170 SPORT AND TRAVEL 



done more accurate shooting with the smaller gun 

 and had more confidence in its trajectory, it had 

 seemed to me best to use the former. I was sorry 

 afterwards, for though the first shot hit the animal, 

 he was off at once, whereas the express would doubt- 

 less have dropped him immediately. However, it 

 was not long before his body was found, stone dead, 

 on a ledge to which descent was made with great 

 difficulty, and his superb head, scalp, and skin were 

 brought back to camp in good condition. 



The next two days were spent in cleaning the skin 

 and head, and in continually searching the surround- 

 ing country with the glasses for further signs of 

 game. It was on the morning of the 5th that the 

 telescope revealed a fine big markhor perched high 

 on a rock, not far from where the first had been 

 shot, his horns standing out clearly against the 

 sky-line. I hurriedly dressed, said good-by to Perry, 

 who had come over from his neighboring nullah for 

 a visit, and was soon at the top of the ridge. The 

 markhor, two in number, had meanwhile crossed 

 the next nullah and were feeding half-way up its 

 opposite side. We slipped down among the woods 

 until nearly opposite them, but they were then upon 

 the point of disappearing and it was necessary to 

 take a very long shot, so long that it was impossible 

 for me to see their horns to decide which was the 



