VII 
THE TIGER 
257 
Stopped the hole in front of the bullet, together with 
a number of very minute fragments or flakes of 
lead; these proved that the extremely hollow 
projectile had broken up, and was rendered abortive 
almost immediately upon impact. 
The danger of such a bullet was manifest; it 
was almost as hollow as a hat, and almost as harm¬ 
less as a hat would be, if thrown at a charging 
tiger. 
This was an interesting exception to the rule 
that is generally accepted, that a tiger will not 
attack if left undisturbed. If any person had been 
walking along the margin of that nullah, he would 
have been seized and destroyed without doubt by 
that ferocious beast. There was a case in point last 
year (1888) in the Reipore district, when Mr. Lawes, 
the son of the missionary of that name, was killed by 
a tigress, which was the first to attack. This animal 
was reported by the natives to be in a certain nullah 
within a short distance of the camp. The young 
man, who was quite inexperienced, took a gun, and 
with a few natives proceeded to the spot on foot. 
Looking over the edge of the nullah in the hope of 
finding the tiger lying down, he was suddenly 
startled by an unexpected attack ; a tigress bounded 
up the steep bank and seized Mr. Lawes before he 
had time to fire. The animal did not continue the 
attack, but merely shook him for a few moments, and 
then retreated to her lair; he vras so grievously 
wounded that he died on the following day, after his 
arrival in a litter at Reipore. 
VOL. I 
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