WILD HOG SHOOTING. 49 



the " suers" by engaging coolies, in the first place, to beat 

 the sugar-cane, with orders to make every possible discordant 



noise they could, naturally or artificially. B e and I 



loaded our double-barrelled guns with ball, and placed our- 

 selves on each side of the sugar-cane field, and about the 

 centre of it. 



At the farther end, and nearest to the jungle where the 

 hogs were likely to bolt, was stationed a boy, with the two 



Arab dogs, and near him a horse-keeper, holding B 's 



horse and spear, in readiness for him to mount, and pursue 

 the game through the intervening ground between the canes 

 and the jungle. 



From where I stood I could distinguish neither the one 

 or the other of the latter individuals. 



I had not been long in the position I had at first taken 

 up, and the air resounded with the cries of the beaters, when 

 I distinctly heard the rush of some large animal through the 

 canes in my direction, and presently an opening was made in 

 the cactus-hedge, and, with a tremendous grunt, an immense 

 hog stood exposed to view, about twenty yards below where 

 I was standing. I was not long in bringing my gun to my 

 shoulder, taking steady aim behind the shoulder which was 

 presented to me, and firing both barrels in quick succession. 

 The animal rushed back into the sugar-canes. Suddenly a 

 cry of lamentation was heard about one hundred and fifty 

 yards below where I was standing, and, on running forward 



to ascertain the cause, I found B 's boy crying and 



wringing his hands, and one of his master's fine dogs lying 

 dead beside him, shot through the head. As I have before 

 stated,, from where I was standing I could not see the 

 boy or dogs, and, in fact, did not know where they were 

 stationed ; however, according to all appearances, I had 

 missed a wild hog at twenty paces distant, that seemed to me 

 nearly as large as a bullock, and had killed a valuable dog 



E 



