A WERE-TIGER, 277 



their fierce exultation at the thought of having 

 trapped so awful a creature. 



The raja repeated his question. 



In answer a Malay, whose chief wealth lay in his 

 diminishing herd of buffaloes, stood forth. 



"Who of us has not lost one or more of his 

 buffaloes ? "Who does not know that these Korinchis 

 can turn themselves into tigers ? Did we not all 

 hear the tiger roar last night? Have we not got 

 his tracks here ? And here, where the tracks lead 

 up to the trap, have we not, by the grace of Allah, 

 got the Korinchi trapped? What more?" 



" What more ? " said old To'Kaya, turning to me. 

 At a sign from the raja one of the men stepped up 

 to the trap, and, thrusting through the open bars 

 of the woodwork, drove his spear through the old 

 man's side. 



For a moment I was silent with horror, and 

 then said, "Pity on an old man to die in such a 

 manner ! " 



" What pity does a tiger show ? " retorted To'Kaya ; 

 "and what pity can it expect? Was it not clearly 

 proved that this man was a were-tiger ? It was not 

 that he was unjustly or unfairly tried. The men of 

 Bentong had known Haji Brahim for many years, 

 and against him, as a man, they had no ill-feeling. 

 The raja Kaja Alang, whom we shall see in the 

 village if we stop the boat and call in is both 

 mild and just. Could he have decided otherwise? 



" If a woman is accused of sin, or a man of murder, 

 and evidence not half so strong as that in this case 



