THE INDIAN BISON 



Some exceedingly old heads which I have seen 

 are quite small, with a very narrow sweep and a 

 paltry girth measurement, while others are grand 

 trophies. A bull with a sweep measurement of 33 

 inches, if the head is a fair one in other respects, is 

 well worth shooting, and heads of 40 inches or 

 above in sweep are uncommon. Only one of 40 

 inches has ever fallen to my share, and I give the 

 measurements of this head in detail : 



Width across sweep . . . over 40 inches. 

 Girth round base of horn . . .18,, 

 From tip to tip round outer edge and 



across forehead in flesh . . . 78 



ditto in bone 72 



Between tips .... nearly 28 

 Perpendicular distance between line 



drawn between tips and crest . .II 



My next best heads are two of 37!- inches, 

 and one of 35^- inches respectively across sweep. 

 These are all big measurements, yet I have known 

 much larger heads bagged by other sportsmen, in 

 each of three instances the bull being, I believe, 

 the fortunate Nimrod's first bison. 



A well-known Madras sportsman Mr. Gordon 

 Hadfield, of the Forest Department has compara- 

 tively recently bagged a bull near Nelambur (South 

 India), the measurements of whose head are : 



Width across sweep . . . - 44 inches. 



Girth round base of horn . . . 19! 

 From tip to tip round outer edge and 



across forehead . . . . 83 



Between tips 31 



Perpendicular distance between line 



drawn between tips and crest . . 13^ 



ii 



