326 WILD MEN AND WILD BEASTS. 



occasions, trees, boughs, and bundles of grass and brushwood 

 are thrown to the sagacious animals, which they force down 

 with their tusks and trample them into the sand. 



The Bashi, Murray, and I, moved north, via Dhie, towards 

 the Mogra ravine, which we reached in two marches. On 

 riding into the camp we were met by Dhokul, who came for- 

 ward with a look of deep dejection stamped on his expressive 

 countenance. He informed us that a cow having been killed 

 by a tiger a few days previously, the exasperated owner had 

 poisoned the carcass. A tigress and two half-grown cubs 

 returned to feaSfc, and there and then died. The Bheels had 

 hung the three bodies on a tree close by, where we found 

 them emitting a noisome effluvium. These were the tigers 

 whose tracks I had seen on my last visit to the ravine, when, 

 in firing the jungle, I had nearly burnt down my tent. We 

 were vexed on finding them poisoned, but could not blame 

 the poor Bheels, who were only protecting their cattle. The 

 father of the family was still to be accounted for, and he, 

 having yielded to the temptation of one of our buffaloes 

 during the night, was marked down in the morning by our 

 men, aided by a Mekranee named Morad. 



We posted ourselves in trees across the ravine, and our 

 men, accompanied by a number of the local Bheels, went off 

 to drive down towards us. The Mekranee was on the left, 

 and from my tree I could see the tiger passing up towards 

 him. He fired, as did also Evans, and the tiger, badly 

 wounded, rushed growling into the bottom of the ravine 

 immediately below my post. I sat very quiet, and presently 

 saw his huge head and neck protrude from some green 

 willows. I had a pot-shot at him, and dropped him dead. 

 This tiger, when first started, had charged back among the 

 beaters. One man was cut by his claw on the shoulder, but 



