i 3 2 IN THE INDIAN JUNGLE. 



small streams and rivulets among the hills of Chota 

 Nagpore for the small specks of gold they contain ; 

 and during the dry months when the rivers are low 

 they take to fishing. The gold-washing gives them 

 a precarious livelihood ; the fishing time is a season 

 of abundance of feasting, rejoicing and rice- 

 beer drinking. The planning of the water hoopoo 

 and the water hunt is directed by the most experi- 

 enced Jhora present, and as one-sixteenth of the 

 whole catch falls to his share, the post of 

 headman of the hunt is a most lucrative one. 

 My boatman, Samoo, was chosen on this par- 

 ticular occasion, as he had been chosen for the 

 three previous years, and a better choice could 

 not have been made. He seems as perfectly 

 acquainted with the habits of fish as the most 

 experienced shikaree is with the habits of the 

 denizens of the jungle. Every nook and cranny, 

 every pool and rapid, all the favourite resorts of 

 the various families of the finny tribe for miles 

 around are known to him. He is as familiar with 

 the reaches of the Koel and Karo rivers for miles 

 above and below their junction, as he is with the 

 inside of his own hut. 



The river was low, great stretches of sand and 

 thin streaks of water made up its bed. It was 

 fordable in most places. A deep pool at the 

 junction of the two rivers was selected by 

 Samoo as the terminal of the hoopoo. The 

 pool is nearly circular, about one hundred feet 

 in diameter and about sixteen feet deep, with 

 a shelving bank on one side. This was enclosed 





