MISCELLANEOUS NOTES. 789 



for a moment, and then went on another 100 yards and started growling 

 again. We then left and returned next day, but could not find it. 

 It was evidently hit, as it had torn up a lot of undergrowth and small 

 bushes." 



It is a great pity that the animal was not obtained, as even if the 

 remains are found later on, there will probably be no traces of its having 

 been black. 



T. A. HAUXWELL, 



Conservator of Forests. 



Maymyo, Bukma, 1st October 1913. 



[Dr. Blanford in the " Fauna " mentions a black tiger which Mr. C. S. 

 Buckland reported to him as having been shot near Chittagong-. — Eds.] 



No. 111.— MONGOOSE F. COBRA. 



In the last Journal, mention is made of a fight between the above. 

 'This reminds me of an incident which I witnessed while riding from Sirohi 

 to Anadra one day. My attention was drawn by some brown thing moving 

 in a small Cassia auriculata bush. It proved to be a mongoose, Mungos 

 mungo, attacking a cobra, Naia tripudans. The cobra (fairly young, some 4 feet 

 I should say) was lying in waves over the twigs, the mongoose was leaping 

 up at it from below, the cobra making such plunges at him as his unstrate- 

 gical position allowed. A forlorn babbler was hopping, dismally about on 

 the twigs all the time ; so probably the cobra had been paying attentions 

 to the babbler when the mongoose's arrival drove him up to higher ground. 

 I brought my horse's head close to the bush, but neither combatant seemed 

 to notice us. After perhaps half a minute of upward jumps of the mongoose 

 at the snake's body and as many counters by the snake, the mongoose ran 

 off into the long grass 10 yards off. The snake lowered his hood and slid 

 downwards off the bush into the low grass, moving off in a line at right 

 angles to that taken by the mongoose. He had not gone far when the 

 long grass stirred, and the mongoose peeped out. The snake stopped and 

 raised its head, suspecting danger, but did not expand its hood. For a 

 second or two they remained thus, when in a second the mongoose had 

 sprung forwards, nipped the snake's head and dragged him oft", back down- 

 wards, into the long grass. 



J, H. SMITH. 



Bhtjj, CtJTCH, January IQth, 1914. 



No. IV.— FEMALE ELEPHANT GIVING BIRTH TO 

 THREE YOUNG. 



We think that the following may be of interest to you. On the 27th 

 October 1913 one of our working female elephants gave birth to triplet 

 calves, all males. 



We have no note of the date of impregnation, but the mother was heavy 

 in calf in October 1912 and was said to be due in one to two months. Of 

 the calves, one was still-born, one was normal and one was very small ; the 

 two latter only survived until 8th and 9th November. 

 18 



