ADVENTURES IN CAMP AND JUNGLE. 133 



not many accidents, and the cultivators turned out readily to 

 join in the hunt. 



One morning, when going out after deer, etc., we had 

 occasion to skirt a small garden outside a village, and in some 

 fine sand we saw the recent footprints of a large panther. 

 The hut of the gardener was close by, and on asking him if 

 he had seen the beast, he replied that he had heard him near 

 the spot about an hour before the daylight that morning. The 

 garden was bounded by a dry watercourse ; and on the far 

 side was a patch of rough ground, covered with high grass 

 and mimosa trees. We had little doubt that we should find 

 the panther here ; and a few villagers having been collected, 

 they formed a line with some of our own people, and beat out 

 the cover towards the guns. The men had passed over the 

 more likely spots, and were advancing over some open ground, 

 when the panther which had been lying in the grass under 

 a small bush rose and came bounding towards us. Bowles 

 was stationed about fifty yards to my left, and the panther 

 was passing within a few paces, when he rolled him over like 

 a hare with a very clever shot. He was a very large male 

 panther, unusually heavy and stout, with a beautifully marked 

 skin. The villagers were much pleased and astonished, and 

 brought out offerings of milk and sugar. 



At our next camp chinkara were very numerous ; but 

 we were in a lazy mood, and sent our men out to look 

 for tracks of panthers in the cypress jungle, lying by 

 the bed of a river. Having heard of nothing by noon, we 

 proposed to go out together to shoot chinkara. We were 

 to fire alternate shots, and only at bucks, and were to return 

 to the tents when we had shot ten. We had been out 

 about two hours, and had five good bucks in the cart, when 

 we were overtaken by one of our men, who said they had 



