Jungle By-Ways in India 



doubt that it would put the black buck on the 

 alert. There was nothing for it but to hurry on 

 down the nullah, and this I at once started to do, 

 wading quietly through a deep pool which I now 

 had no time to go round. 



Another peep over the edge, first backwards at 

 the fox who was still standing on the same spot 

 yapping away, and with his sharp muzzle pointed 

 to the spot at which he had first discovered me. 

 Looking ahead, I could see the black buck, but 

 they were farther away than they had been. 



Down the nullah I stole still to the accom- 

 paniment of that confounded yap, and finally 

 came abreast of the antelope to find that the only 

 shot I could now get was one of loo yards. Do 

 what I would, I could not see my way to get 

 nearer, for they were now all fully on the alert 

 and facing the nullah, heads up and eyes and ears 

 wide on the qui vive. Also, I now had the sun, 

 which was glancing up over the horizon, full in 

 the eyes and on the fine sight, whose edges took 

 on a kind of halo. 



That shot was a failure ! Due entirely to ig- 

 norance of what the fox would be most likely to 

 do, and to an unnecessary attempt to hurry the 

 stalk. 



There is another animal in the jungle which 

 it is very difficult to circumvent when he is on the 

 qui vive, and that is the monkey. 



How many promising stalks end in failure 



88 



