14 H U N T E R S COMING BY SURPRISE ON A T IGRESS AND CUBS.
lay till liie f r e s h e r air of nigl i l fall, aiul Llic •efreslimcnL oblaiiiecl ])y r e s t
again urge hiiu lo action.
Ill parts much rre<]ucnte(l hy tigers ihc sporlsnian should be particularly
cautious, and generally allow dogs of any descriplion lo prcecde him in his
c o u r s e ; sinee they, as well as other aniiuals, are gifleil with the most pcrfecL
sense of danger, and by llieir action soon evince to the party that some uncommon
game is at hand. <-)n such occasions cvitulion is easy; but when, as
has in many instuiiees oecurrcd, the tiger is roused daring a chase, it requires
some presence of mind, iis well as a lirm seat, to prevent mischief.
The Plate describes a scene whicli took place upwards of twenty-five years
ago, Avlien a detachmenl marcliing from Berhampore to Caunpore by the old,
o r river road, a Jiog crossed the line ; from which several of us instantly sallied,
s n a t c h i n g spears from our si/cex, who always carried them, anil dashed after
t h e game, We iiad not however proceeded above a quarter of a mile from the
corps, when our leader, the late Lieutenant Colonel Ilulcliiuson, of tlie
T a n n a h eslablislimenl, who was coming up fast wi t h the hog, was surprised l)y
a tigress, which lay basking behind a large b p v bush, with several cubs sporting
about ber. His horse was abreast of tlie royal diune before, by her roar, as well
iis );y her rising, shi- discovered herself. He passed on tolerably well, though
his steed wanted no aid of the spur lo accelerate his pace; a feeling in wliich
tin- bog also, who viewed tiie tigress with an eye ful l of respect, seemed lieartily
lo particij)ale. The next horseman, however, had a very narrow escape; he
being verv near lo the tigress when she announced herself; his horse first
r e a r i n g quite erecl, then wheeling round, and running ol fat speed in the most
iingovcrnahle manner. Being one of the rear, I took the hint, and al.so tlie
l i b e r ty of making a small circuit; choosing rather to follow the hog, which wc
soon killed, llian to indulge the idle curiosity of ascertaining whether or not my
horse would go up lo a ligress. Indeed, about two years aflerwards, he gave
me very plainly to understand, when hunting on Plassey Plain, that I should
have been grievously disappointed had I relied on bis doing so.
I t happened thai our encanipnieiit was pitched at no great distance from the
spot where ihe tigress was discovered ; and as the circumstance had been seen
f r om tlie line of march, as soon as the troops were dismissed, a large party composed
of all classes sallied forth to attack her. She had, however, in llie mean
\\ bi l e retreatetl to a large rhnr plan lalioii, the bottom of which was thickly grown
u p wi l h wild rice, so as to be completely im|)ervious, and from which, as w e liad
only two chiphants in camp, aijd neithi-r of them willing lo ap|)roach, we fouial
it impossible to expel her. Some of ihv piiria/i dogs did indeed stand and bark
a t lier; and at one time a crowd, inspiriled by each other, liad, in .spite of
onr worthy Commander's orders, very imprudently entered the rhur; but a
growl of admonition, uttered by the tigress in a most peremplory tone, soon
(lisbanded the heroes, who going lo the right, or |»erliaps to the left about, in
a most unmilitary manner, commenced such a rapid retreat, tiiat wha t will) the
thickness of the r/i«/-, and the anxiety each felt not to be left the nearest to
t h e tigress, the most complete scene of terror and confusion presented itself.
F o r t u n a t e l y no accident happened.
T l i e number of cubs usually borne by a ligress is not I believe perfectly ascertained
: such as have been killed in a state of pregnancy have varied extremely,
from one to five. Two may, however, from all I iiave been able to
discover, be considered as their usual progeny, of which one generally becomes
a favourite, to the destruction of the residue. While stationed in the Ramghur
district, some people, who had been cutting grass in a jungl e about half a mile
<listant from the cantonments, founil four cubs, which the mother iiad left, no
doubt uiiile questing for prey. I purchased two; tlicy were but a few days
obi, not having then opened their eyes. Tliey were about the size of a cat, but
roared most vociferously, especially at night; on which account I had them
kept in a small hut just by my stable, which was about an hundred and fifty
y a r d s from my bungalois, or house. During the second night my servants were
alarmed by the mother, who, having been attracted by the bowlings of the
little miscreants, and to whicli she gave responses in the most u-wfiil strains,
liad resorted lo the spot. As it would have been no dillieult matter for ihe
tigress to have forced her way into the place, which no doubt she would have
soon done, the people deemed it most prudent to ]mt the cubs out ; in consetpience
all was soon quiet, and at day light the mottled animals were not to
be seen.
T h o u g h I lamented that so safe an opportunity of getting a shot at the
m o l i i e r w a s lost, and that by such a restoration more tigers would be produced
next year, at a place completely infested by them, so much so indeed lhat for
ten or eleven succcssive day.s one of the postmen was carried oil" by them at a
pass about twelve miles distant, yet on tlie whol e I could not but approve the
measure, as the persons at the stable bad Jio fire-arms, and the consequences
might possibly have been fatal.
The instances vviiieh could be (¡noted respecting tigers being roused by bogh
u n t e r s , are numerous; I have been in four part ies whe n either by the elephants,
dogs, or beaters, one has been iliscovered. At the first moment considerable
a l a rm arises, which necessarily contines until it be ascertained tliut no mischief
iias been done, indeed th(! only fact I can adduce wiicre a hunter has been
killed by a tiger in bog-lumting, relates to Mr, Simpson of the Calcutta Bar,
wiio was wounded in the thigh by a leopard, which, as he ^vas riding through a
gra.ss-jungle, ro.sc close at his side, and making a stroke wilh liis j)aw, inflicted
a wound which in a few days induced a locked jaw, and deprived society of a
most pleasant, well informed, and respectable niem))er.
I t should be iiere remarked, that, however trivial the scratches made by the
claws of tigers may appear, yet, wbeth(!r it be owing to any noxious (jualily iu
t h e claw itself, to the manner in which the tiger strikes, or any other matter, SANOUEfi TimBAST ST^B r>' E T l iSESSE ATZC SES PETn'S.