A RICKETY HAMMOCK 187 



all talked at once, saying that they had seen the 

 stripes on the tiger, anything, so long as they could 

 talk and give any excuse for returning to the village 

 at once crackle, crackle, now in front, the panther 

 seemed to be walking round and round us. It was 

 really extraordinarily interesting standing there 

 and listening to hear from where the footfalls came. 

 We made plenty of noise all this time, and I should 

 think we had stood there an hour before we saw a 

 lantern coming along, and heard voices approaching 

 and loud shouts. My men were glad enough to 

 shout in reply, and they shouted vigorously too, and 

 in tones of relief. I dare say we were all rather glad 

 to stand round the light when it came. 



The ladder was put up in a large tree near and 

 the men tied up the hammock they had just brought 

 with them; I do not know how they managed to 

 do it so quickly in the dark, and I tied the lantern 

 up with the white shade reflecting down on to the 

 pony. I climbed into the machan and told the men 

 to talk loudly as they went away, but I need not have 

 troubled to tell them that, it was a very noisy troop 

 that walked away, and they went very fast, but 

 there was more coughing than conversation. 



The panther was in a precious hurry for his dinner. 

 No sooner had the men gone than there was a crack- 

 ling in the leaves again, perhaps thirty yards off, and 

 long before the men's voices had died away, almost 

 before I could load my rifle, he appeared walking 

 slowly into the circle of light thrown by the lantern. 

 I could see it was spots and not stripes he was 

 wearing. He stopped and looked about him several 



