20 SAVED BY A HAT. 



" I was out with a friend after bears in the jungles near 

 Burdwan in Bengal. We had formed a long line with some 

 thirty or forty beaters about five yards apart from each other, 

 and were walking quietly along, when I heard the grunting 

 and a kind of scuffling noise of bears in front of my part 

 of the line. I thought that two bears were on foot in front 

 of us, and, frightened at the noise we made, were beating a 

 retreat ; so I rushed on ahead of the line by myself with one 

 rifle, and presently I caught a glimpse of a bear running 

 away in front of me. The jungle was very thick, and I only 

 saw him for an instant. He disappeared, and I went on by 

 myself, and presently heard a great noise in front, and in a 

 moment three bears appeared, all running towards me, about 

 ten yards off. I had just time to aim and fire my remaining 

 barrels at the front one, and then turned and ran as hard as 

 I could, with all three bears after me. I ran for 100 or 150 

 yards, but found I did not increase my distance from them, 

 so I caught hold of a little tree and swung myself round, and 

 went off in another direction at right angles. In swinging 

 round, my hat (a large sola-topee or pith hat) fell off, which I 

 expect saved me from getting a terrible mauling, and perhaps 

 my life. After running another 100 yards, I found I was 

 not pursued, and I soon reached my friend with the coolies, 

 and the man who was carrying my other (loaded) rifle. We 

 then went to the spot where I had swung myself round the 

 tree, and I found my hat smashed to pieces. The bears, not 

 able to catch me, were satisfied with the hat ! I found a blood 

 track, which showed I had hit one of them as he charged 

 me. We followed the tracks for some distance, but event- 

 ually lost them. The very day before this, in the same jungle, 

 I had wounded a large bear which I was following up, when I 

 came suddenly and unexpectedly upon him. He saw me at 

 the same moment, and came down upon me like a thunderbolt. 

 I had just time to aim at him and fire. My bullet struck 

 him in the head, and he rolled over dead within two yards of 



