336 
WILD BEASTS AND THEIR WA YS 
CHAP. 
me; determined to gain the forest, he charged 
straight past me, or at me, I would not say which. 
I had expected this, as from his position he could 
not retreat without leaping into the chasm and 
certain death below. I had my knife ready, and I 
met him with the point just beneath the eye, and 
jumping quickly on one side I gave him a quick 
thrust under his right shoulder. The next instant 
he was covered with dogs, and the wound proving 
almost immediately fatal, the hunt was over. His 
horns were 30 inches long, and were the most grace¬ 
ful pair that I had ever killed. 
“ I cut off his head, and with it commenced a 
toilsome walk home, having killed the elk, which I 
had every reason to believe had so often beaten off 
the dogs and baulked me.” 
On that occasion I was quite alone, my native 
huntsman having lost his way in the jungle ; I thus 
had to carry a head weighing about 40 lbs. for at 
least 4 miles up the steep mountain, and then 2 
miles farther to my own home. I had cut open the 
stag, and allowed the hounds to take their fill of this 
gallant antagonist, who had worsted them upon 
former occasions, and would have been victorious 
again had I not arrived to their assistance. 
From the few hunts I have described, it will have 
been apparent that the hounds are exposed to the 
roughest work, and that a valuable dog must com¬ 
bine great valour with discretion. It is the same 
with men ; courage is always necessary, but it must 
be allied with prudence. Some persons assume that 
