SIR,

Since Hubbeeb ul Hissan has ceased his communications on the discases of horses and their native remedies, your magazine has contained no paper upon this interesting and highly useful subject; such apathy on the part of our sporting men is much to be regretted, for there can be no doubt that much valuable information and simple, yet highly efficacious remedies are known and practised by native horsedealers, which, if wildly circulated, would equal European medicines in effect, and considerably surpass them in cheapness, and at the same time be procurable at all seasons, in every village. Such, for instance, is the croton bean, the muddar plant, the successful remedies approved of by many, and invaluable to the sportsman in the jungle.

Of course I do not mean to dispute the present superiority of European (when procurable) over native medicines; but as we are frequently thrown upon our own resources, when they are unattainable, as is often the case during the monsoon, or at an

outpost, or when an immediate remedy is required from accidental causes during hunting, I cannot but consider it a useful object to endeavour to obtain some correct information, found on practice of recipes used by native dealers for many ages past. The few that I now send is more with the hope of inducing others, fitter for the task, to enter the field, than with any idea of their value.

Gripes, common.-Six rupees, weight of butter, and two rupees, weight of sunjeera, mixed.

Wounds. The bark of the arjoon sadru powdered and sprinkled on a fresh wound will effect a cure. If the wound has festered, apply a poultice two days previous to the application of the powder. The scab must be allowed to drop off of its own accord. The root of the prickly pear, dried and powdered, may be applied with effect to bad sores.

Blister. The juice of the milk bush, diluted with oil of ghee, acts as a capital blister.

Gum Arabic.-A gum which answers in lieu of this is procur able from the baubul tree.

Worms. The betel nut pounded

for

is an excellent remedy worms in dogs, and might prove equally efficacious with horses.

Strains.-Fine cheenam sewn between two pieces of cloth, and sprinkled with water prior to application, is good for recent strains, bunging, and inflammation. about the legs.

Spanish fly.-Telili, a native fly, may be substituted.

Sore back.-A salt and water lotion, and, in the course of two days, a slight addition of checnam, will heal the wound.

Cordial.-Ginger 3oz.; carraway seeds and pimenta, of each 6oz.; honey, a pound and a half; Turkey opium, 14oz.; macerate the opium in a little hot water until reduced to a thin paste,

then mix in the other ingredients. This makes twenty balls. This cordial is not native, but I insert it, it having been strongly recommended to me.

Splints. The following plan has been followed with success. Cut the hair off and rub in ghee, then wrap dungaree cloth, soaked in ghee, twelve or fourteen times over the splint; apply a hot blunt iron to the cloth, taking care not to burn quite through all the bandages, after which apply cool applications to the wounds. A bit of wet sheep's skin applied to skin applied to a fresh girthgall will assist the cure. Yours, &c.,

Bombay.

SIR, Many have been the arguments pro and con., as to whether the palm of the "firmest head and most eagle-like eye" should be awarded to the good old hog killers of the days of yore, who took a pinch of snuff and a poke at a pig, with about the same degree of excitement; or to the mad scampering hedge-breaker of the present day, who rides through the most lovely scenery in the world, without the moiety of a squint even for any one of its features, except the ugliest in the landscape, viz. the piece of pork toddling in front of him.

Hitherto the controversy has been carried on with about equal strength on both sides, and public opinion may be considered to be in the situation (with reverence be it written) of the animal I mean between the two bundles of fodder. A few facts that have lately come within my sphere of observation may be denominated

CROTON.

the oats, which being added to one of the bundles on one side of the question, determines the wavering mead of patience and the public. In a jungle, not far from Khandeish, and in the country round about that jungle, there is a pretty good sprinkling of the grisly tenants of the wood, affording of course a tempting bait for the sportsman. Two roaring boys, whose first officials were dated 17 something, hearing of the glorious fun to be had in "the wilds of the surrounding country " (as the cockney says when he gets out of sight of St. Paul's), and being somewhat too shaken in the nerves to "sternly stand with spear in hand," as they used to do, determined to hunt by proxy and eat in propria persona. One of them being asked why he did not hunt himself, said quite unconsciously, "Oh, it would be a great bore looking for a hog;" to which his interrogator answered, "True."

In pursuance of their resolu

tion, Mr. Editor, may I never commit baconcide again, if they did not order out a number of native Indians with powder and ball, who succeeded after a hard fag in bagging one and wounding another fine hog.

After this, Mr. Editor, let the present generation give in at once, with a good grace, and candidly own that whatever fleeting enthusiasm they may feel for the sport during its continuance, the

heroes of bygone days far outdid them in a deeply-rooted love for hog-a feeling evidently so inherent in their natures, that when incapacitated by infirmities from participating in the glories of the chase and death, as formerly, they cannot leave them alone; and since they can no longer contend in the field for the first spear, console themselves by disputing in the dining-room for the first fork. A. B. C.

20th Nov.

S.

SIR,

In continuation of some former letters which you inserted in the O. S. M., I now send you some more scraps from my journal.

L. T.

Dharwar, March 14th, 1833.

April 14th, 1832. The people sent out yesterday in search of tigers returned without success, but marked down two bears in the hills at daylight this morning. No beating was required-they were lying sound asleep, under a high rock, and as soon as we had taken up our stations, so as to surround them, a stone was dropped upon them from above, and away they went at an awkward gallop. I never saw a bear charge before, but the largest of the two, which was hit by the first that fired, turned shortly round and made straight at the man nearest him, rolling down the hill at the rate of 20 miles an hour. He was stopped by a ball just as he appeared over the head of his intended victim, and scrambled off after his companion, most fortunately for the gentlemen whom he intended to favour, for after firing both barrels his foot had slipped, and he was tumbling

down the rocks straight before the bear at the moment a lucky shot turned the latter. We gave chase, and after firing-I am ashamed to say how often-the brute got weary of life, and saved us further trouble by lying down to die under a shady bush.

Next day a bear and her cub were marked into the same place, and after being driven from point to point for half an hour, were finished at last. I say at last, for

VOL. II.

I verily believe 50 shots were fired, and the operator who examined her carcase reported that 13 balls had taken effect.

The cub was burked by the beaters.

June 20.-Joined R-'s party; they have been out three days, and have had little sport yet, a hyena, a cheeta, and one solitary hog being the amount of their bag. A savage man-eating tigress, with cubs, that had been playing the devil lately, was marked into a date thicket, and we began beating after breakfast, two elephants in the field. The natives told us that one of her cubs had been killed by a dog a few days ago, and that she had been very savage ever since. We expected, therefore, that she would show good sport. The cover was beat for hours without success. She had been twice seen, and once fired at from a tree, but the elephants had not yet come into action, when we observed a fresh track leading from the nullah to the plain. It was evident she had stole away, and our only chance was to follow her up instantly. The ground was soft and the tracks plain-it did not require the eye of a bheel to point them out, for we could see them distinctly from the howdah, and after urging them forward about a mile, we suddenly came on the tigress in an open field, where there was hardly cover to conceal a hare.

She crouched to receive the elephant, with her head towards him, and just as she was rising a ball hit her in the spine and quite disabled her. We walked up both elephants within three yards, and I never saw such an expression of devilry as her head presented,

2 E