THE WITCH-PANTHER. 109 



were all haunted by this devil. We knew it to 

 be the same, from the pug marks. It was the 

 three-legged witch-panther. After a time it grew 

 more daring and carried off women. No one 

 would go out alone ; while after dark all were 

 afraid, and even the men stayed within their huts. 

 One moonlight night in Magh (April-May), when 

 the young men and girls were dancing in the 

 ' house-of-drums ' and drinking mudh (rice-beer), 

 the witch-panther entered the village and carried 

 off the beer-seller's daughter, a grown young 

 woman of fourteen. No one saw the panther, but 

 the girl was missing and there were the pugs of 

 the three-legged devil. Late next day her feet and 

 a portion of the chest and head were found near 

 Lagon's hut. The old witch was examined, and it 

 s found that she, who had previously been all 

 Dones, was now sleek and fat. Some silver orna- 

 nents belonging to the gowla's daughter, who had 

 Deen killed by the panther three months before, 

 re found in the witch's hut. The lying old seeall 

 jackal) said she found them while out gathering 

 wood, but we none of us believed her, and it was 

 proposed that we should burn her for having killed 

 Dur children ; but we were afraid of the Sirkar 

 (Government). After taking counsel it was deter- 

 mined that she should be turned out of our village, 

 and her hut burned. This we did that same day, 

 and the chowkidar (village watchman) saw her to 

 tier relative's house in Morong. 



" After this we had no fear, and went about our 

 work as usual, until one day in the rice harvest two 



