164 WILD MEN AND WILD BEASTS. 



large tiger standing in a streamlet about 200 yards from us. 

 He had evidently seen us, and after a few seconds he moved 

 up the hill-side, which was covered with bamboos and de- 

 tached fragments of rock. On arriving at the spot where we 

 had seen him, we came in full view of the huge beast, as he 

 stood, a hundred paces above us, at the base of a large rock. 

 He was watching us, with one paw raised like a pointer dog, 

 and his head turned sideways towards us. Notwithstanding 

 the distance, we were about to fire, when, with a series of 

 savage growls, he charged down the hill, and rushing across 

 the ravine, disappeared, and we saw him no more. The word 

 " growl," which I have used above is, I think inaccurate, but 

 I know not what term to use. A tiger when lying wounded 

 in a thicket will sometimes "growl," but when he charges 

 his cry is more of a deep cavernous grunt, very horrible to 

 hear, and well calculated to try a man's nerves. On one or 

 two rare, occasions I have heard a tiger roar, and have often- 

 times heard him growl, but the war-cry which he gives when 

 charging is quite distinct from either of these. 



After resting a while we moved towards the place where 

 we had sent our servants and tents. The jungle had been only 

 very partially burnt, and all the edges of the streams, together 

 with large tracts of the more level jungle, were covered with 

 grass two feet or more in height. We were skirting up the 

 bank of a considerable stream, when we saw a tiger move up 

 from the river on the opposite side, and disappear among the 

 long grass. The jungle was fairly open, and we thought we 

 might try our luck on the elephants ; so, calling them up, we 

 mounted. We had to proceed up stream some distance, as 

 the bank was too abrupt to allow the elephants to descend. 

 Having at length effected a passage, we moved down to where 

 we had seen the tiger, and there, among the grass, we found 



