14 THE HUNTING GEOUNDS 



ever rapid, would discourage him ; he would enter 

 without splashing, cross and double about until he 

 recovered the scent and came up with his quarry, 

 which he would keep at bay until his master came. 

 He was also first-rate after small game as a retriever, 

 and was very successful in putting up florakin, (or 

 the lesser bustard), which bird generally makes a 

 practice of running when disturbed, 



Walter was an adept at tracking, and under his 

 guidance we had no difficulty in following up the 

 trail, the slots not being more than an hour old. I 

 remember being much struck with the extraordinary 

 facility he had in discerning the trail over the most 

 difficult ground ; the slightest mark, an upturned 

 stone, a bruised leaf, or a bent twig, being sufficient 

 to indicate the route pursued by the game with the 

 greatest certainty. 



The gift of tracldng ov following up spoor, appears 

 to be innate, or a kind of instinct, in the red men of 

 the "Far West," and to certain jungle tribes of 

 Hindostan ; but it takes careful study, great obser- 

 vation, and long experience, before "dwellers of 

 cities " are able to mark and understand /ores^ signs 

 with any certainty. 



We found the elk had left the cholum fields and 

 made for a steep ravine, at the bottom of which 

 wound a mountain torrent, sometimes creeping 

 silently among mossy stones, and at others dashing 

 down over huge boulders of greenish granite, with 

 a roar like distant thunder. 



