418 THE HIGHLANDS OF CENTKAL INDIA. 



fire, both at bison and buffalo, are through the point of 

 the shoulder, if the rifle be powerful enough, or, if not, 

 then behind and a little above the elbow. The centre of 

 the neck is also very deadly, if the aim be true ; natives 

 almost always fire there with their matchlocks. The 

 skull and horns of a bull bufi'alo are so large and heavy 

 as to form a considerable encumbrance as a trophy to 

 the sportsman marching fast with a light camp. Its 

 value is completely spoilt, however, by sawing off the 

 horns and throwing away the skull, as is often done. 

 The better way is to boil away the flesh, and wait a few 

 days till the horn-sheaths loosen on the bony cores, 

 when they can be taken off", and the cores sawn down, 

 leaving only a few inches to give the set of the horns. 

 In doing this, the wonderful provision for giving requi- 

 site strength to the structure, without undue weight, by. 

 constructing the bony cores like hollow cells, crossed by 

 stays in every direction, will not fail to be perceived. 



We marched on down the valley of the Jonk through 

 tracts of sal, mostly devastated by dhya cultivation, ta 

 the Mahcinadi, and then along it and its tributary, the 

 Arpa, to the little civil station of Bilaspiir, where we 

 arrived on the 28th of April, and began to make ar- 

 rangements for an expedition to the elephant haunts in 

 the great sal forest to the north of that station. It was 

 reported to be scarcely inhabited except by a few utterly 

 savage Bhiimias ; and it was certain that no supplies 

 of any sort would be procurable. Our first business 

 was, therefore, to hire a large herd of Banjara bullocks, 

 with their drivers, and load them up with grain ; and such 

 was then the land-locked condition of this fertile country 

 that we purchased as much wheat, gram, and rice as we 

 required at the rate of about 100 lbs. for a shilling ! 



On the 3rd of May we rode out to Katanpiir, the 



