420 WILD SPORTS OF BURMA AND ASSAM 



hood of some village, where, for a few days, they commit great 

 havoc, not only on cattle but sometimes upon human beings, 

 and as suddenly disappear again, to be heard of at some other 

 place thirty or forty miles off. 



Tigers in Burma are most often shot from a machan over 

 a " kill," or in other words buffalo or cow, which has been 

 killed or dragged away. Occasionally, however, an animal is 

 turned out in a beat near some village. 



Colonel Pollok, who has shot a number of these animals, has 

 gone more fully into this subject. 



I remember my first experience with a tiger in the days 

 when I was a griffin and had not begun to use a rifle. The 

 incident happened in the Sandoway district. I was out on 

 tour and had just arrived at the village of Sathwa, where the 

 thugyi, who was a half-bred native of India and Burma, begged 

 me to stay for a day and assist him in shooting a tiger, which 

 had been preying upon the cattle of several villages in the 

 neighbourhood, his own included. I was delighted at the 

 prospect of getting a shot at a tiger, so, after collecting some 

 thirty beaters, we sallied forth to beat up all the likely covers 

 where Stripes might be lying. There were three guns in all ; 

 a Civil police constable armed with a muzzle-loading Enfield, 

 the thugyi with a breech-loading snider carbine, and myself 

 with a double 12-bore shot-gun, loaded with 3^ drams of 

 powder and 12 buck-shot in each barrel, a very sorry weapon 

 indeed with which to face a tiger. After beating out some 

 eight or ten covers, which occupied the greater part of the 

 day, but without seeing any signs of the animal, we gave it up 

 in disgust and began to retrace our steps homewards. When 

 within 300 to 400 yards of Sathwa, a Burman, who was walking 

 behind me, touched me on the shoulder, and said in an excited 

 manner, " Thakin, thakin, no ma kya " (Sir, sir, there is the 

 tiger). I looked in the direction in which he was pointing, and 

 to my surprise saw Stripes seated watching some cows which 

 were feeding close by, and which were apparently quite 

 unconscious of danger. It was then about 5.30 p.m., and I 

 have no doubt that the tiger intended waiting till it got a 

 little darker before pouncing upon a victim. As the distance 

 between us was only about 60 yards he saw us at once, and, 



