204 BAFFLED. 



stopped and drawing himself up to his full height remained 

 watching them ; presently he slowly came on to an old dry 

 wallowing pool near where the deer had been standing and 

 laid clown. The ground was quite open and I hoped he 

 would gradually come up the dip, so I hastened clown to meet 

 him, for I was a long way off; when I got to the end of the 

 open ground I took a cautious peep, and saw that he was still 

 on the same spot but with only his head visible ; he was a 

 good 200 yards off, and I did not like to take a chance shot 

 at his head or rather part of it, for he had evidently seen me 

 and had crouched; by moving a few paces I could uncover his 

 body, so I put up the 200 yards sight and endeavoured to get 

 a clearer view, but in an instant he was up and bounding 

 away. After going about 50 yards he wheeled round to have 

 a look at me. I fired point blank unluckily forgetting the 50 

 yards he had gone, and the shell of the carbine threw up the 

 dust right under him making him dash up the hill into the 

 shola at his best pace, more frightened than hurt. 



I had shot a bison, a young bull, and had left the carcass 

 on the ground. Two days after as we passed near the spot 

 I turned off to see if a tiger had carried it away, and sure 

 enough the bison was gone ; we found it near the nullah. 1 1 

 appeared as if it had only been carried off that afternoon ; one 

 hind quarter was nearly demolished, so I determined to watch 

 for the tiger on the morrow. As soon as I arrived at home I 

 had a light bamboo ladder made, as the underwood about was 

 unpleasantly high. The next morning I started with the 

 ladder and my little horse keeper. On approaching the spot 

 we heard the tiger grunting (I cannot use a more expressive 

 term) in the nullah, away on our right. On mounting the 

 ladder I was glad to find the carcass still much in the same 



