348 The Hunting Grounds 



has once lost his herd or family is an outcast from 

 the rest of the race, for he is not permitted to join 

 any other troop, although he may frequent the same 

 feeding- places. I fancy that their solitary life causes, 

 them to become morose and vicious ; for rogues, 

 whether male or female, are always found alone. I 

 think I told you that the old rogue with a broken 

 tusk, that I killed in the Ballyrungum Hills a short 

 time ago, used to attack every animal he came near, 

 and did not fear man in the least, for, whenever he 

 heard the sounds of an axe in the part of the jungle 

 he inhabited, he would rush shrieking, and chace the 

 woodcutters ; who went about their work in fear and 

 trembling until I rolled him over with a single ball 

 as he charged me, when I caught him bathing in a 

 small pool of water." 



"I remember it well," answered B ; "but 



here come the men with the axes, so bear a hand, 

 and we will show them how to begin ourselves." 



When the people came up, we set to work cutting 

 out the tusks ; which task, even with the aid of heavy 

 axes, a saw, and fresh relays of operators, took us 

 nearly three hours before it was accomplished, when, 

 cutting off the end of the tail and the tips of the ears 

 and trunk to send to the " Cutchery " * for the Go- 

 vernment reward, we slung the ivory on bamboos, 

 and the Mulchers carried it on their shoulders. 



We descended the Ghaut by a shorter route than 

 * Cutchery the collector's office. 



