TIGERS. 179 



inches and a half, and lie was ten years of age ; for he 

 had ten lobes to his liver, and it is by the appearance 

 of the tiger's liver that the natives ascertain the age. 



1 have quoted the above anecdote, not to prove the 

 truth of the circumstance as regards the tiger's liver, 

 but as a tradition among the inhabitants. 



The people of Chittagong were alarmed by the ap- 

 pearance of a tigress, who was first discovered among 

 some cattle that were grazing at the mouth of the river. 

 On the first alarm the natives of the vicinity assembled 

 with all speed and advanced against her. Irritated by 

 this, she sprang furiously on the person nearest to her, 

 and wounded him severely. The immediate attack of 

 the crowd, however, was successful in rescuing the man 

 from her grasp. On this the tigress, finding herself 

 hemmed in on all sides, and seeing no way of avoiding 

 the multitude except by the river, took to the water 

 and swam about five miles, closely pursued by the 

 natives in their boats, until she landed under a tree in 

 a dockyard. Here she laid herself down, apparently 

 much fatigued ; but before the people in the yard could 

 get their firearms ready, she had in a great degree 

 recovered her strength. Several shots were fired at her, 

 and two of them penetrated her body, one of which 

 lamed her. Rendered desperate by this, she advanced 

 against her new opponents, and singling out a European 

 gentleman in the yard, who was provided with a cutlass, 

 she sprang upon him before he could make use of his 

 weapon, knocked him down with her fore-paw, seized 

 his head in her mouth, bit off a considerable part of the 

 skin of his forehead, and wounded him in several places. 

 After this she sprang upon a native, fractured his skull, 

 and otherwise lacerated him so dreadfully that he died 



