JUNGLE-FOWL, ELK, AND PORCUPINE. 
for myself a mud and wattle one of about 20 feet by 12. 
Half of this was partitioned off by a mat, so that one-half 
was servant’s room and kitchen, the other for myself.. 
The furniture was a couch, a table, and a chair ; a small 
hole in the wall with a piece of coarse unplaned 
plank on leather hinges served tor a window, a nail 
and string for a boltf with a door of the same description. 
A hole was cut in the partition mat, through which 
the black boy popped out and in, as he was required. 
Having removed my bag of rice, biscuit. ar)d coffee, 
I am alone in the forest, where the face of a white 
man is seldom seen, and that of a white woman never. 
Occasionally a change of diet was obtained by taking 
an evening shot, for jungle-fowl were plentiful. This 
is a cunning bird. Sometimes when you fancy you have 
crept within a few yards of his last crow and flap of wings, 
and are carefully looking out, gun at shoulder, for 
a shot, the flap and crow will be heard 200 yards 
off in the other direction, as i! in derision. He had 
beard something and bolted off, and the stalking 
had all to be done over again, with probably the 
same result. The first elk I shot was done in an 
extraordinary manner by chanee. In crawling through 
a jungle^ with my gun loaded with ball, I thought 
a pair of bright eyes were staring at me through' 
some nilu. Thinking it was a eheeta, on a momentary 
impulse^ I fired : there was a slTddeii rush, and all was 
quiet ; marks of blood were seen on the ground, and, 
following up the track, I came on a large elk quite 
dead. A dozen men could not have carried him, sa^- 
I had to go back for help, and it was only to shout ' 
to the coolies iraickcM, iraichchif’ and there 
were plenty of volunteers. ‘ " 
But the greatest delicacy for the planter’s table, 
in the shape of game, is the porcupine. This animal 
is just a species of pig, and, as he feeds entirely 
on roots and vegetables, the flesh is clean and whole- 
some : a roasted porcupine in taste and flavour is 
something akin to a roasted sucking-pig, only per- 
haps more delicate and savoury, but, from being so 
cunning and diflicult to catch, I suppose that roasted 
porcupine has not come under the experience of many. 
It has been said the porcupine throws out his quills 
as a weapon of offence : without passing any opinion 
on the subject the following occurrence happened to 
myseH. 
Sitting on a chair one evening in my verandah, 
a sharp click was clearly heard,, as if something had 
struck the leg of the chair : on looking down, a 
porcupine quill was sticking in it. Now, how did 
that quill get there ? Bushes and shrubs were within 
a few yards of where I was sitting, and could easily 
