176 WILD BEASTS AND THEIR WAYS CHAP, vui 



to its cage. This wits a very exceptional hunt, and a friend who 

 was present declared he had never seen anything to equal it, 

 although he had been all his life in India, 



We luul several courses, but nothing equalled this exciting 

 hunt. On one occasion the cheetah was slipi>cd at too great a 

 distance, the herd being at least 350 yards ahead. The animal, 

 after a vain effort, was well aware of the impossibility ; it 

 accordingly ran up a solitary tree with the agility of a monkey. 



From this height the cheetah surveyed the retreating herd of 

 antelopes, and refused to descend when summoned. It was 

 necessary for the attendant to mount the tree, but the difficulty 

 was increased by the cheetah making unamiable faces as the man 

 approached his perch. The wooden ladle was now- produced as a 

 lure, and after some hesitation the animal followed the man as he 

 descended ; the hood was adjusted over the eyes, and the cheetah 

 was replaced within its cage. 



From the description given of the various classes of leopards, 

 the destruction committed by these animals may be easily imagined ; 

 fortunately they do not breed like our domestic cats, but they 

 seldom have more than two, or at the most three cubs at a birth. 

 I have always been of opinion that the Government should cease 

 to offer a reward for the destruction of tigers (50 rupees), but 

 that an increased reward should be given for the death of every 

 leopard (25 rupees). The tigers will be always killed by Euro- 

 l>cans who do not require the inducement of a bonus, and the sum 

 of 25 rupees would incite the natives to trap and destroy a com- 

 mon pest and scourge (the leopard), which seldom or never affords 

 the hunter a chance of sport. 



The cheetah (Felis jubata) should be exempted from this 

 decree, as it seldom attacks domestic animals, but confines its 

 attention to the beasts of the plains and forests. 



