86 



The Supplement to the Tropical Agriculturist 



individuals into slavery. A party of our native 

 troops sent up into their hills may burn some of 

 the more accessible villages, but that will be all 

 the result, for it is impossible to catch these 

 cragsmen in their own fastnesses, as they never 

 show fight, so most likely no one will have 

 been hurt. The most severe punishment will be 

 inflicted on these Dallas by withdrawing their 

 license to trade in the valley for a term of 

 years. They are very jealous of allowing stran- 

 gers to enter their territory, anyone so doing 

 being promptly enslaved and seldom heard of 

 again. For that reason no British subject 

 is permitted by us to cross the boundary line. 

 Quite recently three or four Thibetans arrived 

 at our Bunjur outpost in North Assam, they 

 being the remains of quite a large party of their 

 traders who had been captured by these Dallas 

 many years ago. It is supposed that many 

 unfortunates among our absconding tea garden 

 coolies have "bettered themselves" by wand- 

 ering over the border, whence they can never 

 hope to return, and are not heard of again. 

 Luckily our people have been successful in pre- 

 venting the gun trade with these hill tribes ; 

 otherwise we should be confronted with a Far 

 Eastern Afghanistan, for they are hardy races, 

 but as yet are armed with but a few fortuitous 

 guns of sorts, bows, and arrows, spears, and dhas 

 being their most formidable armament, since 

 so far they possess no rifles. Speaking of 



FIREARMS, 



our indiscriminate allowance of these to the 

 natives of our settled States has resulted in 

 the upset of nature's balance. The native shi- 

 kari (or often village loafer), armed with a rifle 

 or gun, hardly interferes at all with the tiger 

 or leopard, but in many parts has nearly cleared 

 oil the land, all the more— to him — profitable 

 deer and pig and wild bovine animals, which 

 are the natural aliment of the felidas. The 

 consequence is that these now support them- 

 selves almost entirely upon the natives' flocks 

 and herds, and — more frequently perhaps than of 

 yore — upon the native herself. I think they are 

 quite as numerous as they were twenty years 

 ago ; at least, they fall quite as often to one s 

 rifle as ever they did. The tithe they take of 

 domestic cattle is enormous, however, so it 

 comes to be one's duty to so far as possible to 

 police the district, it one has a steady hand. 

 Both tiger and leopard are epicures, and kill 

 nothing but the best, to the great grief of the 

 poor ryot, who often lo»gs for the return of deer 

 and pig to shield his herds. So much for free 

 trade in guns, untempered by a proper license 

 system. 



One reads a deal about the 



GREAT CAT'S FAVOURITE KNOCK-OUT BLOW, 

 WHEREBY HE SLAYS THE BISON 



(here standing 6ft to 6ft 3in at shoulder), buffalo 

 and ox with one skull-smashing blow. At an ex- 

 tremely low estimate I have examined over 300 

 kills, and in not one have I seen a sign, of the 

 paw being used except to catch and hold the 

 prey ; even scratches on a kill are rare and small 

 as a rule. In ninety-nine cases out of a hundred 

 the throat seemed to have been seized from 

 below and the neck dislocated by a sharp twist 

 by the paw. Neither beast seems, as far as I 



know, to spring upon its prey, but by preference 

 after getting as near as possible, makes a filial 

 short rush along the ground, seldom chasing for 

 any distance if foiled, but depending on a sur- 

 prise. The vitality of both animals may well be 

 a source of perennial surprise. But a very short 

 time since I 



HIT A TIGRESS WITH A 577 EXPANDING BULLET, 



striking behind the shoulder, and raking 

 slightly back. The heart andlungsl found blown 

 to bits, yet she made a rush towards the smoke, 

 turned back, and went fully lifty yards through 

 a dense mass of reeds, finally hiding herself so 

 well with her last breath (if she had such then 

 at all) as to be invisible, from a few feet away. 

 This may seem incredible save to old shikaris. 



One reads magazine yarns of fellows shooting 

 "many" tigers on foot and alone. They always 

 aim, and hit, between the eyes ! Seeing what 

 the attitude of a tiger is when both eyes are 

 visible and the trend of the forehead. &c, I 

 know that no experienced man would choose 

 such a shot. I have been fairly succeessful in 

 my quest for Mr and Mrs Stripes, but it is my 

 firm opinion tlvat no man would on foot try this 

 shot on "many'' tigers and live to relate his suc- 

 cesses. A day or two ago I went after a herd of 

 thirty bison, as we call them (of course, quite 

 different from buffalo, as you know), and got a 

 head tho owner of which stood 6ft 3in. 



Assam. 



TEA IN CHINESE TURKESTAN. 



From the report on the Indo-Chinese Turkes- 

 tan trade via Ladakh for the year ending on 

 the 31st March, 1909, by Sir Francis young- 

 husband, K.c.i.E., who has just gone home on 

 leave, we extract as follows: — . . . It will be a 

 groat day for our traders when Indian tea is 

 allowed to enter Russian Turkestan, because it 

 will completely oust tho tea now drunk in that 

 tea-drinking country. The tea which is drunk 

 there at present suffers deterioration by the sea 

 voyage to Batoum. . . . 



Imports From India to Chinese Turkestan. 



Tea was not imported in such large quantities 

 as last year. The market was good and the 

 rates fair. There will be a great future for 

 Indian tea if it could be taken into Western 

 Turkestan via Kashgar. It is to be hoped that 

 the prohibition will be taken off before long. 

 The demand for Indian tea increases yearly, 

 and it is difficult to understand why traders do 

 not import more. Probably the transport ques- 

 tion has a great deal to do with it. 



Four qualities are imported : — 



1 Palampur green. Tengas per Ching. 



2 Pata from Palampur. 5 Tengas per Ching. 



3 Pamila from Denra Dun. 6 Tengas per Ching. 



i Brooke, Bond & Co.'s Orange Pekoe. 5.V Tengas per 

 Ching. 



Nos. 1 and 3 are most in demand. The tea- 

 drinkers of this country state that tea deterior- 

 ates by a sea voyage, and therefore they prefer 

 the Indian tea to that which comes through 

 Western Turkestan after a sea voyage as far as 

 Batoum. Our traders import a small quantity 

 of " A.k-chai," Chinese tea. It has not much sale 

 except amongst the Chinese who pay as much 

 as 16 Tengas per ching for it. 



