200 THE POETRY OF WILD SPORT. 



least, there being no " marcli " beyond which the stalker 

 cannot follow his quarry, are all charms which more than 

 compensate for want of numbers, and make hangul-shooting 

 in Cashmere the poetry of Himalayan, or, I may venture to 

 say, of any other mountain hunting. 



Far be it from me, however, even to hint that Highland 

 deer-stalking is not right royal sport. In fact, the Highland 

 stag, from the open nature of the ground he usually fre- 

 quents, requires more skill in stalking than does the Cash- 

 mere hangul. Still, there is not the same romantic charm 

 about the pursuit of game that has been preserved, as there 

 is when you know it is in every way wild ; and in this I 

 feel sure all real sportsmen, both at home and abroad, will 

 agree with me. Indeed, for my own part, I much prefer 

 circumventing a few wary old black-cocks in a day's walk 

 over a bit of wild ground, to standing at the hottest corner 

 of a preserve, even were I an adept at pulling down the 

 rocketers, which I am not ; for much rifle-shooting is not 

 conducive to improving one's form at such sharp practice as 

 that. But tastes differ. 



In the autumn of 1866, our regimental ^Esculapius, after 

 carefully attending me through a severe bout of illness, 

 succeeded in persuading the ruling military powers that my 

 return to the sunny plains of India from sick-leave to " the 

 hills north of Dehra" as the mightiest of mountain-ranges 

 was then styled in official parlance would be unadvis- 

 able before the end of November. Thus an opportunity 

 was afforded me of hunting the Cashmere stag at the best 

 season for finding him the month of October and early in 

 November. 



Here I can quite imagine the fortunate holder of a Scottish 

 deer-forest exclaiming " Shoot stags so late in the season ! 

 What a poacher ! " But I would crave his patience whilst I 



found to be, during the " running " season, very similar to hangul-sliooting 

 in the Himalayas ; but the ground is much steeper in the latter mountains 

 than in the former. 



