178 GUN, RIFLE, AND HOUND. 



the impression of a boot. My first thought was 

 that Will had come out late, but the bootmark was, 

 I felt sure, not his, and fresh as it was, it had game 

 tracks over it. I emerged from the jungle, and there 

 was more light to examine the tracks. The mystery 

 was soon revealed : the tracks were my own, and 

 the bull had been working in a circle. What, however, 

 was more startling was that the tracks which covered 

 my own were those of a large leopard, which had 

 obviously followed me. Whether it had taken me for 

 something else, or the buffalo's blood was the attraction, 

 I cannot say. The sun had now set, so it would be 

 dark in a few minutes, and the buffalo was evidently 

 not to be hoped for. So, lighting a cheroot, I shaped 

 my course for camp not without a certain uneasy 

 feeling. Indeed, after dark came on, I found myself 

 turning round at the slightest sound, and lighting 

 totally unnecessary matches to examine the compass. 

 However, in less than three-quarters of an hour I 

 heard the bang bang of the tracker's muzzle-loader, 

 which Will had ordered him to fire off to guide 

 me, and before he had had time to repeat his signal 

 thrice, my answering shouts were heard. 



Orders were given for the carts to go that way 

 to pick up the head of the dead bull, but soon 

 after daylight Sin 'Appu woke me to say he could 

 not find the place. I turned out to assist, and had 

 no difficulty in pointing out the strip of wood where 

 I had first fired. Half an hour later Sin 'Appu came 

 back again with the report that there was no buffalo 

 there. So I had to go myself. I soon arrived at 



