RIDING A PIG 77 



In hunting the rider's prowess is paramount, in pig- 

 sticking the rider must leave things chiefly to his horse. 



Major F. W. Mackenzie, R.F.A., writes : 



Before trying in any way to compare " fox-hunting " 

 with " pig-sticking," one must at once put out of court 

 all forms of " competition pig-sticking " as fox-hunting is 

 a sport pure and simple with no element of competition 

 in it. 



Against this it may be argued that the spirit of com- 

 petition does enter into fox-hunting in as much as men try 

 to be up first ; but among the best this is really the desire 

 to be in at the death, not to beat any individual. 



I will therefore confine myself to a few remarks on 

 pig-sticking as done in the lonely jungles of Bengal, as 

 against fox-hunting with a wild sporting pack in Ireland. 



To begin with the former, there is the start in the early 

 morning with, at the most, three spears in all. A small line 

 of five elephants, with lead horses filling up the gaps. Grass 

 and jhow jungle as far as the eye can see, broken up by 

 small streams, many of them with steep sides covered with 

 jungle, and heavy muddy bottoms, clumps of thick wood 

 dotted about, and the hills of Nepal as a background to all. 



Nothing is to be heard but the swish of the elephants 

 tramping through the grass, when in a second this peaceful 

 scene is changed to one of wild excitement by the time- 

 honoured cry of " Wuh Jata " (there he goes), and right 

 enough, an old boar is viewed stealing away on the right. 

 The three spears are off in hot pursuit. First the chase 

 leads across a stream, then half a mile burst in the grass, a 

 sharp jink, and back to the stream again, this time banks 

 lined with heavy jungle — one man across — one upstream — 

 one down. When, after a few minutes' suspense, there is a 

 wild halloa forrard on the far side, and again we get on 

 terms — but there are only two spears now, for one is upside 

 down in the stream. A hundred yards short of a thick 

 clump the gallant boar, feeling he cannot reach cover, whips 

 round and charges home. And so on through a long day — 

 no two hunts, no two falls, no two cuts the same ; then 



