Evening star., 1903-08-03
THEIR LUCKY: ::.BSCAPES
Postmen Face and tOVercome
Many Dangers.
LIKE CENTURIES AGO
A BENGAL TIGER WHO IS A
TERROR
An Adventure With Revolutionists in
Venezuela - Daily
Hero1sm.

Written for The Evening Star by william Thorp.
"G-r-r-r-r-r-r!
The speaker was big. lean. toothless
NANCY old Bengal tiger, restlessly pacing
t., and fro in his strong cage in the Calcut-
ia Zoo and rubbing his nose violently
against the bars now and then. as If he
would like to break out and mingle in
harmoniously with the open -mouthed sight
seers.
An English tourist went close to the cage
and mockingly offered the growing beast a
bum Immediately one of the keepers hur-
ried up.
Don't go near The Postman.' sir!' he
exclaimed. Hes the worst tempered beast
We've got
the tourist asked. IT'S a queer name for
a tiger
A Tale Of a Tiger.
I'VE gave him the name because he has
eaten so many postmen.' the keeper re-
piled. "Years ago he roamed the jungles
of the interior of Bengal. The mail serv-
ice there was carried on. as 1t is today, by
means Of native carriers. who went from
village to village at a gentle jog-trot.
'"This old tiger seemed to have made a
special study of the Bengal mail service.
When old age overlook him and he was no
longer agile enough to trail the deer and
buffalo. he watched the various mail routes
and devoured the letter carriers
mo other natives seemed to satisfy his
depraved appetite-only postmen. So he
feasted. day after day. at the cost of the
mail service. But l must say. to his credit,
that he did not disturb the mail itself. That
was usually recovered.
Many efforts were made to kill him."
continued the keeper. but 1t was not until
1nh hslI -, tnJ1 80
department that he was captured. His VIC
Tins numbered over a score"
How did they catch him at last?" asked
the tourist
Well. 1t happened In rather a curious
way said the keeper. "a letter carrier was
passing one day through thcket Of bam-
boos which was well known to be the acco-
sional feeding ground of wild elephants. AS
he passed thick clump of canes, the noto-
rious man-eater even then known as The
Postman.' leaped out to deyour him. But
the native was too quick for the aged
beast. He lodged. and the tiger landed on
the covering of an elephant pit on the other
side Of the trail and disappeared from sight
without waiting to investigate, the ma
tive ran on to the nearest village and re-
ported his adventure. A large party at
once set out to hunt the beast but found
him helplessly crippled at the bottom of
the pit. He was made captive and trans
ferred to this big cage here. He has never
recovered wholly from the effects Of that
fall and you can see how he still limps
from side to side OF his cage
We feed him on raw beef and mutton
but he doesn't seem to like 1t so we'll as
his old diet He's the worst tempered beast
In the menagerie tiger that has once
tasted human flesh never cares for any
thing else.'' iGa,g.
The Indian Postman's Per1ls.
This story. which Is we'll known In Cal
cutta, illustrates the perils of the Indian
postmans life-perils which are shared, In
a greater or less degree, by postmen all
over the world.
In the early days OF the English postal
service. when letters cost half a crown to
frank, and took in some cases weeks to
deliver the postman's life was romantic
and adventurous. He was liable to be held
up at the point of the pistol by a high
wayman greedy for the treasures in his
mall bag even by plucky maiden like
the famous Grizel Cochrane. eager to steal
from him the kings warrant for her
fathers execution. That ancient postman
Is celebrated in song and story. But the
modern poStman, who has Just as many
sung.
In many parts Of India. where the mail
routes lie through forests which are tnfest-
ed by wild beasts, the postman carries a
bell on the eI.d Of a long bamboo rod AS
he goes along at a Looping trot he clangs
this bell to frighten away tigers. cheetahs.
Jackals. wolves and other animals. It Is
doubtful whether the bell is of much use;
1t certainly does not scare a man-eating
tiger, as many tragedies of the Indian
postal service testify. But it comforts the
postman and Is preferred by him to any
weapon.
The authorities. on several occasions.
have offered to supply rifles to postmen on
dangerous routes; but the men will not take
them. They don't want to fight tigers. If
they can scare them away well and good.
will
oriental calm.
The Indian postal authorities never have
any difficulty In getting carriers even for
the most dangerous trails Three or four
men may have been killed within few
months along jungle path. but others are
always forthcoming to risk the same awful
death.
Held Up by Revolutionists.
In Venezuela. Colombia. Hayti and other
Latin-American republics addicted to the
gentle sport OF civil war; postmen are Of
ten captured by bands Of reyolutionists who
desire to intercept dispatches sent by mail
by the government to its officials at out
lying points. The treatment of the post
man on those occasions Is apt to be none
too kind.
when I saw them running down the
mountain side to cut me off," said Juan da
Silva, an old Venezuelan postman. recount
ing one Of these adventures to an Ameri-
galloped along the mountain path as If the
devil was at my heels. 1t was a rocky,
dangerous road, running along the edge OF
a steep precipice, but had heard much OF
their cruelties, senior, and I preferred to
risk my neck rather than fall into their
hands.
"But they fired at me and shot my mule.
SO I was captured. Their commandante
was furious because had torn up an i'm
portant letter Of the presidents and thrown
the pieces over the precipice just before
they laid hands on me. He. threatened to
shoot me. but contented himself with hav-
ing me flogged with cowhide whips until
was unconscious. ,
when I recovered my senses 1t was
night. The revolutionists had camped and
fallen asleep around their fire. There was
no sentry, and most of them seemed to be
dead drunk. for several empty .aguadiente'
TASKS were scattered around. I was dizzy
and sick. and my back suarted horribly.
but I managed to crawl up to the COM
mandante who had ordered me to be
fogged. After I had finished with him !
took up my mall bag and crawled away
and hid myself in the forest, There found
some friendly Indians who helped me to get
to my destination and deliver the letters" !"
But what did you do with the COM
mandante?" asked the American.
"What should I do. senior? He had or
dered me to be fiogged-me, whose grand
father was a caballero of Spain! I cut his
throat with his own machete. Of course"