Thomas County cat. [volume] (Colby, Kan.) 1885-1891, 1888-11-08
HABITS OFFICERS.
a Noted sbikari Tells How They XII and
Eat Their vlctims. IA

HABITS OFFICERS.
A Noted sbikari Tells How they Kg,l and
Eat Their vicsims. "a
In a paper read before the Bombay
Natural Historical Society recently,
and published in its journal. Mr. 1nver-
arity. a noted shitari. discussed the
habits of the tiger, snd especially the
mode in which it kills and eats its
prey. Some think he seizes by the
throat, others by the nape of the neck
from above. Mr.. Inverarity has ex-
amined scores OF slain animals with
special reference to this point. and in
every case but one the throat was
seized from below. The exception was
an old boar, who had been seized by
the back of the neck from above. One
of the single file of villagers who was
once seized by the nape of the neck by
man-eater, but saved by his compan-
ions. had no idea when he recovered
his senses what had happened. Whether
dislocation of the neck takes place is
doubtful. The tame hunting leopards
always kill by pressure on the wind
pipe, without breaking the skin;
possibly the tiger kills in the
same way. 1t is only by ac-
cident, if at all, that tigers in
killing sever any important vein or
artery, and no blood to speak of flows
from the throat wound. Very large
and powerful animals like the bull,
buffalo and bison, if attacked at all,
are in the first instance at
tackled from the rear with
view to disable them. Having
killed, the tiger almost invariably be-
gins eating hind quarter, consuming
one or probably both. Sometimes he
leaves the stomach and intestines as
they are; sometimes he will remove
them to one side, making neat parcel
of them. A tiger and tigress together
will finish an ordinary-sized animal at
one meal, leaving only the head. In
this case it is probable that the second
begins at the fore quarter. Animals
are never eaten where they are killed,
but are always dragged a short dis
lance. They are never lifted clear of
the ground, but dragged. Having
gorged himself, the tiger sometimes
lies close by his prey, but if it is hot
weather and there are hills in the
neighborhood he will go long
distance off before resting for
the day. He prefers to lie in
a cool cave or in a breeze on
the hillside than in the close,
hot jungle. He returns next night
and finishes what is left, but he never
eats a second time on the same spot,
dragging the remains of the prey forty
Or fifty yards off. Sportsmen coming
on half-devoured animal and desiring
to catch the tiger, tie the prey to a
tree. The tiger takes about two hours
steady eating to finish the fore-quar-
tiers OF bullock. Mr.. Inverarity sat
over small tlgress one night who ate
for ten minutes, then went away for
twenty, probably to drink, and on her
return ate steadily for two and quar-
ter hours. He did not fire, as he could
not see her. Tigers are cannibals; they
will make their meals off each other.
They are supposed to kill once in five
or six days, and no doubt the tiger
after heavy feed does not care to
hunt much for a few days; but tiger
kills whenever he can. They have
been known to Kill on fourteen consec-
utive nights. Mr.. Inverarity believes
that animals killed by tigers suf-
fer little beyond the panic of a
few seconds. The shock produces
a stupor and dreaminess in which
there is no sense of pain or
feeling of terror. The powerful
stroke of the fore paw of the
tiger is fiction; he clutches with his
claws as one might with the fingers.
but does not strike blow. Tigers
wander immense distances at night.
and. as they like easy going, they go
on roads and paths. They do not like
to move during the heat of the day, as
the hot ground burns their pads and
makes them raw. They can on occa-
sion climb trees. In Salsette one
climbed after a certain Pandoo, but
could not reach him and retired.
Pandoo, thinking the coast clear. got
down and ran towards home, but on
the way was caught by the tiger and
killed. The inquest report stated 'that
Pandoo died of the tiger eating him;
there was no other cause of death.
Nothing was left except some fingers,
which probably belonged to the right
or left hand" Natives have a belief
that the ghosts of the man-eater's
victims ride in his head and warn him
of danger, or point the way to fresh
victims. Times.
SOME ROYAL DIVORCES.
A French. an English and . German Case
In Our Own Century.