272 A Sportswoman in India 



with amazement. What object could I have ? What 

 pleasure could I hope to find? They one and all 

 begged me to stay behind with them in the village 

 Awhile the sahibs also inexplicable beings went forth 

 to do battle ; and were more mystified than ever when 

 I turned a deaf ear to their entreaties. 



The shikaris having arranged to beat the supposed 

 " lie " of the tiger, we set off. I was right-hand gun 

 this time, and the beat had begun about ten minutes 

 by the watch in my wrist-strap. I was watching some 

 jungle-sheep delightful little animals trotting past 

 on my right, and had rather neglected my left for 

 a moment ; when " Eagh ! bagh / " whispered my 

 gun-bearer from his perch on a branch near my 

 machan. Glancing round, the stirring sight of Stripes 

 himself appeared before my eyes, going at a great rate 

 through the underwood. 



I had just time to fire both barrels, and to see that 

 the first, at any rate, had missed him. He galloped 

 off, roaring angrily ; though, talking of roaring, the 

 word is rather out of place the sound heard at night 

 is more a kind of moan than a roar, and when a 

 tiger charges it utters a series of loud, furious sort of 

 grunts or growls ; however, " roar " is the word in use. 

 Much disgusted, when the beaters came up, I 

 climbed down. But on searching we found traces of 

 blood, and then, farther on, marks where he had dug 

 his claws deeply into the ground. The shikaris 

 declared that he must, after all, have been badly hit, 

 and would probably in half an hour or so be dead. 



