What to do in case op trouiIle with the natives. 2l6 



Should the foreigner, however, have the misfortune to " pepper," as it is called, one of 

 the natives, it is not to be expected that the proceeding will be taken with entire equanimity. 

 In ninety-nine cases out of a hundred this amounts to nothing more than lodging one or two 

 No. 6 pellets in the hands or face. The individual is invariably much more frightened than 

 hurt, and if it be a grown up person he may be induced, after a short palaver, in the course of 

 which he will have relieved his injured feelings, to accept a solatium in the way of a dollar 

 or two ; and apropos of that, it is always advisable to carry a few dollars in one's pocket, for 

 by having the means ready at hand one can often settle a small affair quickly for a trifling 

 sum, which if allowed to drag on would require a much larger amount. 



It is not always, however, that an affair, even though trifling, can be settled thus 

 summarily. If any of the woman kind of the injured party are about, they are sure to make 

 a great clamour, and will probably attempt to lay hold of the offender as a hostage. It is 

 always a wise precaution, whenever there is apprehension of trouble, to send the guns back 

 to the boat at once by a trustworthy coolie. He can always get away unobserved before a 

 crowd has collected, and the opportunity should be taken to instruct the boy or lowdah 

 to come to assist as interpreter, and at the same time to bring some additional coin with 

 him. By adopting this course the guns are put out of the reach of evil-minded natives who 

 might otherwise seize or break them. A good plan, sometimes put into effect, is to take the 

 gun to pieces, let down the hammers and pocket the fore-end. The foreigner himself need 

 be under no apprehension of personal violence, and he should always face the mischief what- 

 ever it may be. Not to mention that it is cowardly to run away, a consideration that it is 

 trusted would be sufficient to decide most foreigners, it would probably be impossible to 

 succeed in getting clear unless the boat were close at hand ; and the attempt to do so, if 

 unsuccessful, would only the more certainly entail rough treatment and render an amicable 

 settlement more difficult than ever. Besides, some of your servants might probably be left 

 in the lurch, and things would not be made easier on that account for the sportsman who 

 might follow in your track. 



The best and indeed the only thing to do is to see the injured party at once and 

 ascertain the extent of the injury. Explain if possible, or get a coolie to explain, that 

 it was a pure accident, and express regret at the occurrence. Show them the size of the 

 pellets and assure them that under no possible circumstances could there be any serious 

 consequences. If the pellet is only skin deep it might be possible to remove it with a pen- 

 knife. If this can be done it may facilitate matters considerably. There will then be no 

 longer any ground for alleging that the injured party will die, which by the natives is too 

 often assumed as a matter of course. It then becomes a question of quantum — and a dollar 

 or two in such cases will probably be enough. 



When this cannot be done some time and patience will be required. This may be 

 trying for one who is anxious to get on with his shooting, but there is usually no help for it. 

 Matters are not, we believe, much expedited by having recourse to a Tipao or village 

 mandarin. These small officials are usually both powerless and indisposed to render any 

 material assistance. They have no police to whom they can appeal to keep order and they 

 are almost as much in the hands of the mob as the foreigner is himself. They are supposed 

 to control the rowdy element by "reason." But if their "reason" does not happen to suit 



