CHAPTER III 



Leopard or panther — Most crafty of the cat tribe — Habits — Disliked 

 by the villager — The subaltern's hope — Distribution — Size of 

 leopards — Tying up for leopard — Craftiness in a beat — Abundance 

 of leopards — Shooting 'spots' with No. 6 — Leopards and small- 

 bore rifles — Sitting up for the pard — A night adventure — Con- 

 trariness of the goat — An afternoon rencontre — The pard in his 

 natural surroundings. 



LEOPARD OR PANTHER 



yA MONGST the most crafty of the jungle 



/ ^ beasts is the leopard or panther {Felis 



/ %^ pardus), the ' pard ' or ' spots ' of the 



sportsman. 

 He is probably more intensely disliked by the 

 petty^ villager than even his more lordly com- 

 panion the tiger, since, instead of robbing and 

 killing on the grand scale, he is given to petty 

 pilfering, and carries off their goats, dogs, and 

 even young babies in the most cool, exasperating, 

 and sly fashion. 



260 



