Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1881-11-16
A Tiger and an Elephant.

Once there was the biggest kind of q
Royal Bengal tiger-so big and savage that
Mr.. Barnum himself wouldn't dare travel
around with him. Even the lion, though
they called him the king of beasts, wasn't
quite sure he was the boss of the woods
when the tiger was around for he was a
quarrelsome chap and great fighter. He
had a paw as big as the top of your school
boy cap and his fore leg was so strong that
he could kill man with one swift, sharp
blow on his head.
"On whose head p
"Why, the mans, of course"
The leopards were awful afraid of him,
aud changed their spots very lively when he
was prowling around.
"Who was prowling around 7"
"The tiger, of course don't you get ex-
cited, Will, but just wait and see how the
story comes out"
Well, one moonlight night this old tiger
went trotting out of the woods toward lake
that was near by thinking that he could
catch a deer that had gone down t, drink
The wolves skunk away before him, and
scampered like mice before the cat.
Pretty soon he came down to the edge of
the water, and crouched along looking for a
deer for his supper, for he hadn't had any
thing to eat for two days, aud he was dread.
full cross,-about as you'd be if you'd had
only one sandwich day. But the deer had
smelt him, and legged it away, carrying their
bushy tails straight up behind them like a
flag As he crawled along he saw some i'm.
mense big animal standing in the edge OF
the lake, drinking. 1t was an elephant, but
as he had never met one before he didu't
I know what it was. But he wasn't the sort
of tiger to wait for an introduction, and
so ne dashed his side with his tail and
growled: "Me-ye O,0! R-r-o,0-op-ta"
The old elephant looked up kind of sur.
| prised, AZ much as to say; Z" guess some
| cat has got lost" And then the tiger growled
| and spit again savager than before. This
| ried the elephant up little and he stuck
Of muddy water, and taking good aim
quirted It right into the tigers eyes and
mouth. You never heard such howl a
he set up. The old elephant had no idea
80 much noise could come out of one cat
and so he walked out to the shore TO SET
about it.
| lie hadn't been out more'n quarter OF
a second before he wished he hadn't come
for that tiger just lit on to his back and
went to clawing aud biting with all his
might The elephant tried to shake hin
| off but he didn't shake worth cent
the elephant started on lively run for tn,
woods, as they generally do when any thing
is on their back, scooted under the low
limbs of big tree, and that brushed the
tiger off.
Then he faced the tiger, and put his two
long tusks straight out, aud kept his sharl
little eyes on keen lookout, for he wa
mad by this time And as the tigers lonl
curly tail kept lashing his striped sides, tn,
elephants funny little tail, with its bunci
of bushy hair on the end, kept switching
too. Pretty soon the tiger crouched dow
and made spring; but the elephant caugh
him on his tusks, and tossed him about Tel
feet in the air, and when he came dow
caught him again with sharp jab, ant
threw him on the ground. Aud then b.
walloped the tiger with his trunk, anC
punched him with his tusks, till he wa
glad to get up and run away with his tai
between his legs. And no thought to him
self that II he ever picked quarrel will
any other stranger 1t wouldn't be with al
animal as big rs a load of hay, with al
ludia-rubber hide, aud two teeth yar'
long, and tails at both ends, one OF 'en
made on purpose 10 thrash folks with.
And the elephant went back TO the water
vowing that he never did like cats anyway