GAUR AND TSINE 363 



tied together in bundles to serve as torches to light our way, 

 the night being starless. It was simply marvellous how my 

 followers managed to strike the right line to camp in the 

 dark. En route to camp we walked into a herd of tsine, 

 which stampeded, snorting, in all directions. I sent my 

 transport mules for the head next day, and all the meat they 

 could bring in for my men. 



They returned late next evening with the information that 

 they had come upon the huge tracks of another solitary bull 

 gaur, within half-a-mile of camp, near an old camping-ground 

 of mine called Thanada, after a stream of the same name. 

 During the night rain fell heavily, obliterating all tracks, so 

 that next day should we come upon any tracks we would 

 have no difficulty in ascertaining whether they were new or 

 old ones. After striking the Thanada choung, or stream, and 

 walking along the banks for about a quarter of a mile, we 

 struck the tracks of a solitary gaur which were only a few 

 hours' old. The impression of its hoofs were enormous 

 compared to what I had been accustomed to seeing, and at 

 first I thought the owner must be a veritable monster. 

 Moung Yauk, however, pointed out to me that the imprint 

 of the animal's hoof had only been made larger owing to the 

 mud and clay which adhered to the feet, the surrounding soil 

 from the recent heavy rain being very soft. Tracking under 

 these circumstances being comparatively easy work, I took 

 the lead myself, with the hope of being able to come up with 

 the animal before mid-day. 



The feeling of satisfaction which comes over one under 

 circumstances like these, when the sportsman is confident of 

 coming up with an animal soon, can only be understood by 

 those who have experienced it. Here I was on the fresh 

 tracks of a huge solitary bull gaur, no dense impenetrable 

 jungle in the neighbourhood to impede my movements, my 

 footfall rendered absolutely inaudible on the leaves and twigs, 

 owing to the sodden and saturated state of everything after 

 the recent heavy rainfall, no treacherous breeze to warn 

 the animal of our approach, and our camp distant only about 

 a mile. The tracks, after crossing the stream several times, 

 and along the banks of which the animal had been grazing, 



