nty or more coolies who transported
our beds, canteens, and provisions, besides servants, and grass-cutters,
and horse-keepers, the mahouts who rode the elephants, and two
professional sportsmen, Moors they are called, whose especial business
it is to track and capture the elephants. They reside in villages in
the northern part of the island, and are a fine hardy race, and show
wonderful sagacity in the pursuit of game. Besides the horses we rode,
we had several spare ones in case ours should knock up. One man had
especial charge of Solon, who, from his ignorance of the nature of the
wild beasts we were likely to meet with, it was supposed might otherwise
get into trouble. I need not specify exactly the locality of my
grandfather's estate; indeed, few of my readers would remember the
odd-sounding names of the various places through which we passed. I
know that I could scarcely remember them even at the time I was there.
Since then roads have been formed in all directions, and already great
improvements have taken place besides those I have described. We,
however, were now to travel where there were no carriage roads or
bridges, and often no ferries, so that we had to construct rafts on
which to carry across the streams our saddles, and baggage, and
provisions, while our animals swam after us.

"Another warm day, Sandy," observed the Highland soldier to his comrade
after many a broiling month had been passed on the plains of Hindostan.

Such was the salutation with which Nowell and I greeted each other after
we had descended from the cool heights of Neura-Ellia, and were
proceeding towards Mr Coventry's estate. Most lovely were these days.
We always started at the earliest dawn, when all nature was but just
awaking from the grateful rest of night. First came forth the gaudy
butterflies fluttering from flower to flower, till every shrub had a
rainbow-coloured mass hovering over it. Bees full of industry flew
abroad, and glittering beetles crawled along the moist grass, then
crows, chattering paroquets, and long-legged cranes took to the wing,
while the jungle-cock, the dial-bird, the yellow oriole, the grass
warbler, and bronze-winged pigeons sent their varied and ringing notes
through the forest. Then as the sun arose, the bulbul and the sun-birds
were seen quivering in thousands over the nectar-giving flowers of the
field. As the heat increased towards noon again all were silent, and
fled away panting to see