United States or Tajikistan ? Vote for the TOP Country of the Week !
Not a sign of a living creature appeared, however, to enliven the solitude around us, and we began to think that our guides were a little TOO clear-sighted this time, when what should suddenly come upon us but a solitary old markore, slowly and leisurely rounding a rugged point of rock below.
Following them up, we came, while clinging to an overhanging ledge of rock, upon one solitary gentleman standing about 150 yards below. We both fired together, but the pace we had come, and the ground we had crossed, had unsteadied our aim, and though my second bullet parted the wool on his back, it was not written that our first markore was to fall so easily.
While taking a sharp look around us for a herd of some twenty animals which we had seen the day previously, we suddenly found ourselves close to a party of five markore, but they scampered off so fast over rock and snowdrift, that they gave us no opportunity of getting a shot.
The markore, however, were quite as interested in the sport as we were, and after an arduous and protracted stalk, they finally gave us the slip, and we called a halt at the summit of a hill for breakfast and a rest during the heat of the day.
However, one of our sharp-sighted guides then detected markore, grazing at a long distance up the mountains; even through the glasses they were mere specks, and, to our unpractised eyes, very like the tufts and stones around them; but in all faith that our guides were right, off we started in pursuit.
About two miles on the way we came to a slip in the mountain-side, and just as we scrambled, with some difficulty, across this, our foremost shikaree suddenly dropped down like a stone, and motioning us to follow his example, he stealthily pointed us out four little animals, which he called "markore," grazing at the bottom of a ravine.
Word Of The Day