The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1892-07-09


How this Monster Brute Secures His Prey
Something About His Habits-Other Land
Animals that are Man nEaters-Blood-thirst
Crocodies Twenty Feet Long.
From the Nineteenth Century.
The completeness and accuracy of the
official returns of deaths caused by wild
animals and venom0us snakes in British
India vary in different districts, but the
figures generally, if they err, rather under
state than exaggerate the evil. The loss
of life is indeed so startling that an inquiry
into the circumstances under which the
yearly deaths of about %, 900 human beings
and So 900 head of domestic animals occur
is one of no slight interest. The Govern
ment returns for eight years, 1880 to 1887,
show that the numbers of persons killed by
wild animals yearly fuctuate between =, $40
and 2,618, showing that the cause remains
as active as ever, while the preventive
measures are still unequal to cope with it.
With regard to snakes, the number of
deaths is rather on the increase, being
1880 in 1880, against %, l34 in 1886,
and 1870 in 1887 In the year 1887,
the last of which the records have been
received, 2,618 persons and 81 ,02I head
of domestic animals persisted by wild beasts,
not including snakes, and the deaths were
due to the following animals Tigers
killed 1,063 persons and 27,517 head
of cattle; lepoards, 210 persons and "a lGl
cattle; bears, 12G persons and 3l5 cattle;
wolves, III persons and 4 ,0S7 cattle hyenas,
II persons and 2,749 cattle; elephants, sc
persons and cattle, while "other animals" p"
including jackals, buffaloes, boars, ,crocodiles,
&C., are charged with killing 969 persons
and ., ,165 cattle, and the numbers for the
previous years since 1880 closely cores
pond.
In describing the noxious wild animals
shall include only those which destroy
human life. As most destructive, begin
with the felide, which are numerously re-
presented in India. First, in size, strength,
and ferocity, is the tiger. 1t is confined
entirely to Asia, and is most common in
India. The general appearance of the
animal is so familiar that it seems almost
superhuous to describe it. Hearing and
vision are acute, but scent is comparatively
defective. The pupil is round, differing
from that of some other cats, which is
vertical. Tactile sensibility is acute, es-
pecially in the so-called wiskers. Each
hair is extremely sensitive at its root, and
is movable by muscular fibres which sur
round the hair bulb; these tactile organs
are used as feelers. The muscular develop
ment is enormous The tiger can not only
strike down COW with blow of his fore
arm and hold it with his fangs, but can
raise it from the ground and drag or carry
it to his lair, where it is devoured at leis
ure. There are five claws on each fore and
four on each hind foot. The mechanism
by which they are moved is peculiar; the
claw and the phalanx into which it is fitted
are kept in the retracted position by an
elastic ligament, and are unsheathed and
extended by the fexor tendons which op
pose it; the claw and its phalanx when re
tracted lie obliquely by the side of the
second phalanx. By this arrangement
they are kept out of the way during ordi-
nary progression, and not worn or blunted
by contact with the ground
MONSTER TIGERS OF THE JUNGLE.
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 measurements of the
skin being taken after it has been removed
from the body and undergone stretching.
The animal should be measured from the
nose along the spine as he lies dead where
he fell; one that is ten feet by this measure
ment is large, and the full-grown males
seldom exceed this, though it is certain
that they do occasionally attain a greater
length have been present at the death
of tigers 10 feet inches and 10 feet 6
inches, accurately 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 a half
or ten feet, am able to assert, from in
disputable evidence, that they do some
times attain the length of eleven or twelve
feet, or even two or three inches more.
The tigress seldom exceeds nine feet, the
average being between eight feet and eight
and half feet, or occasionally nine feet,
and perhaps in exceptional eases even up
to ten feet.