AFTER THE ADJUTANTS. 29 



hanging over each other in most fantastic shapes. It was with 

 some difficulty we worked round towards the north side of the 

 hill, as besides the thickness and thornyness of the jungle the 

 ground under foot Avas spongy and moist to a degree. How- 

 ever at last our guide stopped, and pointing to a sort of rough 

 gap between two of the lower large rocks, said this was the spot 

 to attempt the climb — and a very nasty break-neck looking 

 spot it was, and I didn't half like the look of it all, more be- 

 token I had foolishly left my ropes at the camp. However 

 there was no help for it, and my mouth was watering to see the 

 number of Adjutants wheeling above the hills, all or most of 

 which had probably nests somewhere on the top. 



As to K. he gazed hopelessly up, and then declared he would 

 leave the honor of the ascent solely to me, and would himself 

 mouse about at the foot for lichens and algae. 



There being no time to lose, I took off my coat, tightened my 

 belt, and taking only my gun, already loaded, with a cartridge 

 of No. 1. shot in each barrel, and slung on my back to leave 

 my arms free, I requested my Karen guide to lead on. And 

 lead on he did straight up the face of the rock, clinging on to 

 roots, and projecting knobs of rock in a marvellous manner. I 

 did my best to imitate and follow, but had several times to 

 shout to him to wait for me ; aud was soaked through with 

 perspiration, and blowing like a broken-winded horse before 

 I got to the first nest wbich was placed on the flat surface of a 

 block of rock nearly at the top of the hill. A hasty glance at 

 it showed me four eggs resting on a mass of twigs and sticks 

 with scarcely any depression in the centre, and imlined. Below 

 this was a substructure of larger sticks ; the whole mass, 

 and the rock on which it was, whitened by the droppings of 

 the birds — the eggs, large white ovals, chalky, stained, and 

 dirtied, as like as possible to eggs of the Common Vulture 

 (Pseudogyps bengalensis). Having secured this prize, I looked 

 around and saw that there were no less than eight other nests 

 in sight, and in three I saw eggs. These also I managed to 

 secure, although the way over the rocks was rough and jagged 

 in the extreme, and once I had to swing myself over a low 

 cliff of about fifteeu feet by a root. One nest out of the three 

 contained two eggs, the other two, one each ; in these the eggs 

 were fresher and whiter, the nests themselves being similar to 

 the first described. 



A little further climbing brought me to the highest peak of rock 

 on the hill, and here I sat down for awhile to enjoy the scene 

 and cool myself. In front of me, and seemingly at my feet, lay 

 the Attaran winding like a silver thread, between walls of green 

 forest, and losing itself round the corner of the next range of 



