132 WILD BEASTS AND THEIR WAYS CHAI-. 



him up by tearing a turban into lung strips, und having made a 

 good surgical job, I had him laid upon a pad elephant and sent 

 straight into camp. We then loaded an elephant with the tiger, 

 which we proved to be the same and only animal (a tigress) which 

 had charged the elephant after my first shot. The bullet had 

 struck the thigh bone, causing a compound fracture, and that 

 accounted for the escape of Thompson without being boarded from 

 the rear, as she could not spring so great a height upon only three 

 legs. The furious beast had then attacked the elephant named 

 Hogg, which, falling upon its knees, had thrown the unready 

 driver. We subsequently discovered that he had a boil upon his 

 right foot, which had prevented him from using the rope stirrup ; 

 this accounted for the fall from his usually secure seat. 



The tigress, having mauled her victim and left him for dead, 

 was prepared for an onset upon Thompson had I not settled her 

 with the '577 bullet in the chest 



On arrival at the camp the man was well cared for, and on 

 the following morning we forwarded him by boat to the hospital 

 at Dhubri in charge of the keddah doctor. It was satisfactory to 

 learn that after a few months he recovered from his wounds, and 

 exhibited his complete cure by absconding from the hospital unknown 

 to the authorities, without returning thanks for the attention he 

 had received. 



This incident was an unfortunate example of the panic that 

 can be established among elephants. It is a common saying that 

 the elephant depends upon the mahout ; this is the rule for ordinary 

 work, but although a staunch elephant might exhibit nervousness 

 with a timid mahout, no driver, however determined, can induce a 

 timid animal to face a tiger, or to stand its onset. Thompson 

 had behaved so badly that I determined to give him one more 

 chance, and to change him for another elephant should he repeat 

 his nervousness. 



A few days after this occurrence, the natives reported a tiger to 

 be in a thicket of wild rose. We had changed camp to a place 

 called Kikripani, about eight miles from Rohumari, and I imme- 

 diately took the elephants to the wild-rose jungle, which was about 

 two miles distant. 



The usual arrangements were made, and I took up a position 

 upon Thompson in a narrow opening of fine grass which cut at 

 right angles through the wild-rose thicket. As the elephants 

 approached in close order, I was certain, from the peculiar sounds 

 emitted, that a tiger or some uubeloved animal was before them, 

 and upon the advance of the line to within 30 yards of the open 



