TIGERLAND 



made up my mind to bag the lot should the information 

 prove to be accurate. 



According to the story there had been some kills quite 

 recently, but how to locate these without elephants was a 

 problem which rather stumped me at first, especially as 

 the jungle was said to be enormous and very dense. Finally, 

 after considering the subject from every point of view, 

 I decided the best way would be to procure some buffalo 

 calves, if possible and tie them up as baits, and, in the 

 event of one being killed, to sit up over the carcass on the 

 nearest tree that I could find. Having thus settled the 

 knotty question, as I thought, and knowing that it would 

 take some time to make all the necessary arrangements, 

 I urged my pony on, and in due course reached my destina- 

 tion, much pleased with my plan, and quite confident of 

 success. 



I had no sooner arrived than I had ample evidence as 

 to the presence of some dangerous animals in the vicinity. 

 The village seemed as if peopled by the dead. Though 

 some hours yet to sunset, not a soul was to be seen about. 

 The door of every hut was firmly closed, but if a dog 

 barked in an excited manner, or a pig squealed more 

 loudly than its wont, instantly from within each hut arose 

 the din of loud wooden clappers, gongs, tom-toms, and 

 every other hideous sound that the ingenuity of man, 

 woman, and child could produce. This disconcerting noise 

 lasted all that evening, and at intervals during the whole 

 of that night, rendering sleep, or any hope of it, an absolute 

 impossibility. 



Next morning I interviewed my host, the aforesaid 

 village " mundle," and found that here fortune had much 

 favoured me, in that he proved to be Mahomedan, and 

 hence not troubled with any scruples in the matter of 

 supplying an old cow or two to tie up as " baits " for a 

 consideration, of course. We soon came to an arrangement 

 that he should put out two or three that evening, receiving 

 five rupees per head for any that were slain. Had the man 

 been a strict Hindu, no inducement that I could offer, 

 pecuniary or otherwise, would have persuaded him to do 

 such a thing, and I would perforce have had to wait for 

 the next ordinary " kill." 

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