A STRANGE FRIENDSHIP 



The man made no reply, but with a profound salaam, 



which nearly upset his equilibrium, laid at H 's feet a 



bundle he carried in his hand. A loud squeal as he de- 

 posited it betrayed to some extent the nature of its con- 

 tents. 



" A present sent for the c Huzoor,' " * he observed at 

 length; and, undoing the many wrappings, produced a 

 small animal, which from its shape was apparently a pig. 

 And so it was, but a pig such as the young planter had 

 never seen before, for it was whitey-brown in colour, and 

 striped from head to tail with orange-coloured lines, 

 altogether as weird-looking a beast as it is possible to 

 imagine. As a matter of fact, it was a young wild boar, 

 which the man had captured, and, wishing to please his 



" sahib," had brought it for his acceptance. H took 



the proffered gift, for he could not well refuse it. 



For some days it proved a troublesome acquisition, but 

 after the first week or two it gradually grew tamer, and 

 followed him about as closely as his dogs. It increased 

 rapidly in size, and when about nine months old, was quite 

 a respectable-sized boar. By the servants and other 

 natives in the factory, he was called the " jungly soor," f 

 afterwards contracted to " Jungli," a name by which he 

 was subsequently known, and to which he answered when 

 called. He was very popular with his four-footed com- 

 panions, especially with the Arab ; and, strange as it may 

 seem, the " pig-sticker " and the pig formed a close alliance. 



Eighteen months went by. The boar was now full- 

 grown, and with a formidable pair of tusks presented a 

 most truculent appearance, though, in point of fact, still 

 gentle as a lamb. But sad times were in store for him, for 

 one unlucky morning the manager of the head factory, 

 while driving past the bungalow, encountered him on the 

 road. His horse, appalled at the unwonted sight, promptly 

 swerved and bolted, and but for a friendly ditch, which 

 stopped both horse and trap, the consequences might have 

 been disastrous. 



But they proved serious enough so far as the unhappy 

 Jungli was concerned, for a " manager " in those days was 

 a most important person, and not one to be trifled with, 



* Master. t wild P^ 



233 



