CHAPTER IX. 



A Punjabi shikari — Mahomet's strategy — Nurpoor —The Salt Revenue 

 officer — A salt neighbourhood — After the oorial — Loading the 

 camels — A farcical comedy in three acts — The ayah's courage of 

 despair — A "bobbery" beast — Lilla railway station — "Merry 

 Christmas, sare " — Platelayer sahib — The fatted calf — A funny rail- 

 way story of a mid-day pill— Lahore— The Maharaja of Kuparthala 

 — Sir Dennis Fitzpatrick — The Lahore "week" — Polo — The 

 Maharaja of Putiala's team — Our camel carriage — Hunting the boar 

 — Coursing with cheetahs — Amritza — The Golden Temple — A native 

 carpet factory — Delhi — The fort — The Pearl Mosque — The Jumma 

 Musjid. 



The Punjabi sliikari, Nur Mahomet by name, arrived 

 last night. He seems an intelligent man. and, like all 

 his kind, was amply supplied with "chits." Alan went 

 out with him after breakfast, accompanied by Rahman, 

 who is curious to learn Mahomet's system of shikar. 



They were not long before they saw a herd of oorial 

 grazing about a mile off. Two or three does were as 

 usual on sentry, and as usual also, saw them as soon as 

 they were seen themselves. The herd, again as usual, 

 began to move away, when Mahomet's strategy came into 

 play. Seizing his stick with both hands, he commenced 

 to thresh the bushes as if he were cutting wood ; occasion- 



