The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1888-08-10


hind the hunters are the gun-bearers
carrying ammunition and extra guns.
and then come the band carrying
gongs, drums. dinner-bells, horns, and
any thing else that will make a noise.
Then there are singers who throw
stones into the jungle, spearmen to
keep the line in order. and two or three
active fellows who climb trees in order
to spy out the game.
1.-The procession moves very slowly.
as it is necessary to be cautious in Or
der to prevent the escape of the tiger,
ard, if possible, save the members Of
the party from injury. The danger Of
such hunt is. that the tiger may sud-
denly charge upon you. and he is par
ticularly dangerous when he is wounded
and you are following him up.
.'Once, two of us were following up
a wounded tiger, and the blood was so
abundant that we all thought the ami
NAL must have bled to death. While
we were standing in a little clearing
debating what to do, the tiger sprang
out of the Jungle and charged on my
friend. whom he carried to the ground
instantly. The poor fellow was killed
by the blow, and it was small consola-
ton for me that 1 put a bullet through
the tigers skull. The creature meas
ured eleven feet one inch from nose to
tip of tail. and have his skin now in
my library.
another time when l was out in
pursuit of small game, strolled into
the jungle telling my men to follow a
short distance behind me, and make no
noise as hoped to shoot some birds by
taking them unawares. But had no
luck, and after walking fully half an
hour had not succeeded in sighting any
thing. Coming to a rocky mound sat
down, and while reclining there saw an
opening in the jumbled mass of stones
that formed one of the sides.
Naturally enough wanted to ex-
anime the opening and proceeded to do
so. but the space was so narrow and low
that l could not penetrate more than a
few feet. The entrance was, perhaps,
six feet high, but the space narrowed
rapidly and soon became impossible for
me, except on hand and knees. l had
no candles or other material for light
ing up the place, and. therefore. could
make no attempt at exploring it any
further.
Wondering how soon nay men would
come up, sat down just inside tho en-
trance of the cave and began to plan
matters for my movements as soon as
they should arrive. The day was warm.
l was greatly fatigued. and the result
of my sitting down there and meditat-
ing was that fell asleep.
Il had observed traces of the feet of
some animal on the hard earth near the
place where l sat down, but did not
consider them of any consequence, and
it did not occur to me that the opening
led to the home of tiger! Tigers
were rare in that region, and had
not heard of any there for a long
while.
'.How long slept don't know, but
probably only for few minutes. just
dozen winks and mods to refresh myself,
as had often taken before. When l
walked happened to turn my eyes to-
wards the jungle, and the sight that
met them was one welkcalculated to
shake a mans nerves. Not twenty feet
away was tiger flashing its tail, growl-
ing furiOuSly and preparing to spring
upon me. The whole situation was ap-
parent at once; had fallen asleep in
the veStibule of the tigers residence.
l had only my gun for protection,
and it was charged for birds, not for
tigers.
Under circumstances like these one
must think and act quickly, and this
was the case with me. My gun was a
breech-loader of a pattern very quickly
manipulated; the cartridges in the bar
rels We're charged with shot. but l had
some ball cartridges in my pocket.
Quick as flash l changed one of the
cartridges. and l hadn't the fraction
of an instant to spare as the tiger
sprang just as l brought the gun to my
shoulder.
Il couldn't take accurate aim. and he
was so close that there was no need Of
it. as he wasn't six feet off when fired.
The ball entered the animals eye and
pierced his skull: he fell at my feet,
but not harmlessly. Do you see that
SCARF" he concluded. as he barred his
arm and displayed the mark OF a
laceiatiou extending from wrist to ell
bow. We'll. the brute caught my arm
as he fell. and tore it frightfully, but in
spite of the wound l got another ball
cartridge into the gun. and finished
him. should say finished her as the
tiger was a female. and one OF the
largest had ever seen
Notwithstanding the injury to my
arm, fired several shots in rapid sue
cession As a signal to my men, who
shortly arrived. They had the ma
terials for making a torch. and so they
explored the den. and brought away
three beautiful tiger-cubs. little larger
than half-grown kittens, and quite as
playful. l sent the cubs to the zoologi-
cal garden at Calcutta. and kept the
skin of their mother As memento of
the only Occa..on when fell asleep in
a tigers den."-IHomds ". Amor, in
losth's Companion.
He Was Disappointed.
Little Rock nno,D went I'M 10 the