HUNTING ON THE TURIN PLAIN 123 



became a perfect hunting pony. The secret of it all 

 was that he liked the game as well as I. Traveling with 

 the carts bored him exceedingly but the instant game 

 appeared he was all excitement. Often he saw an- 

 telope before we did. We might be trotting slowly 

 over the plains, when suddenly he would jerk his head 

 erect and begin to pull gently at the reins; when I 

 reached down to take my rifle from the holster, he 

 would tremble with eagerness to be off. 



In hunting antelope you should ride slowly toward 

 the animals, drawing nearer gradually. They are so 

 accustomed to see Mongols that they will not begin 

 to run in earnest until a man is five or six hundred 

 yards away, but when they are really off, a fast pony 

 is the great essential. The time to stop is just before 

 the animals cross your path, and then you must stop 

 quickly. Kublai Khan learned the trick immediately. 

 As soon as he felt the pressure of my knees, and the 

 slightest pull upon the reins, his whole body stiffened 

 and he braced himself like a polo pony. It made not 

 the slightest difference to him whether I shot from 

 his back or directly under his nose; he stood quietly 

 watching the running antelope. When we were rid- 

 ing across the plaints if a bird ran along the ground or 

 a hare jumped out of the grass, he was after it like a 

 dog. Often I would find myself flying toward an ani- 

 mal which I had never seen. 



Yvette's pony was useless for hunting antelope. In- 

 stead of heading diagonally toward the gazelles he 

 would always attempt to follow the herd. When it 



