48 TEE ROYAL TIGEK OF BENGAL. 



generally a bite about the shoulder or head, a 

 shake or two, perhaps he drags the victim for a few 

 paces and then drops and leaves him, having crushed 

 the shoulder or Hmb, or deeply wounded the scalp or 

 neck, in some instances having fractured the skull and 

 thus caused death, or he gives a blow of the paw and 

 a shake or two, and then leaves him. This is gene- 

 rally the case when the tiger is alarmed or when he 

 is encoimtered suddenly and thinks he is in danger ; 

 if not molested, and if he see his way to escape, he, as 

 a general rule, will turn out of the way into the nearest 

 cover with a menacing growl, but without attacking. 

 Several instances are on record where the victim was 

 seized, carried off, but ultimately dropped, and made 

 his escape ; a friend, since dead, was thus seized and 

 dragged many yards by a tiger, but was relinquished, 

 and without any very serious injury. Where a man 

 is taken for food he is carried off and eaten as a deer 

 would be; though even in such cases escapes have 

 been effected. 



The tiger takes the water readily and is a good 

 swimmer. The Saugur Island and Soonderbund 

 tigers continually swim from one island to the other, 

 to change their hunting grounds for deer. They 

 have more than once been surprised by the river 

 steamers, or by boats, and killed in the water. 

 It is said that they swim from Singapore to the 

 neighbouring islands. They will, when hunted, or 

 even in the usual course of their travels, swim across 

 large pools in the forest, or in the swamps, or even 



