28 NATURAL HISTORY IN ANECDOTE. 



came and inspected the trench and the palisades beyond. 

 A bristly old tusker was observed taking a survey of the 

 defences; but, after mature deliberation, he gave two short 

 grunts, the porcine (language), I imagined, for 'No go,' and 

 took himself off at a round trot, to pay a visit to my neigh- 

 bour Ram Chunder, and inquire how his little plot of sweet 

 yams was coming on. The jackals sniffed at every crevice, 

 and determined to wait a bit; but the monkeys laughed the 

 whole entrenchment to scorn. Day after day was I doomed 

 to behold my canes devoured as fast as they ripened, by 

 troops of jubilant monkeys. It was of no use attempting to 

 drive them away. When disturbed, they merely retreated 

 to the nearest tree, dragging whole stalks of sugar-cane along 

 with them, and then spurted the chewed fragments in my 

 face, as I looked up at them. This was adding insult to 

 injury; and I positively began to grow bloodthirsty at the 

 idea of being outwitted by monkeys. The case between us 

 might have been stated in this way. 'I have, at much 

 trouble and expense, cleared and cultivated this jungle land,' 

 said I. ' More fool you,' said the monkeys. ' I have 

 planted and watched over these sugar-canes.' 'Watched! 

 Ah, ah! so have we, for the matter of that.' 'But surely 

 I have a right to reap what I sowed.' 'Don't see it,' said 

 the monkeys; 'the jungle, by rights prescriptive and indefeas- 

 ible, is ours, and has been so ever since the days of Ram 

 Hanuman of the long tail. If you cultivate the jungle with- 

 out our consent, you must look to the consequences. If you 

 don't like our customs, you may get about your business. 

 We don't want you.' I kept brooding over this mortifying 

 view of the matter, imtil one morning I hatched revenge in 

 a practicable shape. A tree, with about a score of monkeys 

 on it, was cut down, and half a dozen of the youngest were 

 caught as they attempted to escape. A large pot of ghow 

 (treacle) was then mixed with as much tarter emetic as could 

 be spared from the medicine chest, and the young hopehils 



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