BOOKS ON INDIAN SPOET. 339 



asserted, I think, that of all books on Indian sport, none has 

 caught the fancy and excited the imagination of young Nim- 

 rods in an equal degree with that charming romance of sport, 

 " The Old Forest Ranger ; " by all means, then, let it be read 

 for its vivid descriptions of camp life, and its stirring narra- 

 tives of hairbreadth escapes and daring exploits. The perusal 

 of this book has, no doubt, made a man of many a " muff," 

 by inciting him to emulate the deeds it records so clearly, and 

 by rousing an ambition to take part in them ; but the young- 

 reader must remember that big game is not now as abundant 

 as in the days when Major Walter Campbell stalked the 

 " Neilgherries," rifle on shoulder ; and Mansfields and Kate 

 Lorrimers are at present far from plentiful. 



Another work, constructed, as it seems, on the model of 

 the above, is Mr. Sterndale's " Seonee ; or Camp Life on the 

 Sutpura Range," a comparatively modern publication (1877), 

 describing "sporting adventures in a connected narrative, 

 mingled with very correct descriptions of the game encoun- 

 tered by the heroes of the tale. 



Captain Baldwin's " Large and Small Game of Bengal " 

 (1876) may be consulted for its accuracy of description and 

 careful observations. It is written in a clear and concise 

 style. 



Captain Rice's " Tiger-shooting in India " (1857) must 

 not, of course, be overlooked, although the gallant author 

 describes such sport as will not be found in Bengal any more 

 than will tigers and tigresses of such grand proportions as 

 fell to his rifle ; nevertheless it is a book which every tyro 

 may study with advantage as a trustworthy record of sport, 

 followed in the most manly and exciting style. 



Major H. Shakespear's "The Wild Sports of India" 

 (1862) may likewise be read with both pleasure and profit ; 

 as also Colonel Gordon Cumming's " Wild Men and Wild 

 Beasts " (1871), an entertaining and instructive record of 

 actual sporting adventures, to which may be added Mr. 

 Sanderson's fourteen years' experiences among Indian big 

 game. 



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