THE -450 EXPRESS. 83 



not discover us, and presently turned to look down the valley again. 

 Across the corrie to where he stood was about 350 yards ; but the light 

 morning breeze was blowing up into our faces, and carried our scent away 

 over the ridges above, to our left and his rear. It was an awful time 

 while he remained there, scanning us and the valleys alternately, for I was 

 on slippery sloping grass between stones, my left leg doubled under me 

 and asleep, hands bitterly cold, grasping my rifle and trying to remain 

 motionless. 



After about half an hour (it may have been more, but certainly not less) 

 he was satisfied there was no one about, and down he went a little further, 

 halting behind another pine, where he remained about a quarter of an 

 hour ; luckily the coolies were well hidden and silent, so he heard and saw 

 nothing. DoAvn he dropped again, first both forefeet, then both hind, on 

 what I should call almost a precipice, up which none of us could clamber. 

 As soon as he was out of sight behind a friendly ridge in the gullet of the 

 corrie (which ran from our ridge, and shut out the view into the bottom), 

 away I clambered, trying to warm my poor hands and steady my nerves. 

 His horns were so long and heavy that I began to hope he was a monster, 

 a regular " breaker of the record," and to lament my rifle was only a 

 single '450. My excitement was intense. Nothing could I see of him, 

 though I heard much crashing through bushes, and stones being sent 

 flying. I subsequently found he had got into a small gorge I could not 

 possibly see down, in order to drink. I beckoned up the goojur and we 

 went down a little, and then along slowly to try to get into the gorge ; 

 this, we found, would expose us too much, so we sat down looking through 

 the thin birch trees, and waiting to see the game move up again. At 

 last he quietly clambered up the cliff, but lower down the gorge, and 

 halted on a very narrow ledge to look up towards us ; he was barely 

 200 yards away, but I could not draw a bead 011 him, as I found the birch 

 twigs came across, and might very easily deflect the bullet in its flight. 

 He did not discover us, turned to the left, and walked very carefully 

 along the ledge, until he reached a small patch of juniper bushes, that 

 found a home on a space about 6ft. square. There he halted, turned 

 broadside on, and gazed across the gorge below. I had a clear view of 

 him then, through an opening in the birch tops ; but, as he was over 

 200 yards away, although below me, I put up the 200 yards leaf, rested 

 my elbows on my knees, took a very full sight at the usual spot behind 

 the shoulder, pulled myself together, and pressed the trigger. Bound he 

 flew, and away along the ledge. " Missed, by Jove ! " thought I ; but the 

 goojur said, " Hit behind the shoulder, fair. I saw the hair wave about." 

 As he spoke, down dropped the noble animal, and rolled until stopped at 

 the edge of the clift' by some most opportune junipers. Away went the 

 goojur, a Mussulman, to hallal him, by cutting his throat before life was 

 extinct, so that all true followers of the Prophet might gorge on the 

 flesh. Life was extinct when he reached him, you bet ; but I was 

 supposed to be unable to judge that fact, and the ceremony was duly 



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