MARKHOR AND SHARPU SHOOTING 187 



Dards, go about with the most beautiful white, yel- 

 low, and red roses stuck in their soiled caps, - 

 flowers which at home would cost a pretty penny, 

 and often one of them would come to my tent with a 

 big bunch of them, for which I would throw him the 

 outrageously high baksheesh of two annas (four 

 cents) , there being no smaller coin in my money-bag. 

 I was called at daylight on the 2Oth, to find a dis- 

 mal rain without, and the shikaris protesting that 

 the game would not "be around" on such a day. 

 But knowing the habits of game and the inclinations 

 of the Kashmiri, I was soon climbing the mountain. 

 It took two hours of hard work to reach the top, 

 where we searched the neighboring ridges with the 

 glasses, but found nothing. The shikaris then sug- 

 gested that I sit down in my wet clothes and wait all 

 day for the evening shooting ; but having no desire 

 to contract pneumonia, rheumatism, or other similar 

 ills, I told Kadera that he could remain if he wished, 

 that I was going back to camp, and would return in 

 the afternoon. So I descended, slept from nine till 

 two, and climbing again, reached the top at four. 

 This bit of energy seemed completely to stagger the 

 shikaris, who had had no idea that I would return, 

 and had doubtless passed the dismal hours cheered 

 up by the prospect of being able to say to me on 

 their reaching camp in the evening, "We told you 



