114 THE HIGHLANDS OF CENTEAL INDIA. 



native friends ; and had I not guessed that such would be the 

 case, as usual, I would certainly not have had sufficient in my 

 flask. Six fingers deep is the rule for these weapons, and it 

 is of no avail to point out the superior strength of our powder. 

 They will have six fingers of Hall's No. 2, whatever the con- 

 sequence. As they put generally two bullets, a leaden and 

 an iron one, on the top of this charge, and wad with a hand- 

 ful of dry leaves, the result often is the bursting of the barrel, 

 and always considerable contusion of the user's shoulder. 



This was to be a silent beat ; that is, the people were to 

 advance without noise, beyond the rapping of their axes 

 against the trees, as there was another dense cover lower 

 down which usually held bison, and sometimes a tiger, and 

 which was to be beaten also in the afternoon. I had sat an 

 hour at least behind the screen of leaves that had been put 

 up for me when the first sign of the beat appeared, and for 

 another half-hour nothing was heard but the occasional knock 

 of an axe-handle on a tree. Presently a shot rang from the 

 extreme flank of the line of guns, then another, and a clatter 

 of hoofs inside showed that a herd of something had been 

 repulsed in an attempt to escape. As the beat advanced 

 more shots were heard on either side, and the galloping about 

 of the imprisoned animals, now and then met by a shout from 

 behind when they attempted to break back, became productive 

 of considerable excitement on my part. At last a rush of 

 animals advanced down the side of the stream where I was 

 posted, and eight or ten sambar clattered past within half a 

 stone's throw. I had just fired both barrels of my rifle at a 

 couple of the stags, dropping one of them in his tracks, and 

 had advanced a few paces towards it, when I heard a shot on 

 my immediate right, and a fine bull bison, with two cows and 

 a small calf, trotted past almost in the same line as the sambar 



