136 DIARY OF A SPORTSMAN NATURALIST 



hurled itself through the air, and with a startled appealing 

 bellow the lordly stag was borne to earth. A struggle of 

 wildly kicking hoofs, a few gasps and gurgles and a rifle 

 shot awoke the quiet depths of the forest. 



As the dark shadow hurtled through the air I gasped 

 with amazement, and was conscious of a sudden frightened 

 ejaculation from my companion. With the fall of the stag 

 I came back to the realities, and keeping my fascinated eyes 

 fixed upon the drama being enacted before them raised the 

 rifle and so far as it was possible in the medley of conflicting 

 black and silver shadows on the ground sighted on the black 

 shape and fired. The sharp report was answered by a 

 deafening roar, a roar which I afterwards interpreted as one 

 of fright and rage, and a black and silver form leapt across 

 the clearing and disappeared into the forest opposite, 

 almost at the point from which the stag had issued. The 

 briefest interval of crushing and rustling bushes and then 

 a deep silence ensued. The stag lay inert, evidently dead. 



I drew a deep breath. The shape was a tiger, and I 

 wondered whether it had been stalking us when the sambhar 

 had so opportunely appeared on the scene, or whether it 

 was as unaware of our presence as we were of his. 



These were my first speculations, but they were soon 

 succeeded by the tantalizing hopes and fears as to whether 

 I had hit him or not. The whole drama was one of seconds 

 only — could not have been longer. It had all occurred in a 

 flash — the hurtling shadow, the felling of the sambhar to 

 the ground, the report of the rifle and retreat of the tiger. 

 And yet it had left different conditions behind it in the 

 little clearing. The crickets, it is true, soon restarted their 

 seance if indeed they had ever interrupted it, but otherwise 

 a deeper silence pervaded the forest for other night sounds 

 had ceased. We ourselves were very much on the alert 

 and not a little uncomfortable, and passed the rest of the 

 night sitting back to back very broad awake with our 

 cocked rifles, for I luckily had two weapons with me, ready 

 for instant use. My mind was in a whirl of anxiety as to 

 the result of my shot and my inexperience led me to fear 

 that I might have made more sure of my shot had I waited 

 till the struggle was over. But I had fired without stopping 

 to consider details. It was with a feeling of great relief 

 that at length I perceived the waning moonlight give place 

 to the first pale note of the dawn. Soon the trees began to 



