144 
WILD BEASTS AND THEIR WAYS 
CHAP. 
out my orders, “ to follow the blood until he should 
find the tiger, after which he was to return to us.” 
We were now on the top of a small hill within an 
extensive forest range, and directly in front the 
ground suddenly dipped, forming a V"Shaped dell, 
which in the wet season was the bed of a consider¬ 
able torrent. It struck me that if the tiger were still 
alive he would steal away along the bottom of the 
rocky watercourse; therefore, before the elephant 
should advance, and perhaps disturb him, we should 
take up a position on the right to protect the nullah 
or torrent-bed; this plan was accordingly carried 
out. 
We had not been long in our respective 
positions when a shot from the direction taken 
by the elephant, followed instantly by a short roar, 
proved that the tiger had been discovered, and that 
he was still alive. My female elephant Demoiselle, 
upon hearing the sound, trembled beneath me with 
intense excitement, while the other female would 
have bolted had she not been sharply reminded by 
the heavy driving-hook. Several shots were now 
fired in succession, and after vainly endeavouring 
to discover the whereabouts of the tiger, I sent 
Demoiselle to obtain the news while we kept guard 
over the ravine. No tiger having appeared, I 
stationed natives in trees to watch the nullah while 
we ascended the hill on foot, directing our course 
through the forest to the place from whence the 
shots had been fired. We had hardly advanced 
8o yards before we found both the elephants on 
