TIGER SLAYER BY ORDER 



pulled down, and heard his agonizing scream, the scene 

 was one calculated to impress itself too deeply on the mind 

 to be easily erased. 



But fortunately the voyage was now nearly at an end, 

 and three or four days later we dropped anchor in the 

 harbour of Bombay. Here, after the usual trouble and 

 delay, I succeeded at length in re-establishing connection 

 with my heavy luggage produced from that mysterious 

 receptacle somewhere in the bowels of the ship known as 

 the hold. 



My belongings being collected, I lost no time in going 

 ashore, accompanied by many others, all seemingly anxious 

 to be there as speedily as possible. This seemed strange, 

 for the voyage, on the whole, had been a most enjoyable 

 one, but all who have travelled much by sea will probably 

 understand it, for, however pleasant a voyage may have 

 been, it is seldom that any one desires to prolong it, and 

 no sooner has the vessel reached her destination, than all 

 are anxious to be out of her with the least possible delay- 

 even the professional sailorman who makes his ship his 

 home, is apparently no exception to this rule. 



The conclusion to be drawn from this is obviously that 

 the average individual is not by nature partial to a life on 

 the ocean waves, but only tolerates it for so long as necessity 

 compels him so to live. 



Amongst those who hurried ashore, however, were 

 possibly some returning from three months' privilege leave, 

 and who, having to rejoin their respective stations within a 

 given date, had probably to leave by the first train out. 



" Privilege leave," by the way, though a curious and 

 somewhat cryptic combination of words, is one of the 

 conditions of Indian Service, much valued by Anglo-Indian 

 officers, both civil and military, since it is the only form 

 of leave that can be taken on full pay. It is accumulative, 

 but limited to three months at a time. 



The principle on which it works is this for every eleven 

 months' completed service, an officer earns one month's 

 leave, which may, if not availed of then, remain to his 

 credit, and is allowed to accumulate up to a limit of three 

 months. Then at the end of thirty-three months' con- 

 tinuous service, an officer can claim three months' leave of 

 4 



