174< THE HUNTING GROUNDS 



were heard issuing from the bowels of the earth, and 

 I began to be alarmed for the dogs, when suddenly 



I heard a row, and saw my poor friend D (who 



in spite of my remonstrances would stand right in 

 front of the mouth of the cave) knocked over on the 

 broad of his back by a huge male hyena, whilst in 

 the twinkling of an eye the female, a couple of cubs, 

 and my two dogs passed over him as he lay almost 

 helpless on the ground, and made the best of their 

 way down the hUl and across some cultivated fields ; 



B let drive a couple of shots as they passed, and 



doubled up the female, and I descended the hill as 

 well as I could, and after a burst of a few minutes, 

 Gooty brought me alongside of the male, who was 

 vainly struggling to get away from my two dogs, 

 one of whom had hold of him by the ear, and the 

 other on the opposite side by the throat. As I did 

 not wish to run the chance of having either of them 

 mauled or bitten, I drove my spear home between 

 the shoulders, and finished the game, after which I 



went to look after poor D , whom I found much 



shaken with the fall, his chin and throat being con- 

 siderably damaged by the claws of the brutes as they 

 passed over him. 



We returned to the bungalow, convinced that the 

 villagers had mistaken the hyena for a cheeta ; and 



after D had washed, and plastered up his face, 



we all three got into my bullock-cart, and arrived 

 at Bowani soon after sunset, where we found Mother 

 Garrow and her dusky train of dancing nymphs 



