MISCELLANEOUS NOTES. 329 



a stump, and that the bird, on taking wing, had dropped from its claws a 

 leveret with eight legs. At my order they went and fetched it to me, but it 

 was so decomposed — hair all slipping off — that 1 did not preserve it. 



The leveret was a Lepus nigricolUs about three or four days old, and a 

 curious monstrosity. The head and fore legs were as usual, but at the shoul- 

 ders the leveret divided in a V into two bodies, each with a pair of hind legs 

 and tail, while between the shoulders, at the junction of the two bodies, an 

 extra pair of fore legs stuck up straight into the air, making eight legs in all. 

 I believe such monstrosities are much more uncommon among wild creatures 

 than domesticated animals, so perhaps this instance may be worth recording. 

 The hawk was most probably Spilornis spilogasier. 



A. L. BUTLEE. 



€ocOAWATTE, Ceylon, November, 1895. 



No. III.—BISON IN THE KAMPTEE CANTONMENT LIMITS. 



Considerable excitement was caused on the 18th October, 1895, owing to the 

 appearance of a fine pair of Bull Bisons on the Rifle Range here, well within 

 the Cantonment limits, and at a time when a party of the 12th Bombay 

 Infantry, under a European officer, were at musketry practice. I may add 

 that there are those who say there were three seen and others four. However 

 it is certain there were two. 



They came within 200 yards of the party and about half a mile from the 

 Railway station. 



The following items of information regarding this hitherto unknown event 

 were supplied to me by a native gentleman who, at my instigation, gleaned all 

 the information available regarding them. I give it in his own words, which 

 are not entirely destitute of unintentional humour : " When they were 

 observed by the musketry party, a havildar asked permission to fire at them 

 but was not allowed to do so. They then appear to have been observed by 

 the Railway officials, who were joined by a crowd, and then appear to have 

 gone towards them ; but no one then appears to have fired at them. The 

 musketry now being over, the havildar who first noticed them appeared on the 

 scene, and in the meanwhile one of the beasts made off towards a village called 

 Anjini, whilst its fellow came towards the crowd, causing a great confusion. 

 The Havildar being a little in advance of the rest, the Bhaisa (Bison) chased 

 him, but he succeeded in avoiding its attack by returning to the assembled 

 throng of people. The brute then went and sat down near the Railway 

 fencing. The havildar then climbed up the nearest tree, together with another 

 naik of the same regiment and one Mr. Brown, and fired at the beast with 

 a gun lent to him by the Station Master, wounding it in the right shoulder. 

 Mr. Brown also fired, but missed and retired. The Bison therefore grew 

 furious and crossed both Railway fencings and proceeded towards the Bazaar 

 shortly pursued by the havildar, who again fired at him a second time, 



