CHONDO: A SAMBAR PARADISE 195 



seen to be impressed with thousands of hoof-tracks of the 

 big deer. On the more favourite spots almost every 

 handy tree-trunk stands red and frayed where the stags, 

 their horns itching to be clear of the drying " velvet," have 

 played sore havoc with the soft bark. In all directions 

 well-worn paths or "sambar ladders" lead plunging through 

 the copsewood down to the lower grounds. A particularly 

 irritating fly known as the Dhdns is responsible for this 

 migration that has filled the high ground with all these 

 traces ; for it renders the lower-lying forests almost unbear- 

 able to every living creature during the moonsoon season. 



With the exodus of this fly, however, which is synchron- 

 ous with the drying up of the jungle, the deer descend once 

 more to the level of the big lower valleys, and haunt the 

 more densely forested terraces that rise from them. Know- 

 ing this, it was not long ere our survey of the top of 

 Ch6ndo was completed, and we were on our way off the 

 hill. From its northern side three long steep spurs, 

 jutting out like great headlands, descend to the valley of 

 the Upper Sipna, and we chose the centre one of these as 

 our route. Pushing through a dense mass of bandhdr and 

 tiwas coppice, a long and almost precipitous grass slope 

 led us to the spur below, and we entered the higher 

 portion of the teak forests. To either side fell deep 

 ravines from which rose the sound of bird-life, and the 

 whoops of langicr monkeys as they made their way over 

 the treetops. Otherwise a deserted appearance pervaded 

 these higher gullies. The grass became longer : the carpet- 

 ing of dried and fallen teak leaves deeper and noisier under 

 foot. Thus we descended for about a thousand feet. 



The trees now thinned out and we found ourselves 

 approaching a steeper fall. Close to the left rose a shady 

 gtilar tree on the slope of yellow grass, and on approaching 

 it a sudden rush of heavy animals brought the rifle swiftly 

 to the " ready " as we ran hastily to the edge. Away to 

 the right a ponderous galloping was to be heard, as some 



