The new enterprise. (Madison, Fla.) 1901-1908, 1903-10-22

1
] the round moon came up behind us,
flooding the scene with light, and the
shikari, crouching behind me, touched
my arm.
"see, sahib! Below the wall, to the
left Of the steps"
Just above the tops Of the bushes
between the nullah and the foot Of the
wall, a white spot was moving, as II
afioat in the air. toward the steps that
led down from the gateway to the
ground,
"What is It, Khatra?" l whispered,
but the shikari did not answer. With
puzzled curiosity Murdoch and |
watched the thing slowly skirtlng the
foot OF the wall 1t was not difficult
to understand that a superstitious ma
tive should see in 1t the spirit Of Raj
Kehab patrolling the bulwnrk Of his
city.
Up in the ruins two jackals, chasing
each other about the palace steps,
suddenly checked their play, paused
in an attitude Of listening and skunk
away out of view. The shikari,
crouching behind me, trembled vio-
lently. Turning our gaze upward,
Murdoch and / looked at the palace
doorway, where n new figure Ind ap-
peared. The capstone on which, by
tradition, Raj Kehab's tiger emblem
stood carved in marble, had in the
daylight rested level and bare upon the
posts. Now upon the capstone, in the
full rays Of the moon, white MS the
marble beneath it, the form of a tiger
was silhouetted against the night sky
For a few long seconds, while we
waited and wondered, It remained like
a statue Of alabaster, then in an IN
slant vanished. 1t was all very queer
and eerie.
ut is no delusion; we both saw him,
What do you thinkF 1 whispered to
Murdoch.
Were here to shoot whatever
comes,' the captain answered. "If 1t
isn't a trick Of Imagination, II that's
the fellow that made the tracks in
the nullah, he should show up next
at the gateway. Hal what's that-be-
low the wall, at the foot Of the steps2
The tiger can't have gone down there
so soon! Its man-and he's going
up into the city"
In tho excitement of watching the
apparitol OF the capstone We had
taken no further thought OF the white
object aloat above the bushes, until
now, emerging into the open space at
the foot Of the steps, It took form OF
the turban of a tall man in native garb,
who began to ascend the steps to the
gateway. AS his head and shoulders
rose above the landing he looked
around, bringing his profile into view.
Murdoch started,
"Khatra" he whispered, shaking the
trembling shikari, tel me who it is
you seew
captain sahib," the answer came
quiveringly, ut is the spirit of his great
ancestor Raj Kehab. 1t is Nadraj."
The man went on, stepped upon the
landing and stood upright, while his
shadow, stretching across the platform
before him, fell upon a square-fGced
upright stone. A pale something crept
like giant snake, then suddenly en-
larging enormously, shot forward in a
white streak which gathered upon and
overwhelmed the tall figure at the
landing. The sound Of mans cry of
alarm was lost in the deep-throated
note of tigers sparl, as the two went
together down to the pavement. A
savage shake, the sound Of crunching
bone, heard plainly by us a hundred
yards away, and the tiger, rising to
his feet, lifted his head, and with eyes
glowing with opaline flames looked
over his victim across the nollah as If
in challenge to us.
Our rifles were already sighted upon
him, and we fired together. Through
the smoke we saw the tiger rise into
the air above the man, fall half way
down upon the steps below, and roll
to the bottom. Before the rattle OF
our shots had died away among the
ruins he lay outstretched and motion
less at the foot Of the steps, while at
the top the head of the man he had
killed, hanging Imply over the edge Of
the landing, seemed peering down at
his slayer.
We reloaded our rifles, crawled from
under the bush, and went over to
where the tiger was lying. BY the
light of torch we examined the mys-
'tcrious beast which had terrified the
Rajah and his kingdom. Its hair was
milk-whlte from nose to tail tips, and
Its eyes the color OF red.hued irises 1t
needed no naturalist to tell us that the
rarest Of jungle trophies, an alblno