56 
SCENES IN INDIA. 
most inaccessible heights and living among glens and 
precipices that defy the approach of human foot, in 
a neighbourhood where the cold is intense and the 
snows are eternal. It is seldom seen at an altitude 
lower than twelve thousand feet above the sea., though 
sometimes forced to quit the heights in search of pas- 
ture, which is scanty in proportion as the snowy re- 
gions are approached. 
The musk-deer, when full grown, is about the size 
of a calf six months old ; it is singularly shaped, hav- 
ing a head which much resembles that of a wild hog, 
while its feet are precisely those of a deer. The snout 
is sharp and the countenance wrinkled ; the eye small, 
dark, bright, and full. From the upper jaw two long 
tusks project, pointing downwards in a gentle curve 
and extending several inches beyond the lower man- 
dible. This animal is extremely active, and so shy 
that it is difficult to be met with, and no less diffi- 
cult to be secured when killed ; for its general haunts 
are so sequestered and often in such inaccessible 
places, that if shot, even the hill-men sometimes dare 
not venture to approach their quarry. The musk 
is contained in a small bag under the belly and this 
bag is cut from the creature alive ; for it is said that, 
should the animal be killed before the bag can be dis- 
engaged from its body, the musk is almost instantly 
taken up by the absorbents, which so taints the flesh 
that it is rendered unfit for human food. The musk- 
deer is so scarce that, whenever one is seen, the whole 
population of the district quit their homes to join in 
the chase and it is at least an equal chance whether 
the anxious object of pursuit is taken or escapes. 
