TIGER SLAYER BY ORDER 



so to speak, he made up his mind to adopt a criminal 

 career, and soon forming a gang, took to raiding villages, 

 where, by looting and threatening the big traders, amassed 

 a considerable amount of loot — successfully evading all 

 attempts made by the police to arrest him. This went 

 on for some time until at length, under a promise, made by 

 the Superintendent of Police, my friend Probyn, that he 

 would not be arrested, he agreed to meet him at a place 

 called Selbari, where he came on the day appointed. 

 Throwing himself at Probyn's feet he said he was ready to 

 give himself up at once if the sahib would only try him 

 himself. This Probyn told him was impossible, but 

 offered to go with him himself to the district magistrate and 

 do his best to get him off with as light a sentence as possible. 



But to this Tulia would not agree. " No," he reiterated. 

 " Let the sahib send for witnesses and try me himself, 

 and if guilty, hang me on the tree we are sitting under — 

 or send me to Dhulia jail. I am ready to be handcuffed now ! 

 But I will not be tried by any other sahib ! " Being told 

 again that what he suggested was impossible he said, " Very 

 well, let me think the matter over till to-morrow." Then 

 he asked to be allowed to go to see his people at Pimpulneer, 

 and being granted a permit from Probyn, he went off. But 

 on arriving there it appears that he went in for a drinking 

 bout and becoming extremely drunk, walked into a cloth 

 merchant's shop and turning the contents into the street, 

 told his followers to scramble for them. Next morning 

 he sent a message saying, " He had changed his mind and 

 would not give himself up, but was returning to the jungle ! " 



It was now that Hafizullah came upon the scene, being 

 deputed with a party of police to arrest this troublesome 

 absconder, but they found it very difficult to hunt him down, 

 for though he was occasionally seen, he always managed 

 to elude them. He was even fired at but without an\' 

 visible effect — thus giving currency to the belief that he 

 wore some charm which made him bullet-proof ! 



At length one day, the inspector, happening to go alone 

 to the house of a Patel or headman of a certain village, to 

 make enquiries regarding some information he had re- 

 ceived, Tulia turned the tables on him most effectually. 

 Being in hiding near this village, he heard of the inspector's 

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