40 
A NOVICE'b INEXPERIENCE. 
tale, anticipation tells a far more flattering one ; but what 
a falling off there is in the reality! what disappointment! 
The fact is, it requires a long apprenticeship to learn wood- 
craft. In the first place, it is not easy for a beginner always 
to see the game before him, which appears to an old hand 
to be perfectly plain ; it also takes a long apprenticeship 
to be able to tell at a glance in what position the animal is 
standing, whether facing you, broad side on, or at an angle ; 
and it is as likely as not that the bullet strikes in the wrong 
place. An American once said to me, There is a mighty 
difference, sir, in shooting a grizzly bar [bear], and a painter 
[panther] ; a bar stands up on his hind legs, and you looks at 
him and sees where his heart is, and you plugs it, but a 
painter, sir, you no sooner knocks the life out of one part of 
his body, than it runs into the t'other." Now in forest 
shooting a beginner looks and looks and does mi see where 
the heart is, and the number of animals which get away 
wounded is chiefly due to this cause. Another thing which 
astonishes the novice is the wonderful way in which a native 
shikarie will track game, when to all appearance there 
are no indications for him to act upon. In later years, though 
I could never equal the natives, I could track with considerable 
success. 1 remember once taking a friend out after bison; 
we came on the spohr of a herd which appeared to me 
almost as plain as a cattle track, and after following it for 
some timCj much to my surprise my companion said " Oh 
lets go home, there is nothing to be got here," It was 
difficult to persuade him that we were on the track of a herd 
of bison, and I suspect it was only when 1 pointed out the 
bull to him (which he had the good fortune to kill) that he 
was quite convinced I was telling the truth. There is also 
