MAN-EATING TIGERS. 141 



about it we should say, in the first instance the human 

 victim has fallen while the animal w r as endeavouring 

 to make good its escape from some imaginary attack r 

 and having once come off an easy victor in the 

 encounter, success has bred contempt of the human 

 race. In most cases however the victims are women 

 or aged and helpless persons of either sex, who have 

 been incautiously out alone after dark, in a country 

 infested by a man-eater. 



Attacks, even then, upon Europeans or men with guns, 

 are very rare ; and published accounts of such cases 

 show that there is no more shy and difficult game to 

 outwit than a man-eating tiger, which seems to have 

 an instinctive dread of the death-dealing rifle, and to 

 know quite well that his cannibal propensities are 

 certain now-a-days to provoke reprisals by the Shikari. 

 Very complete returns are now made by the Indian 

 government, of the number of persons annually killed 

 in British India by wild animals. The numbers are 

 still, we regret to say, very large; in the four years 

 1885 to 1888 inclusive, they amounted to a total of 

 9485 persons. * 



The number of cattle destroyed in the same period, 

 by tigers and leopards only, amounted to the enormous 

 total of 204,493, f while the smaller carnivorae annually 

 kill some 12,800 additional animals among them. 



The numbers of cattle destroyed are also increasing, 

 whether by reason of more complete returns being 

 attained, or otherwise, is not stated. For instance, 

 whereas in 1885, 46,469 head of cattle were killed by 



* Indian Govt. Returns of deaths caused by wild animals. 

 f Statistical Return of cattle destroyed by wild beasts in the 4 years. 

 1885 to 1888 inclusive. 



