BEARS DANGEROUS TO HUMAN LIFE 



tracks we soon came up to him lying in some bushes. The 

 tips of the horns were all that I could see, so, not knowing 

 whether the beast was still alive or dead, I approached a 

 little nearer to find out, when up he sprang with a snort. 

 Fortunately, I was prepared, and as he got up I hit him 

 with the right barrel in the centre of the chest. 



He turned on receiving the shot, when I let him have 

 the contents of the other barrel in the shoulder. Never- 

 theless, he galloped off and covered quite twenty yards 

 before he fell over, dead. 



I could relate many another adventure I have had with 

 these animals, but from these two incidents alone it will 

 be seen that buffalo shooting is not only an exciting pas- 

 time, but apt to be dangerous, too, at times. The heads, 

 unless they happen to be out of the way in size, are not 

 much valued as trophies, but the skin is of great thickness 

 and much prized by the natives for making into shields, 

 thongs, etc. 



While on the subject of dangerous big game in Indian 

 jungles I mean animals dangerous to human life I 

 must not omit to mention the Indian bear,* for, with the 

 exception of a man-eating tiger or leopard, both happily 

 very rare, there is no animal more dreaded by the natives 

 and with good reason. 



For example, tigers and leopards, unless they happen 

 to be man-eaters, will seldom attack human beings un- 

 provokedly, on the contrary, are generally more anxious 

 to avoid them ; whereas the bear, without the smallest 

 provocation, will go for a man at sight. 



Wood-cutters and others, whose business takes them 

 into the jungles, often fall victims to these attacks, and 

 there was hardly a village in the Satpudas where one or 

 two of the villagers did not bear on their persons the claw- 

 marks of these vicious brutes. 



Armed with formidable claws about three inches in 

 length, they use them freely and with great effect, striking, 

 when they have the opportunity, with the forepaws and 

 cow-kicking with the hind ones, and cases have been known 

 of sportsmen being entirely scalped by one downward 

 blow of the paw, and even killed with one blow. 



* Ursus Ldbiatus. 



89 



