76 Leaves from an Indian fungle. 



all stood packed together in an open bit of ploughed 

 land. 



He paced in our direction, then halted and stared again 

 at a respectful distance, for I may mention that my late 

 parent had a pretty wide notoriety for savage exclusiveness-. 

 After following behind us awhile, this buck ventured on 

 closer inspection, and, somehow tumbling to the hang of 

 things, began to assert authority. He actually had the 

 effrontery to chase me from my mother's side and catch 

 me a dig in the ribs. Toward the other youngsters his 

 bearing was superciliously indifferent. 



Life thus proceeded without much to mark its progress, 

 save that my horns grew apace, and that the new master of 

 the herd watched me with an ever-increasing ferocity ; till, 

 one day, he fell to the muzzle-loader of a native shikari. 

 We had strayed incautiously near a worli, or landmark, 

 when there came a flash and a bang, and my enemy sank to- 

 the ground, as the figure of a Bhil rose from behind the 

 smoke, and ran towards him. As we fled leaping over 

 the fields, there arose that same old gurgling bellow ; and 

 that was the last of my father's successor. 



Two days after this, a very fine buck took charge of us ? 

 and the first hour of office in his new capacity was devoted 

 to driving me from the herd with which I had been con- 

 nected from my infancy. He succeeded, although I was 

 stubborn ; and I at length departed, in dudgeon, with a 

 slight horn wound in my flank. I may remark that my 

 unnatural mother viewed me thus driven forth without 

 apparent concern another youngster now trotted by her 

 side. Wandering morosely over the moonlit plain, I fell in 

 with three other bucklets of my age, and on comparing 

 notes we found that our condition was identical : each had 

 the same story to tell, and we agreed to join our fortunes 



