128 IBEX SHOOTING. 



I trudged home " koosh," leaving the men to skin the ibex 

 and bring in what meat they wanted. 



One or two more extracts from my journal and I think 

 I shall have said enough about ibex shooting. But the 

 sport is so exciting, and at the same time, being carried on 

 amongst the highest mountains, and amidst such magnificent 

 scenery, so exhilarating, that I may be pardoned for dwelling 

 so much upon it. 



I was out very early one morning, when I came sud- 

 denly upon a doe ibex and a half grown kid ; not wishing 

 to disturb them, I crept back to Francis and we agreed to 

 look just beyond them and see if there was a buck. As I 

 craned over the rock I saw a large brown buck looking at 

 me about sixty yards off, his hind quarters hidden by a 

 rock ; I fired, heard the tell, ran on and saw the herd, 

 consisting of a dozen or more, galloping down the side 01 

 the slope about a hundred and forty yards away ; after 

 going a short distance they stood bewildered, when I again 

 fired and hit a doe ; as I was following her, out bolted the 

 brown buck from a hollow ; he ran about two hundred yards 

 and then sat down on his haunches, presently sinking on his 

 side ; there were two small bucks on the rocks above him, 

 and the old fellow, after looking at them for some time, 

 to my astonishment jumped up, disappeared behind some 

 rocks, and was out of sight by the time I had got up 

 to where he had been lying. I followed the wounded doe 

 until her tracks disappeared over a most frightful precipice, 

 which was quite impossible to descend, so I had to give her 

 up. I hate leaving a wounded animal, but there was no help 

 for it. As I returned up the hill I thought to myself, "Well, 

 this is neat, I shall lose them both, but not without another 



