144 RIFLE AND ROMANCE 



hand under my doubled-up and aching knee, gently altered 

 its position, and sat on patiently. 



Was the corpse down there moving ? No ! Yes, it was, 

 though. How beastly ! As I intently watched it, it 

 seemed to roll over! I could, in my fancy, see its dull 

 white eyes gleaming in the starlight, the head raised 

 despairingly to watch, helplessly, the approach of its 

 destroyer. 



I began to think of Forsyth's story of " Padam Singh 

 and the Man-eater"; of the half-eaten corpse that raised 

 its dead hands to point out the shikari shivering in his 

 tree ; and how those hands had to be pegged to the ground 

 before the tiger would return to the " kill " ! 



A small sound, as of tiny teeth, made itself audible in 

 the stillness of night ; a little champing of minute jaws, 

 and then a little squeak, and the eating ceased. 



Some mongoose or jungle-cat was at the corpse ! With 

 a shudder of disgust I turned slowly back to my original 

 position. 



Very faint noises came and went in the surrounding 

 jungle ; some dried twig or leaf falling to the ground 

 would set the pulses beating expectantly. I was awaiting 

 a creeping object to show itself on the light-coloured patch 

 of bran. Would it come ? 



Was that a slight dragging sound in the grass? The 

 beast that had come down the hillside must have been the 

 panther! Some indistinct and faint very faint noises 

 persuaded me that the creature was wandering round us in 

 the dark surrounding jungle. I had heard it under our 

 tree. Perhaps it was sitting somewhere near, watching, 

 feline fashion, ere crawling up to complete its meal. 



I was very drowsy. Perhaps I had been asleep for a 

 moment or two. This would not do. Yet it was sleepy 

 . . . awfully sleepy . . . work. 



Suddenly behind me came a shock, a gasp of terror; the 

 tree rocked : there was a scraping sound ; my orderly had 



