THE TEAK REGION. 249» 



became a run — the low crouching run, almost like a 

 tiger's, with antlers thrown back, often adopted by a 

 stag who wants to escape quickly and without being 

 seen. We only saw the ridge of his back and the tips 

 of his horns as he stole up the other side of the spur 

 after the hinds. It is of no use for two men to follow one 

 lot of sambar ; so, as it lay in my beat, I took after 

 these deer, while T. held on up the valley. When I 

 got to the top — a stiff climb of five or six hundred feet 

 — the eastern heavens were suffused with that beautiful 

 greenish yellow flush which immediately precedes sun- 

 rise in an Indian sky. It was light enough (it never 

 is very dark at any time of night at this season of the 

 year) to distinguish a couple of the Bheels perched on a 

 higher peak of the same range ; and on seeing me top- 

 the rise one of them stole softly down to me, and said 

 that the herd, followed by the stag, had proceeded 

 leisurely down the thickly wooded declivity on the- 

 opposite side. After a consultation, it was determined 

 that I should keep along the top of the ridge, while t wo- 

 of the Bheels were to follow the track of the herd, and 

 if they saw them come up and let me know. I went 

 along slowly from one commanding point to another, 

 keeping a little ahead of the Bheels, who tracked the- 

 herd along the slope, not very far below the top. In 

 the course of one of these moves I started the herd 

 from some long grass near the top. There were fifteen 

 or twenty of them, but no good stags, so far as I could 

 see as they bustled away along the hill-side in a con- 

 fused mob, the round light-coloured patches on their 

 rumps looking like so many targets as they switched 

 their tails in the air. It was very tempting, but I 

 wanted the fine horns of the stag and let them go. I 



