46 INDIAN BIG GAME 



tracks of a big tiger making for one or other of the 

 nullahs on which we were tying up. Had I sat 

 up I should have seen a daylight kill. 



After this, two marches took us to a glorious 

 camp under a grand tree, where we lived in comfort, 

 forgetful of the last bad quarters, and where I 

 had one of the finest times of my life, shooting 

 seven full-grown tiger, ranging from 10' 1" to 8' 2", 

 within one week, all in the same beat of country 

 and from the same tree. 



This, however, did not happen for a week. 

 Meanwhile I shot a panther stone-dead under the 

 electric light, and made a mess of a tiger kill. 

 The kill had been dragged a few yards and was 

 so wedged into and under a low bank that I 

 thought there was no need to picket it. Still 

 fastened round the buffalo's neck was one of the 

 wooden bells with a wooden clapper that makes 

 almost the noise of an ordinary deep-toned bell. 



I went to sleep and was wakened by the boom- 

 ing of a bell. I rubbed my eyes and thought of 

 church, and it took a little time before I realized 

 that this was the bell ringing as the body was 

 being dragged off. The kill was already out of 

 the arc of the light. After several periods of 

 ringing and silence I lost patience and stood up 

 in the machan, and in poor moonlight could 

 dimly see a long-bodied tiger mixed up with, and 

 dragging, the kill. It was too far for an aimed 

 shot. The tiger saw me at the same time, dropped 

 the kill and went off. Next morning tracks 

 showed that a tiger and tigress had been there, 

 and the male stood at a safe distance up a side 

 nullah while the lady dragged the kill. 



