BLUE-BULL SHOOTING 53 



which connects Mhow with Ajmere. Here all trace 

 seemed to be lost, and some of the men who had been 

 sent on came back and said they could see nothing 

 of them. As it was obvious that they must be some- 

 where I did not give it up, but sent my men to get 

 some water, which they wanted badly ; while I sat 

 down in the shade of a great banyan or wild -fig 

 tree and ate my breakfast. After an hour's rest we 

 started again. A long belt of jungle ran along the 

 base of a steep mountain. For some time we saw 

 nothing. At last a hyaena broke back. I was tired 

 of not shooting, so took a galloping shot at about a 

 hundred yards and missed. I regretted afterwards 

 that I had done so. 



The jungle became thicker, and the ground was 

 very broken by ravines. The beaters were very tired 

 and would not keep line. I was moving on in front 

 of them rather on the outskirts of the belt. At the 

 end of about an hour I saw the coolie highest up 

 the hill signalling. I halted the line, and ordered 

 the shikari to make them beat it straight out. Mean- 

 while I hurried on. Before I had got far I distinctly 

 heard the sound of galloping hoofs. I listened, but 

 hearing nothing more thought I must have been 

 deceived, and pressed on. On reaching the top of a 

 small hillock I got a view all round. Alas ! some 

 hundreds of yards behind, right out on the plain, I 

 saw the herd galloping away, the rear being brought 

 up by the big bull. This was the first time I had 

 seen them. My horse was far away, and had he 

 not been the chase was hopeless. They had got a 

 tremendous start, and the ground was a mass of rocks 

 and nullahs. There was nothing' to be done but to 

 knock off and go home. I had walked over twenty 



