Morning journal and courier., 1888-03-05

which there were numerous fresh tracks O.
deer. This nook I had rooted in roughly will
kline grass to keep off the heavy dews and tt
| assist in concealing me.
! It was lovely moonlight night, clear and
| cold, when took up my station shortly aftel
dark, accompanied by a young Karen, tc
| whom I intrusted the responsibility of keep
| ing me awake. Hour after hour we sat there
three feet above the level of the sand, tc
| which the rock shelved gently down; the
starting bark of distant deer, the musical
| ringing call of the bellbird, and the scream
| ing of insects in the foliage around were the
only signs of life. Cold and chilly, the night
| drew on, while on the far side of the pool,
well out of range, an occasional sambhur
issued from the jungle and stalked solitary
and ghost-like across the sand, stopping ev-
| cry dozen yards to sniff the air suspiciously.
| Wearied and sleepy, I lay back against the
rock as sambhur disappeared for the third
| time without giving me shot; my rife lay
across my knees, and some evil spirit prompt-
| ed nae to open the breech, that it might lie
| mere easily upon them.
The moon was sinking, and the white
clammy mist came rolling in huge pillows
| down the mountain side, hiding the trees
thirty yards away, and making the night
colder and damper with its heavy shroud
Darkness and discomfort have bad effect
| on the nerves, and I felt, as I sat there, in
| no mood for great deeds of daring. Tired
| and Indifferent I had dozed off to sleep,
when my companion touched my arm lightly
and whispered the sing word, ky (tiger). I
awoke with start, and looked in the direc-
ton indicated. Here he was, coming slowly
through the mist, straight toward the rock,
with the easy rolling swagger tiger affects
| when he is on the prowl. I clutch my rifle
and snap the breech. Great heavens! for the
| first time since owned the weapon, it refuses
to close.
The tiger, off which I have not taken my
eyes, has reached the foot of the rock, and
attracted by my movements deliberately
pauses to gaze at the apparition it beholds.
With the useless rifle In my hands L sit fac
ing it, utterly unable to move, and the Karen,
crouohed beside me with his head between
his knees and his hands clasped above it, is
trembling in every limb. The 1.-THE, gray
looking form is only six feet from me, and
with two short steps can enter the nook and
select either of US at his leisure. The liked
stare of the blazing green eyeballs seems to
paralyze me; for fully half q minute-it
seemed an hour-he stands there motionless,
but at length passes on, still keeping his eyes
on me until he disappears round the corner of
the rock few feet away.
Relieved of the appalling stare, I breathe
more freely, and straining my eyes in the
direction I expect the tiger will take, with
desperate eagern ass exert all my strength
| to close the breech of the rifle. I can feel
no obstruction, for it is, of course, too dark
| to see, but it will not close, and pause-to
| see once more that mesmeric gaze fixed upon
me.
Dissatisfied with his first scrutiny, the
| tiger has passed around the rock and returned
| to repeat it. It is sickening. Helpless and
| dazed, I sit there, blankly returning the
steady stare that SO perfectly unnerves me.
| This interview lasts longer than the first. l
1 81 al 1L,o
perspiratien streams down nay face, and I
| feel the cold drops trickling slowly down my
| back. How l curse the brute for his calm,
| dispassionate gael How 1 curse my own
| folly in not having selected tree to shoot
| froml For now, though I am shaking all
over, a strange defiant feeling is creeping
over me, and thank God!-the tiger once
more turns away, and this time quietly takes
| the path toward the opposite jungles, disap-
| pearing into the fog wrapped night. Gone!
| and lie back and give way to fit of "cold
| shivers," such as [ have never felt before,
and for half an hour I see nothing but eyes,
round, fierce, glaring green eyes, wherever
| turn my own.
No daybreak surely was ever so long de
| layed as that we now anxiously await for,
| but it comes at length, and cramped and
shivering hasten to examine the rifle. A
small but thick feshy leaf found its way
into the 'grip" action, and, crushed though
SAAN ~AAO" hAA>
close fitting mechanism to work. The Karer
| who is watching me murmurs in Burmese
"witchcraft," and after the night have just
| passed through I am more than half inclined
! to agree with him.
We dragged ourselves back to camp and al
once organized a party to follow up the pugs
but our chase was useless. We neither saw
nor heard anything of that tiger again during
| our stay.
Curiously enough, only two weeks after
| ward information was brought to Easton that
| Karen, who had selected that identical rock
| to shoot sambhur from, had been pounced
upon and carried off by a tiger as he left his
hiding place just before daylight. Screams
were heard by his brother, who occupied a
safe position near, and on going to the spot
at sunrise he found the gun and bag belong
| ing to his hapless relative on the sand. I'll
ger pugs and few blood marks told the 81
| lent tale, and not vestige of the unfortu-
| nate mans body, or even of his clothing, was
| ever found by the friends who made search
| for his remains.
Easton's informant added with grave SIM
plicity, "The white face of your friend was
new to the tiger; on that account he es-
capped"
My story is told. have met tigers in va
rious circumstances since, but of none have I
so vivid a recollection as the one whose visit
have attempted to describe in this paper.
HOW MILK Punch Affects a Coon.
From the Troy Press
Jerome Whitbeck, the hotel keeper at
Wynantskill, owns coon which is very vic
ious. No one can handle it. Friday Mr..
Whitbeck came to Troy, and during his alb
sence several men thought it would be good
joke to give the coon some milk punch. The
coon was captured and fed several strong
milk punches. Soon it became helplessly
intoxicated and rolled about the floor in
very docile manner. When Whitbeck re-
turned he was shown the coon. He was much
grieved, for he believed his pet was going to
die. He doged the coon with emetics and
put poultices on him. The next morning
his coonship had recovered all of his vic