CHAPTER XII. 



A panther ride — A visit to the Ranees — Suttee — Colonel Eraser's inspec- 

 tion tour — His camp — Neilghai — A panther — A pretty camp — 

 Sketching a " rut " — Jey Singh's anxiety about an elephant — The 

 rains— A demoralised camp — Hunting cheetahs and lynxes — Good- 

 bye to the little Raja — En route for Jeypore— A Prime Minister en 

 deshabille — A model town — Jeypore metal workers — The manufac- 

 ture of " old " arms — Zafir — A simple old Brahman — A most 

 superior person — Brahman hospitality — The palace — The public 

 gardens — The museum — The old palaces at Amber — 'Arry on an 

 elephant — Pig-sticking in excelsis. 



In the afternoon we went to the Maidan to ride two 

 more panthers they have trapped. The first panther was 

 not very big, but wonderfully agile, and went off at a 

 great pace, with tremendous bounds. They had to ride 

 hard to catch him up, and then he kept crouching and 

 springing from side to side. At last Yar Singh touched 

 him lightly, then, just as the panther had given a 

 tremendous bound forward, Alan raced up, and drove his 

 spear right through its body, the bamboo of the shaft 

 breaking in two as the panther turned round, trying to 

 get at the horse. 



Yar Singh again speared it and pinned it to the 

 ground, but the panther, seizing the lance with its teeth, 

 bit it clean in two. After this he crouched in some 



