"Presently, O'Donnell, I heard a heavier rustling in the grass than the wind makes; a rustling that kept pace with me and went along by my side, never halting, but faster and faster, and faster. "A short distance ahead of me was a patch of bright light, where the cross-roads met. A few yards more and the jungle grass would end. "I thought of this, O'Donnell--the beggar might not know the road so well as I. He had no wife, no child; he was a leper, only a leper--and my teeth chattered. "Here the Colonel paused and wiped his forehead. "I slackened my speed, the rustling by my side slowing down, and the tapping grew faster. I was close to the whitened road. "'Sahib, the blessing of Allah be on you for stopping. Sahib, let me walk by your side.' "(To the end of my days, O'Donnell, I shall never forgive myself, and yet I want you to understand it was for my wife--and child.) I slunk into the shade. Two steps more and the tapping would pass me. The stick struck the ground within one inch of my foot; my heart almost ceased to beat; I gazed in fascination at the spot in the jungle opposite. The heavy rustling had stopped; only the gentle sighing of the wind went on. The two steps were taken, the blind man paused on the cross-roads. He was ghastly in the moonlight. I shuddered. His eyes peered enquiringly round on all sides; he was looking for me; he had lost his way; he feared the tiger. "Suddenly something huge shot like an arrow from the darkness opposite me. I bowed my head, O'Donnell, and muttered a prayer, for I thought my end had come. "A terrible scream rang out in the clear night air. I was saved. "'Allah curse you and yours, sahib.' "I opened my eyes; an enormous tiger was bending over the leper, searching for the most convenient spot in his body to afford a tight grip. "The man's sightless eyes were turned towards the moon, his teeth shone white and even; with the striped horror purring in his face, he thought of vengeance on me. "I dared not move. I could not pass, O'Donnell. I had no gun. The big brute found a nice place to catch hold. It opened its mouth so that I could see its glistening teeth. It looked down at its paws, where the cruel claws glittered, and they seemed to afford it keen satisfaction--it was a tigress and vain--then it lowered its head, and the leper shrieked. I watched it pick him up as if he were one of its cubs; saw the blood trickle down its soft white throat into the dusty road, and then it trotted gracefully away, and was lost in the darkness of the jungle. There was a deathlike silence after this. I waited a few minutes, and then I got up.