The Rhode-Island Republican. [volume] (Newport, R.I.) 1809-1841, 1832-10-30
TIGER HUNTING.

TIGER HUNTING"
The lst Of March will always be a
dies notanda' in my sporting annals, ms
the day on which first witnessed the mo-
BILE sport of tiger shooting. The MINI
rods of our party had, ever since we en-
tered upon the Dooab, been zealousIy
employed in preparing fire arms and cast
ing bullets, in anticipation of a chase a
mong the favorte hunts Of wild beasts,
the banks of the Jumna and Ganges.
Some Of the most experienced sports
men, as soon as they saw the nature of
the jungle in which we were encamped,
presaged that there were tigers in the
neighborhood. Accordingly, while we
were at breakfast, the servant Informed
us that there were some gougscaias, or
villagers, in waiting, who had some khub-
ber (news) about tigers to give us. We
all jumped up, and rushed out, and found
"A group of five or six half-naked fellows,
headed by a stout young man, with a good
sword by his side, and bearded like fif-
teen pards,' who announced himself as n
jeemadar.-As usual in like cases, oil the
natives began to speak at once in Velu-
tl-lke tone, and with vehement gesticu-
lations. The young jecmadar, however
soon silenced them with 'chirp, teerie!'
&c. and then gave us to understand, that
a young buffalo had been carried off the
day before, about mile from the spot,
and that their herds had long suffered
from the dcpredatious Of a party of three
tigers, who had been often seen by the
cowherds.
At4, p. nj. ESQ late an hour that few
of us expected any sport Lord Comber-
mere, and nine Others Of our party, noun
ted elephants aud taking twenty pad ele-
phan,s to beat the covert, and carry the
guides aud the game, proceeded towards
the swamp, pointed out as the lurking
place Of the Notwithstanding monsters.
Sancho, the jeemadnr-hurkarnh Of the
quarter-fnaster GENERALS department, in
sisted upon leading the cnvalcade, noun
ted on his pony This strange old cha
racter, who obiained his nom de juerre
from the strong similltude he bears TO his
iIIustrious prototype, both in :he short,
round, handy proportions Of his person,
and quaint shrewdness of his remarks
served under Lord Lake in the Mahratta
war, and has ever since distinguished
himself as the most active and intelligent
Of tho intelloncs department. Almos.
the last act Of Lord Cambcrmere, before
he left India, was 10 obtain for the faith
ful Sancho u snug Barataria, in the shape
of little jaghire, a possession which had
long been the object of his ambition.
This noted individual now spurred on
before our party, mounted on his piebald
palfry, Tor bclfry, as his namesake would
have called it,) with his right arm barred,
aud his scimetar flourishing in the air.
The jungle was in no place very high,
there being but few trees, and fine thick
covert of grass and rushes--every thing
was favorable for the sport. Few of us
however, expecting to find tiger, auoth-
er man and myself dismounted from our
elephants to get a shot at forikan. "A
bird Of the bustard tribe, which we killed.
1t afterwards proved that there were two
tigers within hundred PAGES Of the spot
where we were walking.
We beat for half IN hour steadily in
line, and was just beginning to yawn
in despair, when my elephant Suddenly
raised his trunk and truinpeted several
times, which my mahaut informed me
was sure sign that there was tiger
sbetween the wind and our
nobility The formidable Ilne of thirty
therefore, brought up their left
and beat slowiy on to wind
ward. We had gone about three hun
dred yards in this direction, and had en-
tered a swampy part of the jungle, when
the long wished for tally-ho sa.
|uted our ears, and shot from Captain
n confirmed the sporting Eureka.
The tiger answered the shot with loud
roar, and boldly charged the line ofelc-
plants. Then occurred the most ridicu-
ous, but. most provoking scene possible.
Every elephant except Lord Comber-
nere's (which was known staunch one)
urned tail and went off at score. in spite
,f all the blows and imprecations hearth
y bestowed upon them by the manouts.
)ne less expeditions in his retreat than
he others, was overtaken by the tiger,
md severely torn in the hind leg; whilst
mother, even more alarmed than the rest,
ve could distinguish flying over the plain
III he quite sunk below the horizon and
or all proof to the contrary, he may DO
oing to this very moment.
The tiger, IN the meanwhile, advan-
ed to attack his Lordship's elephant, r
ut being wounded in the ioins by Cap
'in Ms shot, tailed in his spring, and
hrunk back among the rnshcs. My el-
phant was one Of the first Of the rRna-
rays to return 10 nction. sndwhcn ran