JACKALS, ETC. 271 



them, they slink off to a short distance and await 

 his departure in order to resume their meal. They 

 vary greatly in appearance at different times of year. 

 During winter, when their coats are in best condition, 

 they are really handsome animals, and very young 

 cubs are always most fascinating in their innocent 

 playfulness. During the height of summer they 

 feel the heat greatly, and are always ready to avail 

 themselves of any opportunities of mitigating it 

 that may be provided by their environment. 



As a train rushes at mid-day along parts of 

 the line flanked by hollows, that are filled with 

 water during the rainy season and in which the 

 soil retains a certain amount of moisture and 

 coolness even in the hot weather, startled jackals 

 may be seen running up the slopes to sit panting 

 in the full blaze of the sunshine until it seems 

 safe to return to their shaded retreats ; and in 

 the evening, as the dusk sets in, whole troops 

 come streaming out and loiter on the banks until 

 sufficiently revived to set out on their nightly 

 rounds. 



A love for jackals may be a matter of idiosyn- 

 crasy, but no one can feel any animosity to the 

 common Indian foxes, Vulpes bengalensis, whose 

 small size and delicate colouring are so attractive, 

 and who so seldom give any good ground for 

 annoyance, owing to the fact that their ordinary 

 diet consists of rats, mice, small reptiles, and insects. 



