CHONDO: A SAMBAR PARADISE 197 



lowered lids at the grandeur of the wild surroundings, 

 down the forest-arched vista of the shingly river, or away 

 to the distant amphitheatre of lonely hills, and to lend 

 one's self a willing captive to the thrall of mother Nature 

 that was surely a luxury unknown to unhappy mortals 

 'mid the " madding crowd " ! No kind of trouble could find 

 one here. Those petty trivialities, such powerful factors in 

 the outer and bustling world, would fall from one's mind at 

 one glimpse of those glorious solitudes. The man vainly 

 seeking repose from carking care would surely find it here. 

 The great solemn woods impress one with the feeling that 

 one's petty human frettings are all too small. They imbue 

 one with a leaning towards fatalism. 



All very "improving" thoughts no doubt but the 

 cheroot has come to an end, and my Korku friends are 

 hinting at making a move. This lotus-eating must come 

 to an end, and man, driven impelled by one or another 

 of his irresistible impulses, must be up and doing. 



Not knowing the ground himself, the sportsman must 

 needs place himself and his fortunes in the hands of what 

 local talent he may find ; so to-day I found myself 

 trudging along behind a little black Korku, who, axe on 

 shoulder, brushed his way through the yellow grass 

 towards the base of the cliff-encircled bluffs lying back 

 from the river. And soon enough it became evident that 

 the little man knew what he was about. Our narrow path 

 shortly gave way to some open glades in the denser teak 

 jungle, where the feathery foliage of a lot of aola trees 

 (Emblica officinalis) shaded the ground, laden with heavy 

 crops of their acid berries ; and the surrounding grass was 

 seen to be trampled almost away by the sambar which 

 visited them during their nocturnal wanderings. 



In many places the trampled and dusty earth gave 

 witness of this spot being the chosen arena of the trucu- 

 lent stags, and all the saplings round about had been 

 frayed to pieces by their horns. A short distance away a 



