264 Sport and Life in the Further Himalaya 



tain game, in fact, he might almost be called 

 myopic : he is not the fighter that his kinsmen 

 of the Indian jungles are. But do not let any big- 

 game hunter imagine that when he goes out to 

 slay a yak he will have a mere butcher's job in 

 front of him. He may start from home with this 

 idea. But after reaching the country, where a 

 small incline sets the heart thumping in a most 

 disquieting manner, and the mere thought of a 

 long climb provokes a feeling of " is any animal 

 worth it ? " ; when the quarry is spied at the head 

 of a long valley that seems to slope endlessly up 

 to the sky ; when the wind is patchy, and it will 

 take half a long day's toil to encompass a doubtful 

 stalk, then he will lose the farm -yard idea, if 

 indeed he ever retained it after reaching their 

 wild bleak country. 



Fortunately, it is possible to ride over much of 

 the ground, and even to do parts of the stalks on 

 pony-back. The stress of living in high altitudes 

 is great, and the man that wants to be fit to climb 

 when necessity arises, not to speak of having his 

 nerves in fit condition to shoot, should ride as 

 much as he can and undertake no unnecessary 

 work. 



On the " Chang" there are two kinds of grass 

 the coarse scanty kind that grows on the hillsides, 

 and the short succulent spang that is found at the 



