60 IN THE INDIAN JUNGLE. 



Peer Bux at Hunsur, and obtained permission to 

 try and bag him. He soon heard all the khubber 

 (news) as to the habits of the brute, and he deter- 

 mined to systematically stalk him down. For this 

 purpose he established three or four small camps 

 at various points in the districts ravaged by the 

 brute, so that he might not be hampered with a 

 camp following him about but could call in at any 

 of the temporary shelters he had put up and get 

 such refreshment as he required. He knew it 

 would be a work of days, perhaps weeks, following 

 up the tracks of the rogue, who was here to-day 

 and twenty miles off to-morrow ; but he had con- 

 fidence in his own staying powers, and he trusted 

 to the chapter of lucky accidents to cut short a 

 toilsome stalk. 



Selecting the banks of the Kabbany as the most 

 likely place to fall in with the tracks of Peer Bux, 

 he made Karkankote his resting-place for the time, 

 while a careful examination was made of the ground 

 on the left bank of the river. Tracks were soon 

 found, but these always led to the river, where they 

 were lost, and no further trace of them was found 

 on either bank. He learned from the Kurambas 

 that the elephant was in the habit of entering the 

 river and floating down for a mile or so before it 

 made for the banks. As it travelled during the 

 night and generally laid up in dense thicket during 

 the day, there was some chance of coming up with 

 it, if only the more recent tracks could be followed 

 up uninterruptedly ; but with the constant breaks 

 in the scent whenever the animal took to the 



