A SUMMER IN HIGH ASIA. 



16,000 feet), until we reached this ridge at a point 

 some way above the place where the nyan had 

 crossed it, and then started cautiously down the 

 spur. At last we saw them, lying down some two 

 hundred yards below us, and, though there was no 

 chance of our getting a yard nearer to them this 

 way, sorely tempted as I was, I refused the risk of 

 shooting at this distance, accordingly we had to 

 retreat backwards flat on our faces up the ridge 

 until we got out of sight. Then, hastily descending 

 the right-hand slope of the ridge, we began to creep 

 directly towards them. At length I raised my 

 head, and there they were. I could only see three 

 of them ; one, the biggest, was lying looking 

 straight towards us, whilst the two others were 

 gazing into the valley below. I Had made up my 

 mind to keep to the maxim of all good shikaris, 

 and never to fire at an animal when lying down ; 

 but seeing a good nyan ram with his white 

 waistcoat offering a splendid mark at about one 

 hundred and twenty yards, I threw caution to the 

 winds. The difficulty was that, owing to the 

 roughness of the intervening ground, I could not 

 bring the sights to bear on him as I lay there prone 

 on my face, so, with a calmness of desperation, I 

 slowly assumed a kneeling position and fired. 

 Whether they were so surprised to see a human 

 being rise out of the ground close to them when 

 they had no thought of any being within fifty miles, 



or what it was, I cannot say ; but the fact remains 



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