82 A STALK FOR PORK. 



are soon descried on a distant grassy slope. Surely they 

 must be great old tahr, for they seem almost black against 

 the steep background of dried-up grass on the slope, which 

 looks yellow and bright in the rays of the declining sun 

 shooting athwart it over the high rocky ridge already in deep 

 shadow behind us. On bringing the telescope to bear on 

 them, they turn out to be wild pigs rooting about among the 

 grass. As wild pork is more esteemed by the hill-men than 

 any venison, we at once resolve to try for a shot. After a 

 long, tiresome, roundabout stalk, we find, to our chagrin, our 

 porkers vanished. It was now getting late, and our fruitless 

 endeavour had taken us a long way from our lodging, so we 

 made for it as straight as possible, lest darkness should over- 

 take us on ground where travelling was by no means easy, 

 even in daylight. By the time we got back, the shades of 

 night had closed down on the mountains, their rugged crests 

 rising black and grim against the clear starlit sky. 



After rekindling the fire, our supper of gooral-meat was 

 soon frizzling away on wooden skewers over the glowing em- 

 bers. The small share of our airy lodging I had appropriated 

 for the night was rendered somewhat uncomfortable from 

 having a sharp immovable bit of rock sticking up in it, which, 

 from the limited space, I was unable to avoid ; but after a 

 hard day's clambering, such trifling inconveniences do not 

 interfere very much with one's slumbers. 



The moonal pheasants were whistling loudly among the 

 adjacent crags when we sallied forth in the grey dawn. My 

 only shot was at an old cock-moonal, which offered so tempt- 

 ing a chance, as we suddenly came on him where he sat, 

 whistling away on a point of rock below us, quite unaware 

 of our presence, that I could not resist such a rare oppor- 

 tunity, even at the risk of disturbing better game, for on open 

 ground these birds are usually very wary. A wire-cartridge 

 sent him whirling from his perch so far down among the 

 rocks that it was hardly worth while fetching him, as his 



