about in scores. But I don't think I should have gone into their country
if they had not come into mine. One day the fellow who always carried my
spare gun or flask, and who was a sort of shekarry in a small way, told
me he had heard that a farmer, whose house stood near the edge of the
Ghauts, some two miles away, had been seriously annoyed by his fruit and
corn being stolen by bears.

"'I'll go and have a look at the place to-morrow,' I said, 'there is no
parade, and I can start early. You may as well tell the mess cook to put
up a basket with some tiffin and a bottle of claret, and get a boy to
carry it over.'

"'The bears not come in day,' Rahman said.

"'Of course not,' I replied; 'still I may like to find out which way
they come. Just do as you are told.'

"The next morning, at seven o'clock, I was at the farmer's spoken of,
and there was no mistake as to the bears. A patch of Indian corn had
been ruined by them, and two dogs had been killed. The native was in a
terrible state of rage and alarm. He said that on moonlight nights he
had seen eight of them, and they came and sniffed around the door of the
cottage.

"'Why don't you fire through the window at them?' I asked scornfully,
for I had seen a score of tame bears in captivity, and, like you, Mary,
was inclined to despise them, though there was far less excuse for me;
for I had heard stories which should have convinced me that, small as he
is, the Indian bear is not a beast to be attacked with impunity. Upon
walking to the edge of the Ghauts there was no difficulty in discovering