DEAD GAME. 



273 



catch sight of some of them. If not, he must push on 

 quietly, keeping a sharp look-out for tracks ; and being 

 mounted, and the bush generally of a dwarf character, 

 he can look over into open glades and other places 

 which he could not possibly do if on foot; and as soon 

 as game has been sighted he can dismount and either 

 tie up his horse, or better still give it to an attendant 

 to hold. He is then free to creep up as close as 

 possible to his game to get a shot, and should the 

 game move off without his being able to fire, he can 

 mount again and continue the pursuit. Attendants 

 should of course be instructed to keep up as close as 

 possible, without endangering the success of the stalk. 

 Thus the hunt can be continued without undue fatigue 

 or exhaustion; and instead of the day being one of 

 severe toil, as it must be if everything is done on foot, 

 hunting conducted under these auspices is merely a 

 pleasant day's sport, and is moreover likely to be very 

 much more successful with the horse than without it. 



Should game be killed, it must at once be opened 

 and the intestines removed; if this is not done, a very 

 few hours' exposure to the sun will render the flesh 

 quite unfit to eat. Unless the hunter carries a butcher 

 knife as his u couteau de chasse," butcher knives must 

 be taken for this purpose, also a small hatchet or saw 

 is necessary for dividing large animals. If the dead 

 game has to be left to take care of itself while the 

 hunter goes in pursuit of other animals, the hatchet 

 or the saw is wanted to cut some thorny branches to 

 put over the carcase, to protect it from the attacks of 

 vultures and the smaller beasts of prey, such as wolves, 

 foxes, jackals, etc. The great probabilities are that 

 these sharp-eyed birds, watching from on high, have 



VOL. ill. 1 8 



