MAN-EATING PANTHERS. 29 



a panther at the same village, and after that no more kills. I think the 

 solution of the puzzle must be that the male usually, if not always, did 

 the killing. I cannot be certain that the second one was a female, 

 but judging from the size of the holes in the police sepoy, I think it is 

 likely. The two being at the same place the same night looks as if 

 they had been a pair. In the 26 cases previous to that of the police 

 sepoy, all were killed at once. The police sepoy was the only one 

 seized in a clumsy way. I stopped in that part of the country for 

 eleven more days and nothing more happened, and it was reported to 

 me also that down to 6th June there had been no further disaster. 

 In none of the cases, except that of the Bania boy, did the panther get 

 away with the body, so that there was very little eating done. Be- 

 sides the occasions I have mentioned that the panther came to my 

 camp, there were several nights he was alleged to have been seen, but 

 I do not count any night when his tracks could not be found in the 

 morning. The panther fired at by the police sepoy on May 17th was 

 certainly missed. The place was a field several hundred yards from 

 jungle, and if it had been hit, blood must have been found. Moreover, 

 it came again on the night of May 18th. I allude to this so as to 

 exclude the possibility of it being thought that the second panther 

 might have been hit, and died. I am afraid it is still at large. The 

 slain panther had a perfect set of teeth and skin in good order and no 

 reason is apparent why it should have taken to evil habits. All the 

 kills were at night, of persons asleep and there had been no case, as far 

 as I could ascertain, of a person up and about being attacked either 

 by day or night. 



