THE NILGIRI IBEX 



branch ravine, jutting out from it at right angles, 

 whose sides were precipitous, and beyond and to 

 the right hand lay open downs. Suddenly, on the 

 expanse of short grass before us, and perhaps 300 

 or 350 yards off, I saw a single buck ibex running 

 towards the precipices which lay to our front 

 beyond the intersecting ravine. He was evidently 

 alarmed, but how, or why, or whether he had seen 

 us, or had winded us, I did not know. 



He stopped and stood, and I whispered to 

 D. to put up the highest sight on his rifle and 

 try him, which he did, but missed. As the buck 

 dashed off, I fired both barrels without effect, the 

 animal, having crossed the grassy downs, being 

 lost to sight over the edge of the precipice. I felt 

 that we had, alas ! seen the last of him ; but I was 

 mistaken, for in a few seconds, and to our great 

 surprise, we saw him returning along the edge of 

 the nullah, having evidently failed to find a way 

 down the steep bluff, and he then entered and 

 rushed down the opposite face of the intersecting 

 ravine near which we stood. I fired two long 

 shots, and D., who had a single-barrelled rifle, 

 one, as the ibex dashed down the abrupt slope, 

 but all three shots missed. Hastily reloading, as 

 he ran almost directly below me, and about 400 

 yards off, I fired once more, heard the welcome 

 "thud," and saw the ibex rolling over and over, 

 out of sight, far down below. I felt quite sure that 

 he was dead, but I entertained great anxiety as 

 to whether the men would be able to negotiate the 

 steep descent. To my unpractised eye, the place 



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