THE SKETCHER.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1514, 7 March 1901, Page 16

THE SKETCHER.

SIR ARTHUR HEWiiT’S EXPERIENCE Sir Arthur Hewitt, a tall, tliin, soldierly figure, with a face darkened , y dose application of the razor, loomed - the giant of the group we formed. “Six Arthur,” said the Major, was once a piece of live bait in a tigei rap. After an introduction like that ton Arthur’s story had to be told. “It happened in Birmania,” he began, “between Prorne and! Rangoon. ine country was ravaged at that time by the predatory bands of Nung Gung Gee, the fiercest native chief we ever had to contend with. I headed a scouting party, and being overtaken by night at some distance from camp, we lighted fires and lav down to sleep. Some hoiirs later I felt myself lifted bodily from the ground. I had been hound and gagged, and m a short time was a prisoner in the stionghold of Gung himself. “The next morning they brought me before Gung. The moment he saw me he leered hideously- “ ‘At last/ said li, ‘here is one of those English who are invading our country and would reduce us to slavery. ■‘Gung’s followers now blindfolded me. I was thus forced some five miles through the jungle and beaten with sticks all the way'. Finally they came to a halt. Ike bandage was removed from my eyes. Growing accustomed to the light, I discovered a tiger trap ahead. I did not immediately comprehend the purpose_ or any captors. Bust my uncertainty did not last long. “The tiger trap was constructed of bamboo-. One section of - it was cut off from the rest by a net-work of bamboo rods. This formed the receptacle for the bait. The bait -was myself.- They stripped me of my clothing, thrust me in and bound me with thongs. Then they made off“I did not feel very uneasy, at first. For two hours I worked for freedom, but in the end I was forced to admit the honelessness of the task- Insects alighted on my skin and bit the flesh raw. The sufii beat down on my head, and into mr eyes. I grew faint. Suddenly it occurred to me that A TIGER MIGHT APPEAR at any moment. However, there was some hope/ although the hope was slender. A little native girl had, at the ' risk of her life, given me a drink of -water the day before. This was at a spot hear Gung’s camp. I bade her hurry off and apprise Captain D’Ctyley of my peril. But as the hours wore on I grew despondent. Would the little girl have understood ? “My reflections were interrupted by a light footfall. It was for all the world like that of a timid child. When the sound first reached my ears no suspicion of tigers entered my head. Suddenly a gorgeous shoulder flashed its stripes through the bamboo. One of the largest tigers I had ever seen —and I had seen many —confronted me- The animal must have weighed 500 pounds. From my observation at the time the creature’s length was nine feet. It was a well-fed broad in the shoulder. The muscle/, stood out all over her limbs. As we gazed into each other’s face I was Overcome with a peculiar feeling of respect for this specimen of physical perfection. “It flashed across my mind that this might not be a man-eating tiger- In that event it would snip about the trap and do me no harm. One giganic paw was raised 1 against the outer dor of i he trap. The 'door lifted and fell. The tiger was caught. Only a bamboo paling separated us. The bulky mass advanced toward me. Then the animal stood perfectly motionless. “My whole body had turned cold, except where the insects left their stings. Those raw spots glowed like so many tiny coals. I stared straight into the tiger’s face, not daring to wink an eyelid. I felt that the first movement, should come from the enemy. It did. With a roar the tiger dashed his whole weight against the bamboo rods. The great claws were thrust through and barely reached me. The tips of them scratched three long streaks in my side. A red tongue was stretched greedily through the bars. There was. no doubt now. This was a man-eating tiger. ‘The peril gave me inconceivable strength. I tried t<o burst my bonds. But I suddenly recollected that bursting my bonds would do me little good. I was in a trap, like my enemy. I grasped the outer bars of the cage. I drew myself together. The animal almost held me. In another moment my portion of the trap would be invaded. “Suddenly I saw a glimmer of lights. A confused sound of voices reached me. They were coming nearer. I heard my name pronounced. They were calling me. My VOICE REFUSED TO ISSUE from my throat. But I knew in that instant that the little girl had given the alarm. I am glad to recall that my firs b impulse was one of gratitude to her. “My rescuers dared not shoot the tiger. Gung was in the neighbourhood. His hands would have massacred our little company in a moment. It was necessary to attack the tiger with bayonets. It

seemed every instant as if the trap would give way under the strain of the leaps of the beast. It t-ook almost an hour to effect my rescue. It is strange that the tiger, harassed on all sides, did not turn and kill me with a stroke of its paw. But the animal lost blood from a hundred wounds. It succumbed. They . saved me-” The listeners in the smoking room exchanged looks. “The astonishing part of it,” said the Major, “is the conduct of the little girl.” “The astonishing part of it,” said Sir Arthur, “is that I did not go mad.”