86 SPORT IN THE HIGHLANDS OF KASHMIR chap. 



tion we were not disappointed, and soon we saw a small 

 herd coming up, grazing slowly. They were a good 

 distance off, but with the glasses we could make out two 

 males and four or five females. We started downwards 

 — Abdulla, Zaru, Chand, and I — all wearing grass shoes. 

 We had taken to this foot-gear again, now that we were 

 amongst rocks on which it would not do to slip, and 

 engaged in work which required moving without sound. 

 The herd was coming up, not straight towards the 

 camp, but to the south of it. Consequently we had to 

 move to our right to intercept it. Abdulla had the 

 .303, and the local man the Express. Chand carried the 

 tiffin basket, my bag, and some spare grass shoes. A 

 series of more or less parallel hollows and ridges here 

 ran downwards from the crest of the main ridge towards 

 the river, and it was up one of these hollows, fortu- 

 nately with the wind behind them, that the herd was 

 coming. Every now and then one or two of them 

 would stop grazing, and carefully examine the hillside 

 above. Soon we were near enough to distinguish the 

 two males with the naked eye, and caution became 

 necessary. As long as we were in the hollows, 

 diagonally across which we were going, it was easy 

 enough. It was getting over the ridges which had to 

 be carefully done. When we reached the hollow imme- 

 diately preceding that in which the herd was, Chand and 

 Zaru remained behind, and Abdulla led the way, with 

 me alone after him. Lying fiat, we crawled over the 

 next crest, and slowly slid down the opposite side. The 

 herd was below us, but a sort of sniall ridge occupied 

 the centre of the hollow, and, concealed behind it, we 



