"That depends on circumstances," the Doctor answered. "Some of them have been known to weigh four hundred pounds, and occasionally you hear of one that tips the scale at five hundred. I saw one in India that weighed four hundred and fifty-six pounds, and had tusks about ten inches long. The peculiarity of the wild boar is his powerful tusks; they have an awkward appearance, but he can do terrible execution with them, ripping up the flank of a horse as though the horn of a bull had passed through it, and tearing a dog or man to pieces in a few moments. As I told you, when we started in on the hunt, it is well to be cautious about attacking a full-grown boar, on account of the danger from his tusks." [Illustration: SKULL OF BABIRUSA.] "In some of the islands of the Malay Archipelago," he continued, "there is a species of wild hog called the _babirusa_, that does not seem to belong to the hog family as we know it. Its legs are longer, and its body is more slender than in the rest of the swine species; it does not root in the ground, but lives on the fruit which falls from the trees. The tusks of the lower jaw are very long and sharp, but the upper ones, instead of growing downward in the usual way, are curved upward and backward to near the eyes, and sometimes they attain a length of eight or ten inches. These tusks do not seem to be of any use, except to protect the eyes from the thorns of the trees and bushes where the animal lives. The babirusa is quite as fierce as the ordinary wild boar, and is more fond of the water. He will take to a pond or river when pursued, and is said to swim with great ease." "The chase of the wild boar has been a recognized sport in all ages; we read of it in ancient histories as well as in modern ones, and in certain periods of the world it was more fashionable than any other form of hunting. During the Middle Ages it was highly popular in England and on the Continent, but in our day the wild boar has disappeared from England entirely, and is only found in a few parts of Europe. The best localities for hunting him in Europe are in Greece and Italy, but if you want the sport in all its glory you must go to India. One of the great amusements of the British officers in India is "pig-sticking," as it is called, and those who have indulged in it say that the excitement of a pig-chase equals anything they have ever seen."