444 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, Vol. VIII. 
Meerut.* He is far and away a gamer, speedier animal than his relative, the 
ordinary fox. He may be readily distinguished by the white tip to his tail. 
I put up a couple of Houbaras (tilur) some time ago about 25 miles from 
Meerut, Surely this is far out of their usual range. 
G. F. RAYMENT, Ver. Mas., C. V. D. 
Camp FATEHGARH, 6th December 1893. 
No. XIII.—THE BHAKHA PLANT (INDIGOFERA CORDIFOLIA) 
AND ITS EFFECTS ON CATTLE. 
At the recommendation of the Hon’ble Mr. Justice (now Councillor) H. M. 
Birdwood and Mr. Chester Macnaghten, Principal of Rajkumar College, Rajkote, 
I was appointed in the year 1886 Curator of Gardens and Forests in Porbandar 
State, when Mr. F. S. P. Lely of the Indian Civil Service was Administrator. 
Accordingly, in conjunction with the Revenue Mamlatdar, I had to attend to 
the grazing of cattle. I had thus an opportunity of observing what kind of 
grazing was available in particular places in the different seasons of the year, 
and what effect it had on cattle throughout the State. 
The grazing land of the State is divisible into three parts—namely, (a) the 
land along and near the sea-coast, (6) the hilly tract, (¢) the plateaux and 
cultivated areas lying between the coast and the hills. 
These three areas afford different kinds of grazing. On the first area there 
is very little grass if any, but there are various annual herbaceous plants 
cropping up at different times. On the hills there are to be found many 
species of the larger grasses, and on the intervening area, which is very largely 
cultivated by the agricultural classes, there are different kinds of smaller 
grasses which afford excellent fodder. 
Before the introduction of the British administration into the State, the 
Rabaries (professional graziers) used to feed their cattle at all times of the 
year in any place they chose. The result of this practice was that the cattle 
found their way into the cultivated areas of the villagers and spoilt the crops. 
There were no restrictions as to public grazing grounds, nor any control over 
the depredations thus caused on private cultivated grounds. The British Ad- 
ministrator, having heard several complaints with regard to the losses thus 
caused to private cultivators, issued orders setting aside the coastal area for the 
express use of the Rabaries, where alone sheep and goats were to graze ; on the 
hilly area cows and buffaloes were allowed to graze ; and the intervening area 
was reserved for the cultivators and their own private cattle. 
In the year 1888 it so happened that 20 or 25 days after the first fall of rain 
several sheep grazing on the coastal area died suddenly of diarrhoea. The 
Se ee ee ee a eee 
* Blanford states that the Indert Desert Fox, Vulpes lewcopus, inhabits the dry and semi- 
desert regions of Western India, Sind, Cutch, Rajputana, the Punjab, and the North-Western 
Provinces as far east as Fatigarh —ED 
