THE SUPERNATURAL IN INDIA.

Otago Witness, Issue 2499, 5 February 1902, Page 65

THE SUPERNATURAL IN INDIA.

(S. Eakdley WmiOT, in Temple Bar.)

It was my good fortune in the montft of April some fifteen years ago to meet with an individual who undoubtedly possessed a certain power over thfe wild animals in his vicinity, and who Sid nofc scruple to use it to his own profit. I had organised a small shooting party into Nepal in that year. We did not expect mucli sport in that land of swamp and forest ; we anticipated a week's tour in a new, country with a little shooting to enliven the marches ; and crossing the border we encamped near a village about eight miles in Nepal." My orderlies visited the village ! and returned with the usual news that tfic villagers knew of no tigers in the vicinity, ; they added, however, that they had dis.covere'd an old man who made his living by* selling charms to protect the cattle against any tiger they might' chance, to. meet in their pasture grounds.; 'THe 'two states ments did not agree, but I knew that th' 6 villagers "would give no information as 't£ the whereabouts of a tiger, because, iii the first place, they believed that the tigej; woiild learn their treachery, and make mat*ters extremely disagreeable in the future-; ■whilst; secondly, they did' not desire anj strangers to camp/near then village. " "? , • The,- charm vendor readily appeared whfen Sent for", and" proved to be a wizened,.emaciated. "feeble old person who made nfr promises save that he would join fhe hiint on the morrow, and asked for nothing hirfc a goat and a bottle of rum to sacrifice to his deities. Both these delicacies were supplied ; I am unaware how he disposed trf them, but next morning his bleary eyes and shaking hand were evidences of a night passed in vigils, either festive or-prayerfn). He first begged to be placed on the largest elephant, as he remarked that the tigers would specially resent his appearance is their enemy, and next drawing from his girdle a small copper bell -he suspended it tinkling from finger to thumb, muttering at the same time some unintelligible sentences ; then after apparently receiving whispered instructions he silently led the way through the forest, followed by the sportsmen, whose feelings varied between phimefaoedness and contempt. I must explain that at this season of the year the forest has already been devastated by jungle fires, and only here and there are patches! of un burnt grass left either by accident or on account of the dampness of the locality. As a male tiger stands some three and a-half feet high and weighs about 6001b, I was both astonished and angry when the tiger channep stopped at the edge of a small patch of grass which might have concealed a pig or deer, but certainly could not. in my opinion, afford suitable cover for a tiger. When I represented this to the old man. he merely replied: "The. tiger is there," and we. traversing the grass, passed out on the other side without discovering any living creature. We again appealed to our leader to cease his fooling and take us to a more suitable spot, but were met by the same stolid reply. There was nothing to be done but to try again, and this time we discovered an inu mense tiger lying crouched between two elephants. He arose on being discovered, and walked slowly in front of the howdah tc the edge of the patch of grass ; there, turning in a dazed way, he calmly regardedf us, and fell at once with a bullet behind the shoulder. The extraordinary behaviour? of this tiger impressed me more as a sports- . man than the proceedings of the old man; but we acknowledge that the incident waa in every way uncanny. It was yet carry, in the day. and, the bell again sounding, we were led in a bee line to another tiger, which suffered itself to be slaughtered in a similar manner. In five days we bagged six tigers, and only desisted because the old man explained that if we killed all the tigers his trade in charms would be ruined.