WILD DOGS 169 



of the bank and ranged themselves at equal distances 

 along it, looking like sentries; they sat down to 

 wait, watching carefully all the time. Another 

 hind then appeared trotting down the bank, and she 

 ranged herself up at the other side of the little fawn, 

 giving it double protection. 



One dog crossed below the water on to our side 

 of the nullah ; he sat down too, waiting and watching. 

 He did the patrol work. After sitting for some 

 minutes he walked the length of the pool, sat and 

 waited, then slowly went back to the other end, 

 waiting, watching. Every now and then as he passed 

 them, one of the sambur charged him up to the water's 

 edge, when he would just trot away a few yards, 

 wait, and come back, beginning his patrol again. 

 Up and down he walked, trying sometimes to drive 

 the deer towards the pack they had now hidden 

 themselves in the jungle on the far side. When the 

 dog tried to drive them the sambur faced him and 

 stamped angrily, splashing up the water. The 

 little fawn plucked up courage and stamped and 

 splashed, imitating its mother, in a way that was 

 beautiful to see. But the two deer were guarding 

 it very carefully and kept it close between them. 



This was all so interesting I had not noticed that 

 it was growing dark f we must have been there for 

 half an hour. One of the men who had been far 

 behind us came walking along the middle of the 

 nullah. This frightened the sentry dog, who went 

 round the pool again into the opposite jungle. The 

 deer took no notice whatever of the man : they never 

 moved, kept to the water and fixed their eyes on 



