2l6 
COLONEL KlCHTtNGALE's LETTER. 
the reply, the Panura has just gone into this valley ; so off 
I started in pursuit of the crusher. After a good deal of 
beating I put the monster up, and as he ran off gave him 
a ball behind J missing with my right barrel owing to the 
elephant moving ; some half hour elapsed before I again got 
a shot at him, but this time as he ran by about one hundred 
yards off, I put two bullets into his shoulder and he pulled up 
under a tree. 1 went up and floored him with four more 
bullets and he lay at full length apparently dead. I reloaded 
and was going to give him a pill behind the ear to make 
quite sure, as he was such an immense beast, but the mahout 
swore the tiger was dead, so we went up to him and when 
about fifteen paces from him he suddenly jumped up as if 
untouched, and rushed at me ; at ten paces I gave him the 
conical in the neck and upset him, but undaunted, this 
splendid beast dashed on ; at five paces 1 drew the bead 
between his eyes and pulled the trigger, by Jove! the gun 
missi^d fire — here was a pretty go. 
Before I could change my gun the tiger came up to the 
huttie who stood like a rock, and striking him a tremendous 
blow between the eyes, seized him by the trunk with his 
teeth and pulled him down on his knees. I w^as very nearly 
shot out of the howdah, and what with the mahout roaring 
that he was being killed (the tiger was close to him, not 
two inches from his leg), and the man in the khowas 
screaming *Saab, Saab/ as we went over, to say nothing 
of being knocked about like a pea in a rattle, there was 
enough to confuse me. I am happy to say I never turned 
a hair, and all my thoughts were bent on flooring the tiger, 
as I saw that such a monster must otherwise bag us, 1 
managed somehow in the. scuffle to put two bullets from 
