TIGERS. 95 



Apropos of sitting up, a very good story was going the 

 rounds of the Madras Club some years ago, of a well known 

 and popular lawyer who with two friends was out in the 

 Mofussil (provincial districts) on a half pic-nic, half shikar 

 trip. One day news arrived of an ox having been killed 

 by a tiger in some adjacent jungle, which, owing to its 

 extent and thickness, was unsuited to driving operations. 

 They therefore decided to sit up over the gara. and having 

 sent coolies to erect a comfortable munchal (platform) in a 

 tree overhanging the kill, they ordered a substantial tiffin 

 rather late in the afternoon, which it was intended should 

 take the place of dinner, as they did not expect to return 

 until the following morning. Kepairing to the scene of 

 the kill some time before sunset, they mounted the platform, 

 which was luxuriously fitted with rezais (padded quilts). 

 The tiffin had been sumptuous and the evening was sultry, 

 and before an hour had elapsed they had all dropped off 

 to sleep. In the middle of the night one of the trio fell 

 overboard and commenced to groan with pain at the foot 

 of the tree. This noise awoke his companions, who, 

 believing it to be the tiger, promptly loosed off four barrels 

 in the direction of the sound, but providentially missed 

 hitting their companion. 



