just as the beat commenced, I had heard some 

 animal in these bamboos, but as I thought from the snort it gave, 

 it was only some wild pig, I did not even look towards them, as 

 I was eagerly watching the hill-side for more important game- 



