276 POLO 



pended to enable him to do so, and men are placed round the 

 ground with spare sticks to hand to any player who may have 

 broken his. The Munnipoories never attempt to 'dribble' a 

 ball, except perhaps for a stroke or two in order to get a fair 

 swipe at it or to get it out of a bully, but it is all hard hitting 

 and hard galloping from beginning to end. They greatly value 

 their ponies, some of which thoroughly enter into the spirit 

 of the game, following the ball of their own accord, hardly 

 needing any guidance, and the owner of a really good pony will 

 not part with it under any circumstances indeed, some years 

 ago a rajah of Munnipore invaded Cachar at the head of a large 

 army to recover a pony that the rajah of that country had 

 taken from him, and a Munnipoorie has even been known to 

 pawn his wife in order to purchase a pony on which to play the 

 game. In fact, polo is the one idea uppermost in the Munni- 

 poorean male mind, and professional players are highly paid for 

 their services. 



I am indebted to Major-General Sherer and the ' Field' for 

 the above notes, which I have had perforce to abridge con- 

 siderably. To the latter journal I owe the following interesting 

 description of the game, which I have transcribed literally : 



In striking the ball and using the stick Munnipoories are most 

 skilful ; some of their ordinary strokes are never attempted by 

 Europeans, and would seem almost impossible to a person who 

 had not seen them. It is this use of the stick that enables them 

 to give long odds to us, for in mere riding they are by no means 

 our masters. The ordinary strokes that they use may be said to 

 be six in number, three on the right hand and three on the left. 

 On the right-hand side they practise the ordinary strokes back- 

 wards and forwards, the blow being given, not from the wrist, but 

 from the shoulder with the whole force of the arm. Besides these 

 they have a two-handed stroke. When a player catches the ball 

 he puts his pony to a gallop in a line parallel with the goal, throws 

 the ball in the air, and hits it with the stick held in both hands, the 

 reins being thrown on the pony's neck. Munnipoories generally 

 succeed in this stroke, but it is seldom or never attempted by 

 Europeans indeed, it is difficult in an English saddle and without 

 a well-trained pony. On the left side the Munnipoories hit as 



