202 MISCELLANEOUS. 



frequently seen its footmarks in the Sikkim Terai, and one occasion I followed a small 

 animal, (whose course I could trace by the moving stems,) for some distance, but did not 

 fire, because I could not see what it was. I was much annoyed when my Shikari afterwards 

 informed me that it was one of the small breed of Pigs. 



I believe that the Pigmy Hog does not stand more than twelve inches at the shoulder ! 



The Swamp-Deer — Cervus Duvaucellii. 



This beautiful deer used to be much more widely distributed than it now is. In 

 former days it abounded on the islands in the Indus, but it is now rarely to be found there. 

 Not many years ago it was to be found in the Dera Dun, and was fairly numerous in the 

 Nipal and Oudh Terais. Now-a-days it is not to be found with certainty much to the 

 west of the Bhutan Dooars, but large herds exist in Assam. 



The Swamp-Deer is considerably smaller than the Sambur, and much more gracefully 

 made. The neck is long and elegant, and the whole appearance of the animal extremely 

 blood-like. 



The horns are peculiar, possessing basal, but no median tines ; while the terminal 

 branches acquire a number of additional tines as the deer progresses in age. The usual 

 number of branches of an adult head are about twelve ; but fourteen, or sixteen, are occa- 

 sionally met with, when the horns acquire a somewhat palmated character. 



The color is a bright red, becoming paler on the under parts. 



The Swamp-Deer, as a rule, avoids dense forests, and lives principally in long grass on 

 the banks of rivers, or in beds of reeds on the margin of swamps. During the heat of the 

 day, however, it is fond of lying down in the shade of a tree, frequently a sal tree. 



I have seen a few Swamp-Deer in the Bhutan Dooars, but I have unfortunately never 

 had a chance of shooting a fine stag. 



The day after the death of the Rhinoceros described above, my friend S. shot a 

 beautiful specimen, but its horns were not clear of the velvet : I recollect that the venison 

 was the best that I ever tasted in India, being extremely fat. Most Indian deer, antelopes, 

 wild sheep, &c, are very lean. 



I have now mentioned every large animal that is to be found in the parts of Thibet 

 and India which I have described ; and the reader can decide which he prefers to hunt, 

 if his time is too limited for him to hope to be able to obtain specimens of each species. 



It is not to be expected that anything like a complete collection even of the Himalayan 

 game can be made in a single expedition, and it is a great mistake to attempt too much. 



The sportsman should make up his mind as to what animals he wishes to hunt, and 

 decide upon the route which he will take. This must of course be done with due regard 

 to the seasons, as some of the best shooting grounds are inaccessible during great part of 



the year. 



Plans having once been made should be carried out, and should not be changed, because, 

 perhaps, sport is not met with at once. 



