HAPPY ASSOCIATIONS OP JUNGLE LIFE. 425 



dinner, and enjoyed their chat over the events of 

 the day, of the campaign generally, and remarked 

 on the advantages of such pleasant jungle trips. 



How many a happy association is connected with 

 those joyous hours, and how many a sincere friend- 

 ship can be traced to the unreserved and genial 

 interchange of thought engendered by the prosecu- 

 tion in common of a manly occupation, and the 

 facing of a common risk. No insincerity and dis- 

 simulation mark such intercourse. Men learn to 

 know each other with something more than the 

 superficial knowledge by which man so frequently 

 rules his estimation of his fellows. Many a latent 

 quality is developed or discovered, and regard and 

 affection contracted for the acquaintance you have 

 learnt to understand after penetrating the outer 

 crust of his nature. Those, whose adventures I 

 have been describing, were no heroes ; they were, 

 on the whole, good-natured fellows enough, but cast 

 in no uncommon mould. And being such, I have 

 not endeavoured to wrap their adventures in any 

 veil of mock heroism. They were keen sports- 

 men, and practically conversant with the habits 

 of the game they pursued ; but, I regret to add, 

 were theoretically and scientifically but poor natu- 

 ralists. 



Some such considerations as I have above detailed 



