vii THE TIGER 149 



district which took possession of the road, and actually stopped 

 the traffic. This was not the generally accepted specimen of a 

 man-eater, old and mangy, but an exceedingly powerful beast of 

 unexampled ferocity and audacity. It was a merciless highway- 

 man, which infested a well-known portion of the road, and levied 

 toll upon the drivers of the native carts, not by an attack upon 

 their bullocks, but by seizing the driver himself, and carrying him 

 off to be devoured in the neighbouring jungle. It had killed a 

 number of people, and nothing would induce a native to venture 

 upon that fatal road with a single cart ; it had therefore become 

 the custom to travel in company with several carts together, as 

 numbers were supposed to afford additional security. This proved 

 to be a vain expectation, as the tiger was in no way perplexed by 

 the arrangement ; it bounded from the jungle where it had lain in 

 waiting, and having allowed the train of carts to pass in single file, 

 it seized the driver of the hindmost, and as usual carried the man 

 away, in spite of the cries of the affrighted companions. 



Upon several occasions this terrible attack had been enacted, 

 and the traffic was entirely stopped. A large reward was offered 

 by the Government, but without effect ; the man-eater never could 

 be found by any of the shikaris. 



At length the Superintendent of Police, Mr. Duff, who unfor- 

 tunately had lost one arm by a gun accident, determined to make 

 an effort at its destruction, and he adroitly arranged a plan that 

 would be a fatal trap, and catch the tiger in its own snare. He 

 obtained two covered carts, each drawn as usual by two bullocks. 

 The leading cart was fitted in front and behind with strong bars 

 of lashed bamboo, which formed an impervious cage ; in this the 

 driver was seated, while Mr. Duff himself sat with his face towards 

 the rear, prepared to fire through the bars should the tiger, accord- 

 ing to its custom, attack the driver of the rearmost cart. This 

 would have been an exciting moment for the driver, but Mr. Duff 

 had carefully prepared a dummy, dressed exactly to personate the 

 usual native carter ; the bullocks, being well trained, would follow 

 closely in the rear of the leading cart, from which a splendid shot 

 would be obtained should the tiger venture upon an attack. 



All went well ; the road was desolate, bordered by jungle upon 

 one side, and wild grass-land upon the other. They had now 

 reached the locality where the dreaded danger lay, and slowly the 

 carts moved along the road in their usual apathetic manner. This 

 must have been an exciting moment, and Mr. Duff was no doubt 

 thoroughly on the look-out. Suddenly there was a roar ; a large 

 tiger bounded from the jungle, and with extraordinary quickness 



