Wild Beasts and Their Ways, Sir Samuel White Baker [books successful people read TXT] 📗

the supposed position, which he declared would either kill the tiger or drive it forward. I never like to fire at hazard, but I was of opinion that it might provoke a charge, as I did not think that anything would induce the tiger to move forward after the numerous successful attempts in breaking back. I accordingly aimed with the No.12 smooth-bore carefully in the direction pointed out by the mahout, and fired. The effect was magnificent; at the same instant a loud roar was accompanied by the determined spring of the tiger from its dense lair. My elephant twisted round so suddenly to the left, that had I been unprepared I should have fallen heavily against the rail. Instead of this, my left hand clutched instinctively the left rail of the howdah, and holding the gun with my right, I fired it into the tiger's mouth within 2 feet of the muzzle, just as it would have seized the mahout's right leg. A sack of sand could not have fallen more suddenly or heavily. The charge of S.S.G. had gone into the open jaws.

The remnant of that skull is now in my possession. The lower jaw absolutely disappeared, being reduced to pulp. All the teeth were cut away from the upper jaw, together with a portion of the bone, and several shot had gone through the back of the throat and palate into the brain. This was a striking example of the utility of a handy smooth-bore in a howdah for close quarters. If I had had my favourite '577 rifle weighing 12 lbs., I could not have used it with one hand effectively, but the 7 lb. smooth-bore was as handy as a pistol. The wind-up of the hunt was very satisfactory to my men, all of whom had worked with much intelligence and skill.

There were so many wild pigs throughout the churs below Rohumari that the tigers declined to kill our baits, as they could easily procure their much-loved food. Every night our animals were tied up in various directions, but we found them on the following morning utterly disregarded. This neglect on the part of the tigers imposed the necessity of marching in line haphazard for many hours consecutively through all the most likely places to contain a tiger. Many of the islands were at this dry season separated from each other by sandy channels where the contracted stream was only a few inches deep; it was therefore a certain proof, should tigers exist upon the islands, if tracks were discovered on the sand. During the night it was the custom of these animals to wander in all directions, and it was astonishing upon some occasions to see the great distances that the tiger had covered, and the numerous churs that it had visited, either in a search for prey, or more probably for a companion of its own species.

If there were no tracks in the channel-beds, it might be safely inferred that there were no tigers in the neighbourhood. Nevertheless I continued daily to beat every acre of ground, and we seldom returned till about 4 p.m., having invariably started shortly after daybreak.

It would be natural to suppose that the elephants would have become accustomed to the scent of tigers, from their daily occupation, and that their nerves would have been more or less hardened; but this was not the case; on the contrary, some became more restless, and evinced extreme anxiety when a pig or hog-deer suddenly rushed from almost beneath their feet. This timidity led to a serious accident, which narrowly escaped a fatal termination.

We had been fruitlessly beating immense tracts of withered grass about 10 feet high, in which were numerous pigs, but no trace of tigers, and at about noon we met some natives who were herding cattle and buffaloes. The presence of this large herd appeared to forbid the chance of finding any tigers in their vicinity, and upon questioning the herdsmen they at once declared that no such animals existed in the immediate neighbourhood; at the same time they advised us to try fresh ground upon a large island about two miles distant up the stream.

We crossed several channels, after scrambling with the usual difficulty down the cliffs, quite 35 feet high, of crumbling alluvial soil, and at length we reached the desired spot, where a quantity of tamarisk filled a slight hollow which led from the river's bed up a steep incline. By this route we ascended, and formed the elephants into line upon our left. The hollow in which my elephant remained ran parallel with the line of march, and about 5 feet below. Just as the elephants moved forward, my servant, who was behind me in the howdah, exclaimed, "Tiger, master, tiger!" and pointed to the left in the high grass a few yards in front of the line of elephants.

I could see nothing; neither could my man, but he explained that for an instant only he had caught sight of along furry tail which he was sure belonged to either a tiger or a leopard. I could always depend upon Michael, therefore I at once halted the line, with the intention of pushing my elephant ahead until I should discover some tolerably clear space among the high grass, in which I could wait for the advance of the beating line.

At about a quarter of a mile distant there was a spot where the grass had been fired while only half-ripened, and although the bottom was burnt, the stems were only scorched, and of that mingled colour, black and yellow, which matches so closely with the striped hide of a tiger. There was no better position to be found; I therefore halted, and gave the preconcerted signal for a forward movement.

The line of elephants advanced. I was riding the large tusker Thompson, who became much agitated as a succession of wild pigs rushed forward upon several occasions, and one lot took to water, swimming across a channel upon my left. Presently a slow movement disturbed the half-burnt herbage, and I could make out with difficulty some form creeping silently forward about 40 yards from my position. It halted, no doubt having perceived the elephant. It moved again, and once more halted. I now made out that it was a tiger; but although I could distinguish yellow and black stripes, I could not possibly determine any head or tail, therefore I could only speculate upon its actual attitude. It struck me that it would probably be facing me, but crouching low. The elephants were now about 150 yards distant, approaching in a crescent, as the high grass was not more than the same distance in width.

I determined to take the shot, as I felt sure that the .577 rifle would cripple the beast, and that we should find it when severely wounded; otherwise it might disappear and give us several hours' hard labour to discover. Taking a very steady aim low down in the indistinct mass, I fired.

The effect was instantaneous; a succession of wild roars was accompanied by a tremendous struggle in the high grass, and I could occasionally see the tiger rolling over and over in desperate contortions, while a cloud of black dust from the recent fire rose as from a furnace. This continued for about twelve or fifteen seconds, during which my elephant had whisked round several times and been severely punished by the driver's hook, when suddenly, from the cloud of dust, a tiger came rushing at great speed, making a most determined charge at the nervous Thompson. Away went my elephant as hard as he could go, tearing along through the grass as though a locomotive engine had left the rails, and no power would stop him until we had run at least 120 yards. During this run, with the tiger in pursuit for a certain distance, I fully expected to see it clinging to the crupper; however, by the time we turned the elephant it had retreated to the high grass covert.

I felt sure this was the wounded tiger, although Michael declared that it was a fresh animal, and that two had been together.

I now pushed the elephant into the middle of the grass, and holloaed to the line to advance in a half-circle, as I was convinced that the tiger was somewhere between me and the approaching elephants.

They came on tolerably well, although a few were rather scared. At length they halted about 70 yards from me, and, as I knew that the tiger was not far off, I ordered the left wing (on my right) to close in, so as to come round me, by which movement the tiger would be forced to within a close shot.

Before the line had time to advance, there was a sudden roar, and a tiger sprang from the grass, and seized a large muckna (tuskless male) by the trunk, pulling it down upon its knees so instantaneously that the mahout was thrown to the ground.

As quick as lightning the tiger relinquished its hold upon the elephant and seized the unfortunate mahout.

I never witnessed such a hopeless panic. The whole line of elephants broke up in complete disorder. The large elephant Hogg, who had been seized, was scaring riderless at mad speed over the plain; a number of others had bolted in all directions, and during this time a continual succession of horrible roars and angry growls told that the tiger was tearing the man to pieces. A cloud of dust marked the spot within 70 paces of my position. It was like a dreadful nightmare; my elephant seemed turned to stone. In vain I seized the mahout by the back of the neck and nearly dislocated his spine in the endeavour to compel him to move forward; he dug his pointed hook frantically into Thompson's head, but the animal was as rigid as a block of granite. This lasted quite fifteen seconds; it appeared as many minutes. Suddenly my servant shouted "Look out, master, another tiger come; two tigers, master, not one!" I looked in the direction pointed, and I at once saw a tiger crouching as though preparing for a charge, about 40 yards distant: the animal was upon my right, and the elephant had not observed it.

I fired exactly below the nose, and the tiger simply rolled upon its side stone-dead, the bullet having completely raked it. Leaving the body where it lay, my elephant now responded to the driver's hook, and advanced steadily towards the spot where we had seen the cloud of dust which denoted the attack upon the mahout. Fully expecting to see the tiger upon the man's body, I was standing ready in the howdah prepared for a careful shot. We arrived at the place. This was cleared of grass by the recent struggle, but instead of finding the man's body, we merely discovered his waist-cloth lying upon the ground a few yards distant. About 15 yards from this bloody witness we saw the unfortunate mahout lying apparently lifeless in the grass.

We immediately carried him to the river and bathed him in cool water. He had been seized by the shoulder, and was terribly torn and clawed about the head and neck, but fortunately there were no deep wounds about the cavity of the chest. We bandaged him up by tearing a turban into long strips, and having made a good surgical job, I had him laid upon a pad elephant and sent straight into camp. We then loaded an elephant with the tiger, which we proved to be the same and only animal (a tigress) which had charged the elephant after my first shot. The bullet had struck the thigh bone, causing a compound fracture, and that