A SUMMER IN HIGH ASIA. 



barrel hit another, who stumbled on to his knees and 



went off. Hastily reloading, I fired at a third as 



the herd vanished 



round the corner, 



and heard the bullet 



tell. By this time 



the females and a 



few bucks who were 



with them, alarmed 



by the noise, came 



rushing" up from " i RAISED MY RIFLE AND FJRED AT 



- , _ THE BIG ONE." 



below ; I fired at a 



big one, but am sorry to say that by this time I 

 was so excited that I missed him and sent a 

 small buck crashing over the precipice on to the 

 glacier below. All this in shorter time than it 

 takes to write it. In the meantime Salia had 

 rushed forward to " hallal " * the first one before 

 the latter breathed his last, so as to make the 

 meat lawful for good Mohammedans (i.e. himself) 

 to eat, when, to our disgust, he sprang to his 

 feet and followed the herd. At this moment a lot 

 of does and small bucks, one of the latter carrying 

 a fair head, rushed past within fifty yards. I fired 

 at this last as he departed and hit him hard. He 

 took to the precipices above. Here he lay down 

 on a ledge, and the Balti, after a perilous climb, 



* Unless the throat of the animal is cut while still living, the good 

 Mussulman will not eat him, though I have seen an animal 

 " hallaled " some considerable time after he had breathed his last ! 



73 



