We had the utmost difficulty in crossing the precipitous gully to a spot
below the ledge upon which the beast had been feeding--the ledge itself we
could not reach at all; and the lateness of the hour and the difficulty of
the country in which we were, prevented us from trying to enter the next
ravine and work up and back by the way the bear had gone. A neck-breaking
crawl down a horrible grass slope brought us to better ground, and I sadly
joined Jane to be well and deservedly scolded for firing a foolish shot.
The lady was very much disgusted at having been defrauded of the sight of
a bear "quite wild," as she expressed it--a certain short-tempered animal
which had eaten up her best umbrella in the Zoo at Dusseldorf not having
fulfilled the necessary condition of wildness.
Next day I sent out coolies to search for traces, promising lavish
"backshish" in the event of success, but I got no trustworthy news, "and
that was the end of that hunting."
_May_ 6.--Jane took a respite from the chase, and I sallied forth alone at
dawn up a nullah from Alsu to look for a bear which was said to frequent
those parts. A brisk walk of some four miles over the flat, followed by a
climb up a track--steep as usual--to the left of the main track to the
Lolab, brought us to a grassy ridge, where I sat down patiently to await
the bear's pleasure. I took my note-book with me, and whiled away some
time in writing the following:--
Let me jot down a sketch of my present position and surroundings; it will
serve to bring the scene back to me, perhaps, when I am again sitting in
my own particular armchair watching the fat thrushes hopping about the
lawn.
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