126 STALKING IBEX. 



ibex nine in number with one fine large black fellow amongst 

 them. The old buck soon laid down amongst his wives, a 

 small brown buck going higher up the hill as a sentinel. 

 After carefully surveying the ground he also laid down, we 

 then had to make a long circuit to get at them, it being very 

 doubtful whether I could out-manceuvre the sentinel. The 

 wind being all right, I took off my shoes when I got to the 

 top of the hill and crept cautiously along ; presently the 

 heads of some of the does appeared below me, they were up 

 and alarmed not at me but at some coolies who were passing 

 along a road below ; it was some time before I could make 

 out the black buck. At last I saw him, still lying down, took 

 a steady shot at him, the ball caught him just behind the 

 withers and he never rose. He was a magnificent old saddle 

 back. The height at the shoulder forty-two inches, circum- 

 ference of fore arm twelve inches, from the point of the nose 

 to end of tail fifty and a half inches, chest to tail thirty-eight 

 and a quarter inches, nose to root of horn twelve and a half 

 inches. The scenery where I killed him was wild and 

 magnificent in the extreme. 



Ibex are very quick of hearing and from the number of 

 loose stones about, one has to be very careful, and I was 

 often obliged to take off my shoes when stalking them. 

 When at the hut on June 12th, 1857, I was off by daylight 

 to the lower crags, but found nothing, and the wind chang- 

 ing I went to the end of the big crag shola so as to meet the 

 wind, sending Francis, my shikarie, to look over the ground 

 lower down. A little higher up I saw a black buck with a 

 doe. I watched them for a short time, and as I could not 

 see Francis, started for the stalk ; taking off my shoes when 

 near the spot. The broken ground was beautiful for stalking 



