IV OPINIONS OF THE PRESS. 



to be of a piece with the "fortuna populi Bomani " — that success which 

 attends on the old Roman virtues. His first lessons were taken under one 

 " Walter," of whose memory (" for my friend sleeps his last under the 

 shade of a giant forest-tree") the "Old Shekarry" always speaks with 

 the deepest reverence. He was " well known as the most fearless hunter 

 and unerring shot in a country pre-eminent for the excellence of its sports- 

 men." The first chapter contains the account of a day's deer-stalking 

 under his guidance ; the second, an admirable description of a hog-chase, 

 in which, after all the rest of the field were tailed off, the author contends 



for the honour of the spear with N , a celebrated hog-hunter. " Another 



moment and the point of my spear was among his bristles ; a touch of the 

 heel, a lift of the bridle, a Chifney rush, and the victory was won." The 



boar, however, charges, and missing his mark, rolls over N and his 



horse. After hurrying to the rescue, and despatching the " tusker," our 

 hero returns to his friend. The scene which follows deserves to be 

 quoted : 



" I found him sitting on the ground, with his face buried in his hands, 

 in great distress, for his horse was struggling in the agonies of death a few 

 paces from him. The boar, in charging, had ripped up his belly, his tushes 

 cutting like a knife, and the intestines, also much injured, were protruding 

 from the wound. I saw at a glance that it was a hopeless case, and, 



tapping N on the shoulder, I gave a significant look to a small pistol 



that I always carried loaded in my belt on such occasions in case of 

 accidents, 



" He understood what was passing in my mind, walked up to his dying 

 serviteur, and patted his neck. The poor animal, in spite of his agony, 

 recognised his master, for he raised himself up partly from the ground, and 



rubbed his nose against his shoulder in a most affectionate manner. N 



kissed his forehead, and, passing his hand across his eyes rushed into the 

 jungle, saying, 'Do not let him linger.' When his back was tiurned I 

 placed the muzzle of my pistol to the suffering animal's temple, and pulled 

 the trigger — a slight quiver of the body followed the report, and ' Bidgeley ' 



was dead. N cut off some of the hair of his forelock and tail for a 



souvenir, I slung his saddle and bridle over Lall Babba's back, and we 

 slowly retraced our way towards the tents." 



Omitting the sketches of the "Old Shekarry' s gang" of trackers and 

 beaters, and the exploits of a Scotch doctor, who plays the part of Wilson 

 in Lord Dufferiu's amusing " Letters," the next campaign is against a for- 

 midable man-eating tiger. After following the trail over most difiicult 

 ground, the party came upon a hideous lair, fresh with traces of his last 

 victim, before surprising whom " he seemed to have made the circuit of the 

 village two or three times " : 



" This was evidently the hecatomb of the man-eater, for I counted from 

 skulls and remains of half-eaten bodies, aboiat twenty-three victims of both 

 sexes, as we could see from their hair, clothes, broken bangles (armlets), and 

 gold and silver ornaments belonging to native women." 



