Walker Lake bulletin. (Hawthorne, Nev.) 1883-1926, 1895-11-20
OFFICERS IN INDIA.
THEY HAVE GREAT SPORT HUNTING
THE NATIVE WILD CATTLE.
Get Up Large Parties and Have Plenty oi
Fun-The Nyighau Is Not Ferocious, but
It Runs weli-How One OF Them Sold
Three English Officers.

ordered on service to India, where the du
ties are less, the pay Is Increased, there L.
gayety no end and life Is generally mad,
one of luxury and enjoyment, besides
which India Is par excellence the very
country for all kinds of sport from the
noble tiger to the quail During the no,
season one Is pretty much slave To the
weather SO far as outdoor exercise Is con
cerned, and all who can take advantage OF
this time to get their two months leave
and rush up to such charmingly cool places
as Nyne-Tal and Simla In the Himalayas
where from the heights one can look down
on the burning plains and pity those who
are compelled to remain doing duty
AT most Indian stations, more especially
those in the vicinity of rivers, the nylghau,
or wild COW, light brown, the male called
blue bull, owing to the BLUSH slate color
Is to be found They love to roam over the
rougher plains adjacent to rivers, whore in
many parts the growth of rank grass often
reaches eight feet affording thick and
excellent cover for them but through
which the huntsmen can ride slowly In
line, acting rs their own bcaters Previous
to doing so, however, some of the party
dfG piitttu VII bit iittIihS anu tntitu W sig
nal In case of any break Occasionally the
animal may be found grazing or lying
down out in the open
The hunt is advertised and the meet
takes place at an early hour at one of the
officers messhouses Coolies ARE sent on
to the ground at daybreak To assist II 80
required In the beating and to skin, cut
up and carry home for the mems mess the
mi ,nlp l. a tl., .J.,.,i
This delicate attention Is highly appreciat
ed by the men, After u hunt breakfast
spears are looked to, and all is excitement
and hustle To mount and be of Syces (the
native grooms) follow the horses They
keep up easily with horses steady trot
for considerable time Frequently 1t
happens that river has either to be forded
or crossed by ferry In either case this
creates considerable delay in the day pro
ceedings and ofttimes great merriment
for If fording Is attempted when the river
Is high or rising the current Is apt TO sweep
the horse or horses off their feet, and they
have to swim for it, making them nervous
and difficult to manage, the riders getting
most uncomfortably wet and having to
stand the chatting sure to be made by the
more fortunate ones rs to their drowned
rat appearance.
When all have successfully crossed, bar
the horse or horses who may have gone of
ON swim down the river on their own nc
count, with laughing and chatting, horses
are remounted and the work of the day
commenced Some huntsmen go out to
take a binocular sweep of the plain
Should nothing be in view the long grass
covers are carefully drawn, and pretty soon
a good blue bull is tallyhoed away, when
every one does his level best to get to the
front for the honor of the first spear The
length of the run of course VARIES so .uch
is depending on circumstances and sur
roundings, but runs are generally long and
exciting, although not as rule dangerous
tor the bull does not particularly care to
turn and charge body of horsen,en, al
though he will, when pressed by one OF
two, turn nasty and show defian'e AT
the finish all dismount and discuss the
run over pipes and lunch, then le;surely
remount and signal to the Syces and COO
lies, who have been following in the line
taken, and leaving "a couple of coolies to
skin and cut up the beast fresh beat is
made and another as good run looked for
AT the close of the days sport, at or about
O'Clock, three or four animals have been
killed These are left for the coolies to
skin, cut up and bring into cantonments.
Sometimes one or two sporting charac-
ters will occasionally take a bye day and
go out after the nylghau with spear or pis
tol The dash or danger In it makes it all
the more exciting, and many are the grand
runs l have had ON a good cape horse
sometimes with spear and sometimes with
pistol.
l cannot refrain from giving an account
of a most laughable circumstance that oc
CURED to me one day when quartered at
Faizabad in Oudh One day after break
fast 1t was proposed by a couple of my
brother officers that we should go out
quail shooting. We accordingly ordered
our tats (the Indian ponies), got our guns
ready, not forgetting to take with us
few bullets in case of seeing larger game,
such as deer or nylghau, and off we started
at gentle trot, accompanied by our syces
and a cody each to carry guns and am
munition, the rule in India being never to
do anything in the shape of labor or fatigue
that you can get done for you The river
was soon reached and successfully crossed
without hitch, the tats being like old
soldiers accustomed to it and not caring
to cause "bobbery" (disturbance)
On landing we decided to take our guns
and walk on, letting the coolies, syces and
tats follow in the rear We followed the
banks of the river, watching the huge
crocodiles and alligators as they lazily
crawled into the water on our approach
All of a sudden, to my right in among the
tall and dense grass cover. | heard a
strange rustling noise, like some heavy
animal pushing through Feeling sure
that my companions We're following on be-
hind mo, it did not occur to me to look
but as quick as fash although only load
ed with snipe shot, | raised my Wcstly
Richards IL bore gun to my shoulder and
fired in the direction of the moving grass
Simultaneously with the report heard a
heavy thud | looked around TO tell my
comrades. Oh, horror, they were absent
In. a twinkling ncrvously rushed through
the long grass, calling them by name. No
response Suddenly, however, stumbled
upon the body, not of either of my friends,
but of a nylghau-my first My friends
soon came on the scene, and. efter had
pitched into them for leaving their places
without apprising me OF the fact we had a