HISTORY OF THE TIGER. 65 



and Wilder fired two balls at him, but knew not whether 

 they took effect. The bush in which he was found, was 

 one on the west bank of one of those little half dry ponds of 

 which I have spoken. Mr. Barton and I conjecturing that, 

 as there was no other thick cover near, he would probably 

 soon return, took our stand in the centre of the open space : in 

 a minute the tiger ran into the bushes on the east side ; I saw 

 him quite plain ; we immediately put our elephant into the 

 bushes, and poked about, till the horsemen, who were recon- 

 noitering round the outside of the whole jungle, Saw him 

 slink under the bushes on the north side ; hither we followed 

 him, and from thence traced him by his growling, back to 

 the outer part of the eastern bushes. Here he started out 

 just before the trunk of our elephant, with a tremendous 

 growl or grunt, and made a charge at another elephant far- 

 ther out on the plain, retreating again immediately under 

 cover. Fraser fired at him, but we suppose without effect ; 

 and called to us for our elephant to pursue him into his 

 cover. 



" With some difficulty we made our way to the inside of 

 the southern bushes ; and, as we were looking through the 

 thicket, we perceived the tiger slink away under them. 

 Mr. Barton fired, and hit him a mortal blow about the shoul- 

 der or back, for he instantly was checked, and my ball, 

 which followed the same instant, threw him down. We 

 two then discharged our whole artillery, which originally 

 consisted of two double-barrelled guns, loaded with slugs, 

 and a pair of pistols. Most of them took effect, as we could 

 discover by his wincing, for he was not above ten yards 

 from us at any time, and at one moment, when the ele- 

 phant chose to take fright and turn his head round, away 

 from the beast, running his haunches almost into the bush. 

 By this time William Fraser had come round, and dis- 

 charged a few balls at the tiger, which lay looking at us 

 grinning and growling, his ears thrown back, but unable to 



