TIGERS. 105 



The beat commenced close to the foot of the hill, towards 

 which we faced. The Colonel was posted in a tree about 

 seventy yards to my left, I being on a small rock com- 

 manding a nullah about twenty yards to my right. I soon 

 heard the coughing roar of a tiger, which had been 

 disturbed by the Colonel and his gun-bearer on their way 

 to their post, but nothing appeared for some minutes, when 

 the beat commenced with the usual preliminary burst of 

 tom-toms, horns, shouting, rockets, and blank cartridge a 

 delicious, if discordant, overture, which always sends a 

 thrill of pleasure through a sportsman. The tiger roared 

 in response, and immediately afterwards, appearing on the 

 edge of the jungle about forty yards to my left, galloped 

 over a slope of sheet rock in front, and crossing the nullah, 

 halted broadside towards me under a tree forty yards off on 

 the opposite bank. I raised my rifle to aim, and the slight 

 movement catching her eye, she turned her head to stare at 

 me. A second later the trigger was pressed ; up she went 

 on her hind legs, and then charged me straight as an 

 arrow, roaring as she came, but fell stone dead into the 

 nullah, within twenty yards of my post, the Express bullet 

 having taken her clean through the heart. A prettily- 

 marked tigress exactly 7ft. lOin. between uprights. The 

 shikaries reported that two of her cubs, about the size of 

 big monkeys, had taken refuge in a cave at the base of the 

 hill, but as they could not be bolted, they recommended us 

 to wait for them after sunset, which we accordingly did, 

 but ineffectually, nor was a beat next day more successful. 

 We heard afterwards that they had been found half starved 

 in the jungle, and killed by some native shikaries. This 

 was the most luxurious day's tiger shooting I ever enjoyed, 

 the whole thing taking place within a mile of camp, from 

 which we were only one hour absent. Four days later we 



