318 THE HIGHLANDS OF CENTRAL INDIA 



making a long detour to gain the shelter of a deep crack, 

 which, led into the valley they had entered, I stalked 

 almost into the middle of them before I was aware. My 

 first intimation of the fact was the sharp bark of a hind, 

 who had observed the top of my head over the bank, and 

 the next moment a rush of feet informed me that the 

 herd was ofi. Stepping on to the bank, I made a clean 

 miss of the first running shot; but, taking more time 

 with the second barrel, I saw the hindmost stag reel and 

 almost fall over "to the shot. He made ofE, however, along 

 with the herd; but presently left them, and took a line 

 of his own towards the long grass-cover in the middle of 

 the plain. I soon hit on his track where he had entered 

 the grass, and found a httle blood; but as the grass 

 was a loiag way over my head, I sent back for the elephant 

 with which to beat him out. Following the blood-marks 

 on the yellow stems for about a mile, we started him out 

 of a patch of grass near the river, and I shot him through 

 the back as he rSn away. 



The next day, being encamped at Topla, in the centre 

 of a wide vaUey among the sal forest, I went out in the 

 afternoon towards the Halon river. Here the country 

 was open and prairie-hke, short grass plains, dotted with 

 clumps of sal, intervening between the heavier masses of 

 forest. The river was very bright and clear, running over 

 a pebbly bed. I took out two young half-bred hounds, 

 between the Eampiir breed and the Scotch deerhound, in 

 the hope of getting them a run at a wounded red deer, 

 as they were as yet guiltless of blood. Their mother, and 

 the bull mastifE " Tinker," of wolf renown, accompanied 

 to help them in the kill. A couple of lithe, black, and 

 nearly naked, Bygas, with their war-axes, guided the party. 

 We wandered a good many miles in the early afternoon 

 without coming on game, but I, at least, was gratified 

 by the dehghtful park-Hke scenery. About four o'clock, 

 by the advice of the Bygas, we sat down on a httle eminence 

 crowned by a clump of sal trees, to watch for deer coming 

 out to drink or feed. Very soon a good-sized herd sud- 

 denly appeared in the middle of a long, flat stretch of 

 grass-land beyond the river; and after stretching them- 



