Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1889-09-12
A SCOURGE OF INDIA.
THE LARGEST, STRONGEST AND
MOST FERoCIoUS OF BEASTS.
Tigers and Their Mode of Attack
Their Preference for Human Flesh
Many People Killed by Them
Annually.

In MS artlc' @ IN the Nineteenth Seh-
fury, on the number of human lives de-
sroyed by animals, Mr.. }. Fayrer says;
The animal first in size, strength ana
ferocity is the tiger. 1t is confined en-
tirely to Asia, and is most common IN
India. Its muscular development IS
enormous. The tiger cannot only strike
down II COW with blow of its forearm
and hold it with its fangs, but can iaise
to his lair, where it is devoured at
leisure.
The tiger attains its greatest size in
the jungles of India. Blyth says truly
that the largest tiger exceeds in size the
largest lion. The statements as to
length are conflicting and sometimes
exaggerated, errors arising from meas.
urements of the skin being taken after it
has be removed from the body and
undergone stretching The animal
should be measured from the nose along
the spine rs he lies dead where he fell.
One that is ten feet by this measurement
j large, and the full-grown males sell
dom exceed this though it is certain
that they do occa ,ionally attain to
greater length. / have been present at
the death of tigers ten feet eight
inches and ten feet six inches, accu-
rately measured where they fell, and
there are examples on record where the
length exceeded twelve feet; SO that,
while fully agreeing with Jerdon and
Others that the average size of the male
tiger is from nine feet to nine and one
half feet or ten, / am able to assert,
from indisputable evidence, that they
do Sc sometimes attain the length of eleven
or TIVE We feet, on even two or three
inches more. The tigress seldom ex-
ceeds nine feet, the average being be-
tween eight feet and eight and one-half
feet, or occasional ly nine feet, and per-
haps in exceptional cases even up to
ten feet,
The tigress is smaller; the head,
neck, and body are finer and lighter !;
she is more active, and, especially when
accompanied by her young, more ag-
gressive than the tiger. The geograph-
ical distr button is confined to Asia,
from Ararat and Caucasus on the west,
it extends 10 Saghalien on the east; and
from Capc Comorin to the Himalayas /;
as high as 600 feet or 5000 feet. In
some places it is becoming rare, though
the number are still sufficient to cause
serious loss of life. 1t is also found
among the hill and rocky country of
Central and Southern India, and locali-
ties remote from population and cultiya-
:ion are most frequented; /; but when
pressed by hunger the tiger visits clear
ed and cultivated places, and ecomes
the villigers' dread, who are in constant
fear for Their own or their cattle's lives
During the cod and wet seasons he is
restless, wandering from place to place
with no fixed abode, though keeping
within certain range of country. In
the months of March, April, and May he
is more res r!c ed in his movement, the
grass jungle having been burned to n
great extent and the water dried up,
leaving only swamps and pools. The
shelter becomes less extensive, and with
the increasing heat, he becomes less in
clined for exertion; he now seeks the
patches of grass OF other shelter on the
edges of the forest and in the swamps,
where, lying n rest during the heat of
the day, he steals out at night in search
of prey, and it is during these months
that he is often hunted aud des iroyed,
either from elephants, machans, or on
foot
1t has been said that when tiger has
tasted human flesh he prefers it to other
food. | cannot say how this may be,
but there is no doubt that when ho has
overcome the national dread OF the hu-
man form he readily kills men, and be-
comes the terror of a whole district. AT
Nyneetal tiger prowled within circle
of twenty miles, and for three years
killed, on an average, eighty men per
annum. 1t sometimes happens that q
road is closed for weeks by a single tiger
not only pedestrians, but even those
L, l. tn.I,, Il
and carried off; and yet it is remarkable
with what apathy the danger is some
times regarded, for natives will carry on
their usual vocations rs herdsmen
or woodcutters close to the cover in
which the tiger is concealed. On the
other hand, they will often not pass
along certain road or path without
toms toms or torches to scare the tiger
away, while in other cases the beate. 6
will readily go on foot and beat him out,
though should he break back he is pretty
certain to strike me one down, infiict-
ing dangerous, often mortal wound,
but is less likely to do this if unwounded.
I have repeatedly seen herdsmen who
were willing to accompany you on foot
to the Jungle i'll which the tiger was ly-
ing, but who could not be persuaded to
mount an elephant for that purpose.
1t is popular belief, not confined to
the ignorant, that the wounds inflicted
by a tiger are of poisonous character.
1t is possible that the teeth and claws
nav be contaminated by septic matter,
but this is the exception rather than the
rule. The real fact is that the wounds
are dangerous because they are deep.
punctured and lacerated; otherwise they
have no popularity, and often heal
rapidly, though they sometimes suppu-
rate and induce blood-poisoning. l have
seen severe injuries recovered from
rapidly, while others have caused such
suppuration and destruction of tissue rs
ultimately to prove fatal.
The tiger does not roar like the lion
though he can do so occasionally. There
is peculiar grunting, bark, or grow
when he is disturbed OF frightened, anG
this is repeated loudly when he charges
When calling to each other Mt night
tigers make prolonged wailing howl
which is very imposing and makes the
henrer gad to feel the protection of {
camp about him. A wounded tiger, wit!
his ears laid back, his eyes glaring, hi'
fangs displayed, and his hair ere, MS he
charges with repeated angry growls, il
most trying ordeal and very difficult
to meet unmoved.
The TIGER generally seizes his prey a
night he watches the catt'e OF what
ever it may be until he creeps within
reach, and then with n rush OF boun
1,a or;,,c IL nv a throat 1ro oo m. {, nil os