The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1936-03-12

looking Tor tiger on loot IN broad
daylight, for two good reasons. He
would never see the tiger; and, if
he did, it would almost certainly
kill him.
No, either he sits up in a tree,
or on a machine, and hundreds of
heaters drive the tiger toward him
with hideous noise and commo-
ton; or else he waits by night in
a tree or machan, close to
tigers half-eaten kill or a live calf
until the beast comes for his sec
ond meal from the kill, or is at
tracted by the bleating of the calf.
AS for looking for a tiger on foot
in the jungle by night it would be
one Of two things-an idiotic waste
of time or else suicide, according to
whether one met the tiger or not.
You must go and find it in the
jungle, as it prowls near the village,
and STAY it, Sahib," repeated the
holy man, and the villagers will
bless your name forever, and the
spirits of Soni and the other VIC
tins of this devil-tiger will rest in
peace.
I cant do that, swamipji," I said.
I haven't the pluck. And I have
more sense. shouldn't meet this
tiger; and, If I did it would kill
me-probably before I even saw it."
You will meet the tiger; and it
will not kill you" replied the molly
man, speaking with the utmost as
surance. "On the contrary, it will
save your life. Yea, verify If
you kill it, it shall save your life"
His reverence was going it,
with vengeance! And yet he had
a reputation for absolute veracity
and for infallible accuracy of
prophecy.
Riddles and parallels, Holy
One" I smiled. "'Who shall lose
his life, shall save it, Ell? :"
There will be bright moonlight"
replied the sannyasi, land I have
been talking to the Tiger King
SHOULD have said he had been
l. drinking, too, did 1 not know
that he had never tasted alcohol in
his life, and lived on rice, fruit and
water.
Who is he, Swami i?" I asked,
and suddenly remembered that I.
had heard before of Bill or Gond
or Sonthal wizards, aged aborig-
ines, who were supposed to hold
communication with tiger god,
and to be able to turn themselves
INTO tigersl
"One whom you would call an
ignorant savage, and who knows
things that your wisest and most
learned scientists do not know" re-
piled the holy man.
Il sent for him and talked with
him. And I tell you again, if you
will go forth this night and look
for the tiger, you will meet it, ap-
preaching the village. If you have
faith and courage, you will kill it
and it will save your life"
Was the holy fakir a humbug. a
fraud and a liar, anxious for his
own safety, or was he a clairvoy-
ant? Or, again, had he occult
knowledge and power of prophecy?
Anyway, whether for Soni's sake,
for fear of being thought a cow
ard, or for common humanity and
for the hope of putting an end to
this CHASTITY slaughter, I took my
heavy 12-bore rifle and strolled out
after dinner along the path from
the village into the jungle, intend
ing to stay out all night.
y
r KNEW that was on a fools err
Z rand; that I was wasting my
time, but there was the tiger!
There he was, standing staring at
me, in a patch of bright moonlight
in the little open glade across which
the path led.
hadn't time to be frightened,
nor the tiger time to do more than
lash his tail, lower his head, crouch,
culver as he gathered himself for
the spring, for I threw up my rifle,
saw him over the ivory moonlight
foreSight-and fired. {. And again.
And what should have been
mighty spring became a lurch and a
sprawl, terrific, convulsive strug-
gle, and quivering death.
A BOUT year later I sat, late
IN one night, in my bungalow
1000 miles from where Tulsiram
Jannagath the holy man sat and
contemplated nothingness.
Hearing a sound, I looked up.
and my heart missed beat. Imag-
nation made me a coward once
again. I could feel that ter
rible great knife crashing through
my ribs; slashed across my throat:
ripping open my stomach. :. For,
between me and the door, stood
great. gaunt, silent-footed ghazi,
huge Khyber knife in hand.
He had come to earn remission
of his sins and a place in paradise
by Staying an infidel-and I was
alone in the bungalow, the serv-
ants having returned to their huts
at the bottom of the compound
long ago.
was in for it.
I had no weapon of any sort, and
the ghazi, bigger and stronger than
I. mountaineer of wire and whip
cord, had the great razor-edged
knife with which he could lop off a
hand, an arm, a head, almost at a
stroke.
AS I rose to my feet, almost
paralyzed with terror, the muir
derous fiend bounded forward,
rushed head-long at me. tripped
over the stuffed head and skin of
the man-eating tiger, slipped,
lurched, staggered, and fell as I
caught him a priceless straight
left on the point of the jaw. Al
most before he touched the floor I
did what had never done to any
opponent before-kicked. With all
my might I kicked him under the
chin, and then Snatched the knife