24O ADVENTURE WITH OLD EMAN. 



are a dead man." I looked round ; we were in the midst 

 of a male bamboo jungle so thick that we could scarcely 

 see twenty yards ahead, and the few trees were scattered 

 fifty to sixty yards apart. It would be impossible to run 

 ten yards without falling, on account of the young bamboos 

 and other creepers (broken down by the bison feeding) lying 

 on the ground so interlaced that they would be certain to 

 get entangled between our legs and trip us up ; but in 

 the excitement of the moment, the dangers of the situation 

 appeared mere trifles to me, and on we went, not making 

 the slightest noise for fear of bringing the enraged monster 

 on us, Emam making certain that everything that looked 

 black was not the bison, before he proceeded a step. Some 

 of the bamboos were covered with blood, and the beast 

 was evidently so badly wounded that he could not face 

 the opposite hill ; we came to where he had attempted it 

 and had turned back to keep along the valley. At last 

 the jungle getting much thicker, the trees fewer, and the 

 sun having set for some time, Emam stopped and said we 

 should certainly find him a little further on, but as certainly 

 he would charge us if he was not too far gone, and as in 

 such a jungle we could not possibly get out of his way, unless 

 he was dropped in the charge, one or both of us must be 

 killed. It was getting dark and we might come upon him 

 at any moment before we knew it, and if so, and he was 

 alive, there would be very little chance for us. So taking 

 all these things into consideration, I turned away with a sad 

 heart, leaving the finest bison I had seen severely, probably 

 mortally, wounded. I asked Emam if Watson and I went 

 together the next morning with the shikaries carrying all 

 our spare guns we should have a chance of finding him. 



