THE TIGER 241 



flee from panic-stricken in Ms native haunts, perhaps 

 charging headlong at his head, trusting all to the skill of 

 his rider, and thoughtless of using his own tremendous 

 strength in the encounter— for a good elephant never 

 attempts to combat the tiger himself. To do so would 

 generally be fatal to the sport, and perhaps to the sports- 

 man too ; for no one could stick to an elephant engaged in a 

 personal struggle with a tiger, far less use his gun imder 

 such circumstances. The elephant's business is to stand 

 like a rock in every event, even when the tiger is fastened 

 on his head — as many a good one will do and has done. 



It is not one elephant in a thousand that is so thoroughly 

 good in tiger-shooting as this ; and such as are command 

 very high prices in the market. From £200 to £400 is now 

 the value of a thoroughly first-rate shooting elephant, 

 though much sport may be had with one purchased for a 

 much smaller sum. The supply of elephants has much 

 fallen ofE in late years, since the Government ceased to 

 capture them in the forests of the north of India. I 

 visited the great annual fair on one occasion at Sonpiir, 

 on the Ganges, to purchase elephants for our forest work 

 in Central India. It occurs on the occasion of a great 

 congregation of Hindi! pilgrims to worship at a noted 

 shrine of Siva, and bathe in the Ganges at the full moon of 

 the month of Kartik (September — October). Several 

 hundred thousands of Hindus from every part of India 

 are then collected on the banks of the holy river ; and such 

 a gathering together of people is of course seized by traders 

 in every sort of ware, from wild yaks' tails of Tibet to 

 croquet implements in lac varnish, and dealers in every 

 sort of animal, from white mice to elephants. The Euro- 

 pean gentlemen of Bengal have also here constructed an 

 excellent race-course, with grand stand complete; and 

 some of the best races in India are run during the fair. 

 The year I was there something like twelve thousand 

 horses were brought by dealers for sale— ranging from the 

 tiny woolly-haired pied pony of Nepal, which makes the 

 best child's pony in the world, to Australian thoroughbreds 

 and " made-up " casters from the Indian cavalry. 



About five hundred elephants offered a considerable 



