BEATING SUGAR CANES FOR A HOG.
•who arc posted aL the iiearesl corners, should g;dlo]> round to walcl i for the
i i o g passing on ; and, giving the lialloo, shoul d dasli at him full speed, spearing
a s they come up.
Some hogs, however, are aware of the schcme, having been ]ianted before :
m a n y may be seen wi t h large scars, evidently the result of w o u n d s received on
f o r m e r occasions; and such arc extremely difficult to deal with. They ^vi 11
b r e a k liie line repeatedly, ripping all they meet, and eventually creating such
t e r r o r , as eilectually to discourage the beaters, who thence get into groupes;
a n d , though they continue their vociferation, act so timorously, as to render it
e x p e t l i e n t to w i thdr a w then» lor the purpose of trying a fresli cover.
I t is very common to see ploughs at work at the very edge of the canes
w h e r e the villagers arc beating for hogs; and, as the bullocks emploj'ed are ext
r e m e l y skittish and wild, it rarely happens but on the hog's debut, they lake
f r i g h t , and run oil' wi t h the plough, which is often broken to pieces. 'I'lie
p l o u g h m a n , alarmed equally witli his cattle, also takes to llighl, us do all the
p e a s a n t s who may see the bristling animal galloping from his haunt. Those
e m p l o y e d in d r awing water from wells, by means of large loaded levers, are in
g e n e r a l less concerned, though not quite out of danger, as the hog might
c h a n c e to boll upon them unawares; the wells made for the purpose of irrigat
i o n being generally close to the canes.
Ill this Plate the plough, with the manner of yoking the oxen, as also a
l e v e r as used for d rawing water, and the general plan of beating the canes, arc
p o u r t r a y e d . When an elephant is in the field, it should be placed along the side
o f the cane in a line wi t h the beaters, so as to drive tlie game forward, in case
il should come out laterally, and attempt, as hogs often will, to slip round the
l i n e , and return into thai part of the cover which may liave been searched.
N e i t h e r horses nor elephants should enter a cane, as they would do consider
a b l e damage, and be of no benefit whatever.
S o m e t i m e s hmljm or millet fields join to canes ; and when this happens, it
r e n d e r s tlie task doubly diflicult. In these, however, there arc generally platf
o r m s raised on posts above the heads or panicles, on which persons are
s t a t i o n e d to scare away the pcrroquets and starlings which infest that grain in
p r o d i g i o u s numbers. One of these platforms is shewn in the Plate. The tree
u n d e r which ihe horsemen are waiting, to give the hog liberty to (|uit the cane
f a i r l y , is a cocoa. The tree seen lo the right beyond the elephant, is remarkable
b o t h for the great size lo whi c h it arrives, and for the peculiar circumstance of
i t s sending forth roots from all its branches, which, in time, reacli tlie ground,
a n d there establishing themselves, become strong props; while in lieu of being
n o u r i s h e d by their parent boughs, tlicy suppl y them with sap. Il is common to
see eight or ten additional .stems lo one of these trees. They are known among
E u r o p e a n s by the name of haniuu, but their proper designation is burghiU. The
l e a v e s and boughs arc often cut for elephants' fodder; but the mohoii/s, or
d r i v e r s , consider them by no means an cjigihle provision; imputing to them u
p e c u l i a r tendency to injure ihe eyes. However, many hundreds of elephants
cal them in large (pianlities without any such cllect; which iciay be more prop
e r l y ascribed to the change of air and of diet, that llie animaLs fxpcrienc«' on
r e n j o v i n g frojn the soiilh-east to ihe norlh-west provinces. In the former, the
soil displays a perpetual verdure, and the air is cooled by sea breezes : in the
l a t t e r , the soil is hard and <hy, and the wind, Ibr foitr monlhs in ihe year, a.s
hot as the rays from a smith's forge. Another view of this tree i.* g ive n in the
P l a t e representing the hunt after a IculaitKs or civel.
T h e building in the back ground, near ihe grove of Palmira trees, is a small
bimgalo-a, such as is generally built by gentlemen who hunt annually on the
sauie ground. They are usually made of mud or iniburnt bricks, anrl thatch.-d
w i t h jungle gvass. They contain one, two, or three rooms under a pavilion
I'ooi, surrounded by a vcnntdah, or balcony, suj)portcd by wooden or brick
p o s t s . A part of the verandah is sometimes closed in, so as lo form small rooms
i b r sleeping in. The doors are occasionally of wood, or glazed; but this i,
r a r e ; and purdahs or curtains of several folds of gii/^ee, such as are used for
t e n t s , are more common : of these a description has been given in a preceding
p a g e . The small tiled building is the kitchen. As to stables, they are rarely
b u i l t . Horses in India are nuich accuslomcrd to 1»^ picketted in the open air;
a n d , as hunt ing usually takes place from November lo Apr i l , ivhich is generally
f a i r weather, they experience no injury from exposure at such a season. Indeed
I have seen horses kept out for many «lays during ihe rainy period, covered
w i t h double blankets, not only without being the worse for it, but without
b e i n g wet, although the season was peculiarly unfavorable; and that
" It did comc oa to blow ami rain to ijoot,
" That Noah'i ilooti was but a spooDful to't."
H a v i n g mentioned the irrigation so prevalent in India, it may be acceptable
to the rearlcr to be informed how the process is conducted. The wel l is usually
b u i l t on a spot in some degree elevated above ihe neighbouring fields, with
one, two, or more levers, inserted into forked posts, and moving on pivots,
p l a c e d near its brink ; the butt-end of each lever is loaded with uiud sufficiently
t o overpower the weight of an earthen or iron pitcher, when fdled with water.
T h i s pitcher being fastetied to a rope, of which the part lhat touches the water
is made of green ox hides, as being less subject to rot than hemp, and susp
e n d e d thereby from the peak of the lever, the operator ¡julls down the peak
u n t i l the vessel reach the water. When it is filled, he sulTers the lever to act;
a n d the loaded end, descending again, draws up the pitcher, which empties
i t s e l f into a reservoir, or chainiel, wiicnce the ^vater is conducted by small rills
i n t o an innnense number of partitions, made ))y a little raised mould. A person
a t t e n d s to open each partition, in its turn, and to stop the \vatcr when the bed
h a s received a sufficient supply. Thus each bed or partition is adet juatel y wat
e r e d . Some wells are worked by a pair of oxen, which draw over a pulley,
a n d raise, as they wal k down an inclined plane, a leather bag containing from