98 BAY OF BENGAL TIGER-DRIVING 



not relieved me of pain, but I think my general 

 health has greatly improved, so I have gained 

 that much to the good. 



I left Calcutta on Friday, December i6th, after 

 attending the last Council of this year, and boarded 

 the Hawk at Khulna. We steamed all day 

 through several of the beautiful Sunderbund khals 

 till we reached Tiger Point, which is on the 

 estuary known as Horngotta Road, which opens 

 on to the Bay of Bengal. Just above Tiger Point 

 is Rhino Point. The names are to be found in an 

 old map in my possession dated 1809, but I think 

 the places have been rechristened in the latter-day 

 ones. The old names are indicative of the then 

 game-producing nature of the localities. Rhino- 

 ceroses are quite extinct in the Sunderbunds, and 

 although tigers abound, they frequent the dense 

 jungles inland, following the cheetal deer, however, 

 when the latter come down to the short grass and 

 salt-licks along the shore. Just now there is a 

 shortage of deer owing to so many having been 

 drowned during the " bore " of last year. Three 

 drowned tigers were then seen floating down the 

 rivers. Khulna tigers have a bad reputation. 

 They have quite lost all fear of man, and if cheetal 

 are short, become man-eaters. I understand that 

 the death-roll in the Sunderbunds exceeds one 

 hundred per annum. These are the actually re- 

 ported deaths, but no doubt many unrecorded ones 

 occur besides. The Forest Department coolies 

 are the chief sufferers, and there is no doubt 

 that in the Khulna District tigers have established 

 a veritable reign of terror. The nature of the 

 ground, dense bamboo jungle with slimy mud 



