406 THRILLING ADVENTURES. 



sidered as par excellence, the demesne or park of Tippoo, in 

 which he reigns in splendid but ferocious majesty. It is true 

 that he has some subjects who do not very much regard his 

 sway upon ordinary occasions, but these are not exceedingly 

 numerous. The elephant and rhinoceros are both met with 

 in this singularly blended scene of life and death ; but the 

 ground is rather soft for their heavy tread, and they are 

 consequently but rare. The gavial, or crocodile of the 

 Ganges, is however exceedingly numerous, and very large ; 

 and though but a slow and sluggish animal upon land, it often 

 makes prize of the tigers when they come to the waters to drink. 

 But, with the exceptions of three species now mentioned, the 

 tiger lords it over all the animals of this wide region, and very 

 often issues from it to invade the plantations and even villages 

 which are in its vicinity. Swamps and jungles of smaller 

 dimensions are formed by the back water of all the great 

 rivers of India, and indeed wherever the water stagnates ; 

 and where such jungles are formed, tigers are always to be 

 met with in large numbers. The greater number of them 

 keep within their jungle, because the woody jungles are 

 greatly interspersed with grassy ones, in which deer, ante- 

 lopes, and other animals pasture ; and the woods themselves 

 afford an ample supply of wild hogs, monkeys, and other 

 animals, of all of which the tigers make prey. Sometimes, 

 however, they issue from their fastness ; and, as when they 

 do so, they are generally in a state of great excitement, they 

 commit terrible ravages. 



When they make these inroads into the habitations of men, 

 or of tame animals, they kill much more than they eat ; and 

 it has thence been concluded that tigers are endowed by na- 

 ture with a love of slaughter unknown to any other animal. 

 It does not appear, however, that this is the case ; for though 

 the tiger comes more into the settled and peopled grounds than 

 the lion, yet he is not exactly in his native element there, 

 but is excited, and generally also alarmed, and therefore does 



