KURUKWAHI 205 



seized the topi in his teeth, missing my head and face, 

 and made off with it in his mouth, probably being 

 amazed at the ease with which a human head comes 

 off. All I knew was that there was daylight suddenly 

 and the bear had gone. The whole of the affair 

 took, I suppose, only a few seconds. There was no 

 time to feel frightened and the mauling to my leg 

 was absolutely painless. 



I jumped up at once and my first thought, I 

 remember, was thankfulness that he had not torn 

 my eyes out; as jungle people tell one that bears 

 always go for the eyes first, or else eat one's brain, 

 and then " they know you are dead " ! 



The men, with looks of alarm, had crowded round 

 by now and seemed greatly relieved when they saw 

 me standing up and laughing, which I could not 

 help doing it all seemed such a funny thing to have 

 happened, quite natural, and all in the day's work. 



The man close to me, who was holding the rifle, 

 was safe and had jumped aside behind a rock; 

 besides, when he passed him, the bear's mouth was 

 full of hat ; he brought the rifle up to be unloaded. 

 I was standing in the sun and told Abdulla to find 

 my topi. The bear who had gone off with it in his 

 mouth, they said, had carried it some distance before 

 he dropped it. It was brought back rather mangled, 

 with teeth-marks through it. I sat down feeling 

 rather faint, supported by Abdulla, but soon felt 

 better, and thought it was about time to look at 

 my wounds. There was a scratch on my ear, but 

 whether it was done by bear or rock I don't know. 

 I ripped up my knickerbockers from the knee, with 



