TIGERS. 95 



tended to answer, that I cannot imagine any thing 

 more worthy the contemplation of an anatomist, 

 artist, or philosopher. It combines beauty and 

 elegance of proportion, with immense strength 

 and intricacy of mechanism, beyond the power of 

 human contrivance. Each claw has a tendinous 

 communication with strong muscles, and is kept 

 in a retractile state, that its sharpness may not be 

 injured by walking. Whenever a tiger strikes at 

 any animal, not only the claws enter it, but the 

 toes often follow ; I have frequently probed 

 wounds made by them, to the depth of at least 

 five inches. 



It should be observed that the claws and toes 

 together are rarely, if ever, of that length ; but 

 the force of the blow compresses the soft parts, 

 and although they do not penetrate deeper than 

 three or four inches, yet when the parts com- 

 pressed resume their natural state, the wounds 

 appear much deeper. With what force they are 

 capable of striking may be judged from the fol- 

 lowing circumstance : A Battalion of Bengal 

 Native Infantry was marching up the New Road, 

 on its return from the Carnatic, and as it was 

 passing through Chittro ghaut , a tiger made a 

 spring at one of the loaded camels, and with one 



