176 HOME OF MARKHOR. 



pany. The old hoary bucks only are termed markhor, and 

 like the ibex and the tahr, they generally herd separately 

 from the does during summer. The females do not, I think, 

 usually have more than one kid, as I saw many of them 

 with their young, but never with twins. 



Markhor seem generally to prefer steep, stony landslips, 

 precipitous grassy slopes, and rocky acclivities clad more or 

 less with pine and birch, to the more open ground near the 

 upper snow-fields and glaciers ; consequently their pursuit 

 is sometimes attended with even more difficulty and danger 

 than that of ibex for the earth in such places is often 

 so friable, loose, and rotten, and the short dry grass is so 

 smooth and slippery, as to make the footing 'there most 

 treacherous. Even in the depth of winter the old bucks 

 seldom quit their fastnesses, where they are said then to 

 subsist chiefly on pine-shoots. 



Trusting that my imperfect description of the "king of 

 wild goats," as Gamoo called him, may have given some 

 idea of his appearance and habits, we will now start for 

 his wild domain. 



Gamoo's intention was first to make straight for a remote 

 and lonely tract of the mountains, where he thought the big 

 old bucks were pretty sure to be found at that season June 

 and which it would take us at least three days to reach. 

 After packing off the men carrying the loads, with directions 

 to pitch our little camp at a suitable spot, known to Gamoo, 

 some distance down the other side of a lofty range that rose 

 about a mile or two behind the village, I started at an early 

 hour under the guidance of the shikarees. Although at that 

 time of year great old markhor were not likely to be met 

 with so low down, a chance might be got at a rind (young- 

 male), a musk-deer, or a bear. 



After several hours' hard climbing along rough stony beds 

 of water-courses, up slopes of loose ddlris, and through steep 

 pine-forests, we at length neared the upper part of the range. 

 As we continued to ascend, the ground became more rugged 



