The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1902-05-11
sccpyrsgh. 1909. b. RoDertt Howoll Rus

the new Resident at the court OF the
native state Of Ruzerat. was astonisneo
when = servant raped at his study door
n, hs1f-past at night and announced
that the Nizam had sent him present
OF great value. which had been placed IN
the dinina-room. During the whole Oh
the three months lie had been Inc etss1-
/ dent at the capital of Ruzeret. he had
been forcing the ruler Of that pTincipality,
uoraiually independent but in reality sub
4Act 20 the British crown, to Institute b
/ ssstca OF retorms which while they light
o1,od tho burdens OF the Inhabitants. re-
i dxced the income of thu ruler. Moreover.
! there was q persistent rumor that ssr
/ Richard had been investigating 8 taH
bfhae the little son OF the late Niaarn. the
Their who would have succeeded in place
OF tho present ruler. nephew. had not
bem drowned. as had hitherto been held.
but was living in France child or ten,
unaware Of his own identity. Sir Rich
/ ard had more reason to expect the Nizam
would try to assassinate him than to send
him present. But If tho Resident were
| nssaxsinated, the British authorities would
exact punishment. Whereas present
might bring an amelioration with no I'M
pleasant after effects.
No message accompanied tho present.
/ No letter couohed in Oriental magnlo-
] Quenoe, nothing but the verbal announce
nscns that tho Nizam'6 servants had left
the present in the dining-room. At this.
the Colonel wondered, And he wondered
J still more when he stepped into the dining
room. silent, empty. blazing with light,
and beheld the present, standing behind
/: the chair ke sat in at the table. It was
q stuffed tiger, tiger OF a hugeness he
had never imagined. but there the tale
Of utter stranseaess did not end. 1t was
| not fastened to the pedestal upon which
! It stood by glue and nails, but was moored
by maze Of eilke2 threads that de-
seconded from rings OF leather encircling
| the legs. The look Of mimic life which
the skilled taxidermist gives was absent
in this bungled work Limp hung the tail
TO the ground. Its eyes were tight closed.
And SO were the lips, not parted in a
j simultetfon OF an angry snarl over the
white faA'es.
why, the thing looks Dead" said the
Colonel ''I'll have to have 1t taken out
OF here tomorrow and get It fixed up in
T q more life-like manner
Bat Etrangest OF ali was the great silver
crown that sat upon the head Of this king
/! OF the jungle. the panels between the sill
fver arms OF tho crown being Of brilliant
Blue velvet A collar OF silver encircled
the black and orange neck and the crown
was held firmly in place by two tiny
chains fastened to this.
''1t looks dead muttered Sir Richard
again. but the fur felt fine and firm be-
meath his touch. Why, the odor Of the
wild beast was not yet out of it. He
stopped down to attempt to draw back
the closed lips in order to determine the
beasts age from the teeth. Reluctantly
the furry cheeks yielded and pressing
Upward, showed the pink lips and gums.
Why, they We're pink. as in life and not
1hc conventional glistening venmillion
s1,afk +, fSxyaI vo and i-fc af
Che taxidermist make them. With a tug,
be opened the mighty jaws. A mist
Jwaln across his spectacles as he looked
into the yawning cavity, cavity with
out q tongue.
Strange" said Sir Richard, as he wip-
ed his spectacles. II don't see how my
breath could have been sent back against
by spectacles, for the line Of my mouth
was below the things head. And the
gums looked real, felt real, and must
be getting to be an old man, for mag
1ned felt a sensation of warmth as 1
looked into the mouth"
He pressed the eye-lids and they stiffly
drew back in little narrow slit and let
out dull CLEAN Of reflected lamplight
Got eyes, but be hanged il they look
like glass ones. Why, the thing looks
like dead meat, but IL they killed 1t last
week. it would certainly have an odor
OF decay, and It hasn't. There hasn't
been a tiger hunt since last week, at
least, the Nizam hasn't hunted since
then. But just the same, I'll either
pitch the thing out Tomorrow, or have
some competent taxiderrlist fix 1t up SO
It won't look SO dead and chastity"
In the morning the colonel was in the
aining-room half an hour earlier than
usual. Jit. his waiter. sprang to his
feet IN an embarrassed manear from
the floor in front Of the tiger and hur-
Tisd out OF the room with n dustpan
An his hand. The colonel looked where
the man had been brushing. On the
floor lay several little tufts of tiger hair
and some clots Of lather sticking to them.
What the devil have you oeen up 10.
Jit7" called the colonel. washing that
tiger! And does the hair come of like
s that?''
eyes. sahib. thought soap and water
would brighten up his fur"
l. well, I Will skin you and mount you,
| 81 You NEEDLE with his skin again"
The Colonel progressed through his
j breakfast and his Bombay newspaper
/ until he came to the hot cakes and the
last page.
More cakes. sahib?" said lit. with a
most tender solicitude. though the Col
| onel had not yet finished the first batch.
''Um-m-umph." grunted the Colonel alb:
sent-,nindedly, with his mouth full. He
swas deep IN an account Of how a mar
buried at Sutlei in the time of Alexander
the Great had been dug up awe anC
walked his native earth still the subjecI
] of OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES centuries ago
/ the Macedonian. to-day the Briton. The
Colonel had heard of such things, tha
strange, true phenomenon, strange ever
4 an India. He had heard Of faldrs buried
1 alive and wheat planted over them anc
4 harvested and then the graves opened
] and tho inmates brought back to life
j This was the man buried just before thu
/ retreat OF Alexander. mentioned by Cur
thus His Whereabouts forgotten, he hat
rested there these two thousand years
/ and thus had he proven his boast to AL
exander that he could be buried fou,
months and remain alive.
All this time, Jit was running back ant
forward with hot cakes. more hot cakes
pressing them upon the Colonel. absorbed
in the paper. With start the Colone
awoke to this fact. commonplace We
passing strange and then to the fac
that in this room. new empty but 70
himself. rose the sound OF slow, heay.
breathing as Of some great creature
Its sleep.
: 1he colosei whirled to his chair AM
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