THE TRAGIC TALE OF A MAN-EATING TIGER.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume VII, Issue 2, 10 January 1891, Page 3

THE TRAGIC TALE OF A MAN-EATING TIGER.

The cunning combined with audacity of some man eaters isextraordinary. A few years ago there was a well-known tiger in the Mandla district, which took possession of the road and actually stop|>ed the traffic. This was not the generally accepted specimen of a man-eater, old and hungry, but an exceedingly powerful beast of unexampled ferocity aud audacity. It was a merciless highwayman, which infested a well-known portion of the road, and levied toll u|sm the drivers of the native carts, not by an attack upon their bullocks, but by seizing the driver himself and carrying him off to be devoured in the neighbouring jungle. It had killed a numlrer of people, and nothing could induce a native to venture upon that fatal road with a single cart ; it had therefore become the custom to travel in company with several carts together, as numbers were supposed to afford additional security. This proved to Ire a vain expectation, as the tiger seized the driver of the hindmost cart, and, as usual, carried the man away in spite of the cries of his affrighted companions. Upon several occasions this terrible attack had been enacted, ami the traffic was entirely stopped. At length the superintendent of police, who unfortunately had lost one arm by a gun accident, determined to make an effort at its destruction, and he adroitly arranged a plan that would be a fatal trap and catch the tiger in its own snare. He obtained two covered carts, each drawn, as usual, by two bullocks. The leading cart was fitted in front and behind with strong bars of lashed bamboo, which formed an impervious cage. In this the driver was seated, while Mr Duff himself sat with his face towards the rear, prepared to fire through the bars should the tiger, according to its custom, attack the driver of the reanuost cart. This would have been an exciting moment for the driver, but Mr Duff had carefully prepared a dummy, dressed exactly to personate the usual native carter ; the bullocks, being well trained, would follow closely in the rear of the leading cart, from which a splendid shot would be obtained should the tiger venture upon an attack. All went well. The road was desolate, bordered by jungle upon one side and wild grass land on the other. They had now reached the locality where the dreaded danger lay, and slowly the carts moved along the road in their usual apathetic manner. This must have been an exciting moment, and Mr Duff was, no doubt, thoroughly on the lookout. Suddenly there was a roar; a large tiger bounded from the jungle, and with extraordinary quickness seized the dummy driver from his seat upon the rearmost cart, and dragged the unresisting victim towards the jungle. Nothing could have been better planned, but one chance had been forgotten, which was necessary to success. No sooner hail the tiger roared and bounded upon the cart, than the affrighted bullocks, terrified by the <1 readful sound, at once stampeded off the road, and went full gallop across country, followed by Mr Dutt’s bullocks, in the wildest panic. It was impossible to fire, and after a few seconds of desperate chariot race both carts capsized among the numerous small nullahs of the broken ground, where bullocks and vehicles lay in superlative confusion. The victorious man-eater was left to enjoy a rather dry meal of a straw-stuffed carter instead of a juicy native which he had expected. This was a disappointment to all parties concerned, except the dummy driver, who was, of course, unmoved by the failure of the arrangement.