FIRST QUEEN'S BIRTHDAY MEETi. 88 



residence under a big tree in some indigo lands, and 

 that no one could go near the place, and he (Reily) 

 proposed that we should go and have a shy at him ; but 

 the distance being rather too far, we had to give up the 

 idea. But by a very strange coincidence, as the sequel 

 will show, we had ourselves that very same evening a 

 little bit of an exciting adventure with another mad 

 buffalo. 



As it was no good going out before half-past three or 

 four o'clock, most of us turned in in our sleeping suits 

 and went in for a mid-day siesta. 



Our programme for the afternoon was to beat another 

 patiale there was at the back of the Choa village, with 

 a large jungly-looking tank alongside it. 



Before turning in for our afternoon nap, we gave 

 instructions for the elephants, beaters, spare horses and 

 all the other paraphernalia of shikar to be on the ground 

 by three o'clock. Long before that hour, one or two of 

 the more enthusiastic ones were up and moving about, 

 and this soon woke up the rest of the fellows, who got up 

 amid much cursing and swearing. A cup of tea as an 

 eye-opener followed by an ice peg as a reviver, soon put 

 everyone into good mood. By the time we had got into 

 our boots and breeches it was close upon four o'clock, 

 so there was not much time to lose. Getting on our 

 horses and cantering to the place, we found everything 

 as we had ordered, but were rather down in the mouth 

 on hearing that an enormous boar had broken and gone 

 into the village — a knowing old customer, I suppose, 



