SAVED BY A LUCKY SHOT 



were aroused, the tigress might discover us any moment, 

 and her maternal instincts prompt her to attack us. 

 She was standing broadside on to us, so pushing the 

 muzzle of my rifle noiselessly through the leaves, I aimed 

 carefully at a spot an inch behind her shoulder. As I was 

 about to press the trigger, she turned her head towards 

 me and our eyes meeting as I fired, I knew that she had 

 seen me. 



From that moment I have no distinct recollections as 

 to the sequence of events, but so rapidly did they succeed 

 each other that the impression left upon my mind was that 

 they had all occurred at once. In fact, in the confusion 

 that ensued, it was impossible to tell what had actually 

 taken place, but almost simultaneously with the report, 

 the tigress must have launched herself upon us, for the 

 sky was darkened for a moment as some huge object 

 passed over our heads with a roar that shook the very 

 ground we stood on. 



I turned quickly round expecting her to renew the attack 

 at once, and such was probably her intention, for I saw her 

 crouching for her spring ; but before she could accomplish 

 it, I heard a shot behind me, and she rolled over on to 

 her side. A struggling mass of fur was now all that I 

 could see, and remembering that my second barrel was 

 still loaded, discharged its contents into it, trusting to 

 good fortune to hit a vital spot. It was the luckiest fluke 

 I ever made, and probably saved our lives, for, as we sub- 

 sequently discovered, the bullet struck her on the head, 

 and penetrating the brain, caused almost instant death. 

 Her struggles ceased immediately, and with one long, 

 convulsive shudder she lay stretched out at full length 

 and absolutely still. 



We watched her for some time not daring to approach 

 then threw some clods at her and, not till we were satisfied 

 that life was quite extinct, did we venture to go near. 

 She proved to be a very fine young tigress, about 8 feet 

 10 inches in length, and proportionately massive, with a 

 well-marked, glossy skin generally to be met with amongst 

 tigers of that kind. 



The first shot we found had struck her on the shoulder, 

 but much too far behind, which accounted for her 



N 177 



