This Being A Chilly Part Of Ceylon, I Had Thatched The Walls Of
My Tent, And Made A Good Gridiron Bedstead, To Keep Me From The
Damp Ground, By Means Of Forked Upright Sticks, Two Horizontal
Bars And Numerous Cross-Pieces.
This was covered with six
inches' thickness of grass, strapped down with the bark of a
fibrous shrub.
My table and bench were formed in the same
manner, being of course fixtures, but most substantial. The
kitchen, huts for attendants and kennel were close adjoining. I
could have lived there all my life in fine weather. I wish I was
there now with all my heart. However, I had sufficient bad luck
on my last visit to have disgusted most people. Poor Matchless,
who was as good as her name implied, died of inflammation of the
lungs; and I started one morning in very low spirits at her loss,
hoping to cheer myself up by a good hunt.
It was not long before old Bluebeard's opening note was heard
high upon the hill-tops; but, at the same time, a portion of the
pack had found another elk, which, taking an opposite direction,
of course divided them. Being determined to stick to Bluebeard
to the last, I made straight through the jungle toward the point
at which I had heard a portion of the pack join him, intending to
get upon their track and follow up. This I soon did; and after
running for some time through the jungle, which, being young
"nillho," was unmistakably crushed by the elk and hounds, I came
to a capital though newly-made path, as a single elephant, having
been disturbed by the cry of the hounds, had started off at full
speed; and the elk and hounds, naturally choosing the easiest
route through the jungle, had kept upon his track.
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