Page:Hunting and trapping stories; a book for boys (IA huntingtrappings00pric).pdf/15

STORIES OF TIGER HUNTING scrape the sticky things off on its sides, but this only made matters worse for the leaves soon plastered its sides. Then it rubbed its paws over its eyes as a cat would do. This was what the hunter wanted. In a few minutes the tiger, blinded and roaring with rage, rolled over and over on the ground in its struggles, until it looked like a big ball of leaves. The brute was soon exhausted and lay helpless, and the hunter came up and drove his knife through its heart. – Truly a dog's death.

Of course, this is not considered a very sportsmanlike way of killing a tiger, but the rule is that the first thing to be done with a man-eater is to kill it the quickest and easiest way possible.

Quite often tigers have been trapped in heavy wooden cages, well concealed with grass and branches from trees. At the far end of the trap a large mirror is placed and so arranged that the rays of the sun reflect on it. The flash of light attracts the tiger and it comes up to examine more closely, and then it sees its own reflection. On the floor of the trap is placed a board which acts on a spring, and the instant the tiger goes inside and steps upon it the trap door falls and the animal is a prisoner. Natives then come and lift the cage on to a wagon and carry it off in triumph.

In hunting a tiger does not always have its own way. Curiously enough it is often baulked of its prize by a band of insignificant monkeys. When these little creatures discover a tiger, if they feel in the mood for it, they begin to mob the beast. They follow the tiger throwing branches of trees at it or fruit, or any thing else they find, shrieking and chattering all the while. Every creature in the jungle knows that a tiger is at hand and makes off to a place of safety. The tiger, as a rule, slinks away, for it is no use it cannot climb trees and punish its tormentors.

The true sportsmanlike way of hunting the tiger is from the back of an elephant. Although in many instances men have gone out accompanied only by one native and shot tigers on foot. It is exceedingly risky and a man must be very sure of his nerve before he does so, for to miss a shot means instant death.

At a regular elephant hunt a number of beaters, armed with sticks and drums go on foot looking for the tiger and making a great noise to frighten it. The hunters shoot the game from "howdahs" or saddles on the elephants' backs.

On one occasion a party consisting of a number of hunters and three elephants were beating a track of long jungle grass. The tiger, for they knew one was not far off, was found lying beside a low rock. The animal