122 SHIKAR SKETCHES. 



six inches in length, are slender, smooth, and 

 slightly wrinkled at the base, inclining backwards 

 with the tops bent inwards. From their peculiar 

 colour, which harmonizes wonderfully with the 

 ground they frequent, they often escape observa- 

 tion, though they sometimes attract the attention 

 of the sportsman who would otherwise have pass- 

 ed them by, owing to their habit of giving a sharp 

 hiss and stamp of the foot when alarmed. In the 

 heat of the day they frequently lie up iinder 

 bushes, or in the long grass, and as they get up 

 very close a charge of shot will often bowl them 

 over. 



Though called ' ravine deer,' they are true ante- 

 lope, and, unlike the black buck, when disturbed 

 or shot at they never go very far, but dodge about 

 any ravines that may be near, pursuing much the 

 same tactics that a hare does when hunted by a 

 pack of harriers. It is, therefore, advisable when 

 pursuing them to note the spot where they may 

 have disappeared into a ravine, observe the con- 

 figuration of the ground, and keep a sharp look- 

 out, when the graceful little animal will generally 

 reappear at no great distance. The best pair of 

 horns I ever got were those mentioned at page 

 219, and measured ten inches and a half; but I 

 have seen a pair that were shot near Kamptee that 

 measured thirteen inches. A shot can generally 



