of the Old World. 77 



CHAPTER V. 



A BATTUE. 



Preliminary arrangements for the beat. The Doctor's great 



appearance. His famous feat. W falls in with tigers. 



Fatal accident. The death of a tiger. The game warms. 

 The battue. Another tiger dies. The bag of the day. 

 The Doctor again. The ceremonies of my gang. 



rpHE next morning we all assembled in my tent an 

 hour before the slightest appearance of dawn, and 

 after having partaken of a hurried collation, which 

 my invaluable servant " Five Minutes " always ma- 

 naged to have ready at the proper time, we mustered 

 about eighty sepoys and troopers with their muskets 

 and carbines, and about twice that number of vil- 

 lagers, well supplied with matchlocks, tomtoms, and 

 dubties,* cholera horns, and other melodious instru- 

 ments of music of that description ; and mounting 

 our nags, preceded by masaltjees or torch-bearers, 

 we started for Botta-Singarum. 



As we approached the Tannah or police-station, 

 we found all the head men of the surrounding 



* Dubties native drums. 



