THE GENERAL'S STORY.

Pelorus Guardian and Miners' Advocate., Volume 17, Issue 7, 27 January 1903, Page 7

THE GENERAL'S STORY.

HOW HE WAS MAULED BY A PANTHER. '* Yoa hare been mauled by a panther, General, haven't you ? Do tell me about that."

" I have been mauled three times," ho replied, " but I do not know that there is mnch to tell. The first time was in the Mandive country. I had heard of a panther there for for a lung time whilst I was doing survey work. At last I heard that it was actually marked down about 20 miles away. There wore two of us surveying about there at Ihotiine, so we sent our tentß on to sleep the night, and rode over to the place .in the course of tho day. Next morning tho natives brought us in exact ' klmbber ' of tho panther's whereabouts, and so wo set out to try and get him. We were both noyieea at the game, aod the beats vere not good! Wo could not persuade tho beast to come out At la«t he broke more than 100 jarda off, and got hit by ene of us through tho thigh. Tho natives in the treea wared the direction 1 e had taken, and gave us tho lino to some bushes in which he was lying, It was apparently a narrow strip of jungJo about 25 fe. t broad, stretching some way. Of comae the rule is not to separate, but if wo had both gone up to him on one side he might have broken en ihe opposite side into the thick jungle, or into open country in another direction; so, dividing tho beaters, and keeping them clubbed behind us, we arranged to approach them separately from either side. Out ho came at me—a grand open ohaige—at about 25 .tarda, and I knocked him ovor ton yards fiom my feet, giving him both barrels.

■' I turned to got my Beoond guo, and saw tlie nalive who was carrying it, and who ought to have been close behind mo, disappearing into the blue with it, and to ray horror the panther was on his legs again! Instinctively I put up my empty muzzleloader at him, and he sprang at my throat, but wau caught by the rifle on his chest; the force of hid apring ihrew my body a bit round, which was lucky for mo, as he got my nei:k in his mouth, just mining; my jugular by a ftw inches. He knocked me down and lay upon me. I tried to struggle for my pistol, which I »rwitys carried in my belt, but oh soon as I moved he bit mo through the shoulder and cheek. He then picked me up, nud dragging me about 30 yards, deposited me in some bushes. The native had apptared by this time, and took a pot-shot from about 200 yards off at us both as we lay on the ground, luckily raiaßingus. " By this time my friend, not having seen what had happened, only hearing shouts, tailed out to me. The Danther, hearing his voice, left me and wont for him. He bred and broke the panther's shoulder and lower jaw, but thai did not stop the bruto; it must have spruug on to his shoulder and off again, for on examination afterwards ho had the marks of live claws between his shoulderblades. The panther left him, and charged the man carrying his second gun behind him. who fired and missed, and the creature then proceeded to werry tho laJter. I had got round by this time to Hud all three of them mixed on tho ground together. My friond, anxious to help the native, had stabbed at the panther with his knife, and tho blado (dipping, had pinned the unfortunate shikarri lo thaground, the knife being buried to the hilt, in the poor wretch's arm. I tried lo kick the panther in tho ribs, when he turned on me, and we both rolled ovor together. I got up quicker than he did, however, and shot him, this time effectually, with my re volver. We were then three miles from the shikarri'fi home. We fonud his femoral artery was open, so putting on a tourniquet made with a puggaree, a stone, and a stick, we got him into a blanket and had him carried back as fast as we could. Telling his wife to be sure and not to remove the tourniquet, we rode into Surat for a doctor, twenty-four miles off. I bad nineteen wounds on me, and after eight or ten miles I could hardly ride another yard, and begged for a bullock-cait, My friend, very wisely, though, insisted or? my riding, and eventually we got in aud managed to send a doctor off to the shikarri. The doctor, however, found tbat the tourniquet had been removed, and the poor man had bled to death about sunset."— 1..«1y Weetmacott, in " The Badminton Magazine."