42 SPORT IN ASIA AND AFRICA 



firing; but the mahout, Karim, pointed in the 

 direction in which the bushes were moving and 

 urged me to shoot. I decided, therefore, to 

 chance a shot and fired. The shot, by good 

 fortune, struck the tigress near the root of the 

 tail, and she turned and rushed in the direction 

 of the beaters outside the edge of the jungle. 

 Chainchal stood staunchly, and with the second 

 barrel I broke the tigress's left shoulder as she 

 charged past me. She then lay up under a bush 

 in the cover, and with some difficulty I made her 

 out from the howdah and finished her off. This 

 tigress had a very beautifully marked skin, which 

 makes a very handsome trophy. 



On the next day a good tiger was marked 

 down, and, having shot the tigress, I was put in 

 what was supposed to be the worst place, at the 

 end of the beat. Wood having the position on the 

 side of the beat, while Bird was covering him. 

 But fortune favoured me, and, as the fine of 

 elephants advanced, I saw the tiger's head in the 

 jungle about 80 yards away. He was standing 

 broadside on to Wood, and at no great distance, 

 but was hidden from him by the bushes. Mo- 

 mentarily I expected to hear his rifle, but he did 

 not fire, and the tiger remained standing with his 

 head slightly turned, listening to the advancing 

 elephants. I accordingly fired from a standing 

 position in the howdah, aiming between the eyes. 

 I made a good shot, the bullet striking the tiger 

 between the nose and the left eye. Subsequent 

 examination showed that the bullet, which was 

 a shell from a -500 black powder Express, broke 

 the palate, nearly severed the tongue, and tore 



