TIGER 319 



be it known," for I had got first blood. Whoever 

 finished him, I claimed the skin. 



Well, to make an end of this yarn, which is pretty 

 much the same as any other tiger story, after having 

 disposed of our lunch, we lined out the elephants to 

 tread up our wounded beast. In a small glade, 

 covered with high, thick grass, a pad elephant 

 stumbled upon him where he lay. There was a 

 fearful trumpeting of elephants, and coughing, which 

 is more the word than roaring, of the tiger such a 

 jumble that no one got a chance. We got the pad 

 elephants out of the thicket, and found that the poor 

 pad that had walked on the tiger was badly mauled 

 about the trunk. Then we six howdah people 

 walked in, in close order, as it was only a small 

 place. There was a dead tree lying in the middle, 

 with grass growing through the bare branches. One 

 of the guns caught sight of stripes ensconced in this. 

 He was only about ten yards off, and he gave him a 

 shot with a " Paradox " and turned him over. Then 

 the usual chatter began. Bahim Bux, Koda Bux, and 

 all the other buxes had to say how they did this, did 

 that, and otherwise tiger would have got away, and 

 so on. 



I naturally was one of the first on the ground, 

 and was trying to pull the tiger out of where he was 

 trammelled by his great paw, when suddenly he gave 

 a great sigh and stretched out his legs. I jumped 

 back as if I was shot. I had my rifle ready in the 

 other hand. It was his last gasp ; he never moved 

 again. It is funny how often one does a thing which 



