THE CENTRAL PROVINCES AND OUDH 251 
a mistake, for such feelings tend to bring us once 
more on to the common level of human nature. The 
forest was so dense at this time of year that it was 
difficult to distinguish the sex of the bison even at 
short range. The trackers would not venture any 
assertion lest they should lose their reputation ; they 
would swear to the footprint, but not to one animal 
amongst several. Luckily, my victim was a male, 
and I escaped the fine that one Forest Officer had to 
pay as a result of failure to recognize sex. But the 
bison is almost too good an animal to kill; he is 
charming to hunt, but his size and his beauty are 
such that he presents an almost irresistible appeal 
for mercy from the hunter. 
On the second trip we proceeded to the Raipur 
District, then in charge of Mr. A. Lowrie, a gentle- 
man who possessed the fullest confidence of the 
jungle people and an unrivalled knowledge of their 
ways, so that the tour was of special interest. 
Mr. Lowrie was in addition an accomplished sports- 
man who knew every mile of his large charge, and 
how to bring driven tigers up to the guns. Our 
party shot several, and missed perhaps as many, but 
the regret at allowing a tiger to escape from a line 
of guns can never be so acute as that felt by the 
solitary sportsman at the failure of his individual 
efforts ; in the former case such a contretemps may 
only cause amusement, and I have even known 
unrestrained laughter to follow on the discomfiture 
of the sportsman who has failed to take advantage 
of undeniable chances. 
Mr. Lowrie was also kind enough to send his 
trackers with me after buffalo, and I had many an 
