THE WILD HOG. 407 



clear, I think it is more prudent to draw in the horse, slacken- 

 ing his pace agreeably to the Hog's, keeping nearly at the 

 same distance from him as before he shewed signs of hos- 

 tility. When he finds the horse does not come on as he ex- 

 pected, he will be induced to increase his speed again, and 

 will soon be out of wind, and allow the hunter to ride up near 

 him without preparing to charge. Now, however, the hun- 

 ter should dash on at full speed, and as soon as he arrives 

 within a proper distance he should deliver his spear, and 

 having done so turn his horse instantly off to the left. If 

 other gentlemen are following, the nearest to the first should 

 keep immediately behind him, to take his place when he has 

 delivered his spear." 



The same writer describes another scene eminently cha- 

 racteristic of the desperate fierceness and strength of the 

 animal. He was one, he informs us, of a party of eight 

 gentlemen on a sporting excursion, near the city of Patna, on 

 the banks of the Soane river. Returning one morning from 

 shooting, they met with a very large Boar in a rhur, which 

 they did not fire at or molest, as several of the party were 

 fond of hunting, and they had no spears with them. The 

 next morning they all sallied forth in search of him, and, just 

 as they arrived at the spot where they saw him the day be- 

 fore, they discovered him at some distance trotting off to- 

 wards a grass jungle on the banks of the river : they pressed 

 their horses as fast as possible, and were nearly up with him, 

 when he disappeared all at once : the horses were then nearly 

 at their full speed, and four of them could not be pulled up 

 in time to prevent their going into a deep branch of the river, 

 the banks of which were at least fourteen or fifteen feet high : 

 happily for them there was no water in it, or any thing but 

 fine sand, and no person was hurt. One of the horses which 

 was very vicious got loose, attacked the others, and obliged 

 all the gentlemen to quit them and walk to their tents. A 

 few days afterwards they went again early in the morning in 

 pursuit of the same Hog, and found him further off from the 



