288 THE TRAIL OF THE TIGEE 



It does not give up pursuit of its quarry on fail- 

 ure of the first attack. 



It does not deliver bone-crushing blows with its 

 fore paws, like bruin, although it does give blows 

 that lacerate the flesh. 



It does not roar like a lion. 



It does not kill by blood letting, but by dislo- 

 cating the neck. 



It can climb a tree, but rarely does so. 



There is also much exaggeration concerning size 

 and weight. A tiger that measures ten feet from 

 the tip of its nose to the end of its tail is a big 

 one, and above the average, which is about nine 

 and a half feet. Of course there are exceptions, 

 as in all animal kind, but the majority of eleven 

 and twelve foot tiger stories are fiction. I was 

 unable during six months' hunting to find definite 

 account of one even eleven feet in length. I did 

 hear of several ranging from ten feet to ten feet 

 six inches, and one of ten feet eight inches. So 

 also with the weight, which is commonly written 

 down at from 400 to 500 pounds, whereas the aver- 

 age will run from 300 to 375 pounds, the latter 

 being a good one and the former figure more near 

 the average. 



The manner of hunting tigers varies according 

 to locality and conditions ; and in India alone sev- 

 eral methods obtain: 



