﻿178 
  A 
  MONOGRAPH 
  OF 
  THE 
  PHEASANTS 
  

  

  that 
  it 
  had 
  been 
  entirely 
  deserted, 
  and 
  no 
  Manipuri 
  could 
  get 
  within 
  ten 
  miles 
  of 
  the 
  

   nearest 
  known 
  haunt 
  without 
  the 
  certainty 
  of 
  being 
  murdered. 
  On 
  the 
  other 
  hand, 
  if 
  

   we 
  were 
  to 
  go 
  openly, 
  we 
  should 
  want 
  an 
  army 
  to 
  secure 
  our 
  safety, 
  should 
  have 
  to 
  fight 
  

   a 
  number 
  of 
  regular 
  battles, 
  and 
  probably 
  set 
  the 
  whole 
  southern 
  frontier 
  in 
  a 
  blaze. 
  

  

  " 
  I 
  replied 
  that 
  this 
  might 
  be 
  all 
  true 
  (and 
  I 
  did 
  not 
  doubt 
  it, 
  as, 
  when 
  I 
  went 
  down 
  

   to 
  the 
  junction 
  of 
  the 
  Chakpee 
  and 
  the 
  Imphal 
  Turail, 
  the 
  main 
  Manipur 
  river, 
  some 
  

   thirty 
  miles 
  short 
  of 
  the 
  nearest 
  haunt, 
  six 
  hundred 
  soldiers 
  were 
  turned 
  out 
  to 
  make 
  

   the 
  trip 
  safe), 
  but— 
  and 
  there 
  was 
  a 
  great 
  deal 
  in 
  that 
  but— 
  the 
  Loe-nin-koi 
  had 
  to 
  

   be 
  got. 
  

  

  "Then 
  at 
  last 
  — 
  necessity 
  is 
  often 
  the 
  mother 
  of 
  invention 
  — 
  seeing 
  that 
  escape 
  was 
  

   hopeless, 
  a 
  notable 
  scheme 
  was 
  devised. 
  A 
  party 
  of 
  Kamhow 
  refugees, 
  living 
  or 
  

   wandering 
  about 
  near 
  the 
  border 
  were 
  sent 
  for, 
  and 
  two 
  of 
  these 
  I 
  taught 
  to 
  skin. 
  The 
  

   plan 
  was 
  that 
  all 
  the 
  adult 
  males 
  of 
  the 
  party, 
  some 
  sixty 
  in 
  number, 
  should 
  make 
  their 
  

   way 
  to 
  the 
  nearest 
  place 
  where 
  the 
  Loe-nin-koi 
  was 
  known 
  to 
  occur, 
  and 
  while 
  three 
  or 
  

   four 
  trapped 
  and 
  two 
  skinned, 
  the 
  rest, 
  who 
  knew 
  all 
  the 
  ground 
  well, 
  should 
  spread 
  out 
  

   in 
  all 
  directions 
  and 
  guard 
  against 
  a 
  surprise. 
  Set 
  a 
  thief 
  to 
  catch 
  a 
  thief; 
  being 
  

   Kamhows 
  themselves, 
  they 
  knew 
  what 
  to 
  expect 
  and 
  how 
  to 
  guard 
  against 
  it, 
  and 
  they 
  

   knew, 
  moreover, 
  every 
  inch 
  of 
  the 
  ground. 
  Any 
  one 
  else 
  was 
  certain 
  to 
  be 
  killed, 
  but 
  

   in 
  their 
  case 
  there 
  was, 
  as 
  they 
  arranged 
  the 
  expedition, 
  little 
  danger. 
  Of 
  course 
  they 
  

   were 
  clamorous 
  for 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  Enfield 
  rifles 
  of 
  my 
  guard, 
  but 
  as 
  I 
  well 
  knew 
  that 
  then 
  

   instead 
  of 
  trying 
  to 
  get 
  pheasants 
  they 
  would 
  have 
  gone 
  head-hunting 
  among 
  their 
  

   former 
  acquaintances 
  on 
  their 
  own 
  account, 
  and 
  probably 
  have 
  thus 
  led 
  into 
  a 
  serious 
  

   counter-raid 
  into 
  Manipur, 
  I 
  positively 
  refused 
  to 
  give 
  them 
  any 
  arms. 
  They 
  were 
  to 
  

   run, 
  not 
  fight, 
  and 
  with 
  all 
  their 
  scouts 
  out, 
  and 
  knowing 
  the 
  ground 
  far 
  better 
  than 
  the 
  

   Kamhows 
  on 
  the 
  other 
  side 
  of 
  what 
  I 
  may 
  call 
  the 
  Debateable 
  Land, 
  there 
  was 
  no 
  

   chance 
  of 
  them 
  getting 
  into 
  serious 
  trouble. 
  Now, 
  these 
  creatures 
  were 
  the 
  most 
  

   absolute 
  savages 
  ; 
  they 
  never 
  had, 
  I 
  believe, 
  though 
  my 
  Envoy 
  thought 
  otherwise, 
  the 
  

   slightest 
  intention 
  of 
  bringing 
  the 
  pheasants 
  ; 
  all 
  they 
  were 
  manoeuvring 
  for 
  was 
  to 
  get 
  a 
  

   pretext 
  for 
  raiding 
  into 
  their 
  old 
  country, 
  and 
  to 
  procure 
  arms 
  so 
  as 
  to 
  enable 
  them 
  to 
  

   pay 
  out 
  old 
  scores. 
  So, 
  naturally, 
  when 
  they 
  found 
  that 
  they 
  were 
  to 
  have 
  no 
  chance 
  of 
  

   doing 
  business 
  on 
  their 
  own 
  account 
  they 
  decamped 
  during 
  the 
  night. 
  Then 
  we 
  sent 
  

   some 
  of 
  the 
  Moirang 
  people, 
  who 
  had 
  a 
  certain 
  acquaintance 
  with 
  them, 
  to 
  warn 
  them 
  

   that 
  they 
  must 
  either 
  come 
  back 
  and 
  arrange 
  definitely 
  to 
  get 
  those 
  pheasants, 
  or 
  they 
  

   should 
  be 
  driven 
  out 
  of 
  Manipur 
  territory, 
  when, 
  as 
  they 
  well 
  knew, 
  their 
  quondam 
  

   compatriots 
  would 
  have 
  speedily 
  accounted 
  for 
  them. 
  

  

  "Thereupon 
  they 
  all 
  returned, 
  remarking 
  blandly 
  that 
  they 
  had 
  only 
  run 
  back 
  to 
  

   their 
  camp 
  in 
  order 
  to 
  fetch 
  food 
  for 
  the 
  trip. 
  They 
  seemed 
  in 
  such 
  perfect 
  good 
  

   humour 
  that 
  we 
  were 
  a 
  little 
  too 
  kind 
  to 
  them, 
  whereon 
  they 
  at 
  once 
  began 
  to 
  say 
  that 
  

   without 
  arms 
  they 
  would 
  certainly 
  not 
  go, 
  and 
  to 
  assume 
  a 
  distinctly 
  insolent 
  manner, 
  

   though 
  a 
  few 
  hours 
  previously 
  they 
  had 
  crept 
  into 
  the 
  village 
  in 
  mortal 
  terror. 
  Then 
  

   my 
  Manipur 
  mentor, 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  sweetest-tempered 
  and 
  most 
  patient 
  old 
  gentlemen 
  I 
  

   ever 
  met 
  with, 
  blazed 
  out 
  in 
  wrath, 
  for 
  the 
  first 
  and 
  last 
  time 
  during 
  the 
  six 
  months 
  

   we 
  were 
  together 
  (and 
  even 
  then, 
  as 
  I 
  found 
  out, 
  it 
  was 
  only 
  a 
  piece 
  of 
  excellent 
  acting). 
  

   In 
  a 
  minute 
  two 
  of 
  the 
  leaders 
  were 
  seized, 
  eight 
  men 
  of 
  the 
  guard 
  loaded 
  their 
  rifles, 
  

   and 
  it 
  seemed 
  as 
  if 
  there 
  was 
  going 
  to 
  be 
  an 
  execution 
  then 
  and 
  there. 
  All 
  the 
  rest 
  of 
  

  

  