Wild Beasts and Their Ways, Reminiscences of Europe, Asia, Africa and America — Volume 1Baker, Samuel White, Sir
History
Wild Beasts and Their Ways, Reminiscences of Europe, Asia, Africa and America — Volume 1
Baker, Samuel White, Sir
Animal behavior; Hunting
attacking, but only facing about to confront his numerous enemies.
We were a very long way from camp; we therefore retraced our course, and
having avoided some dense swamps that were too soft for the elephants,
we sought harder ground, shooting several hog-deer on our way, and
arriving in camp after sundown, having been working for twelve hours, to
very little purpose, considering our powerful equipments.
Although we had covered a very large area during the day's work, we had
seen no tracks of rhinoceros, and so few of buffaloes that we determined
to abandon such uninteresting and unprofitable ground; accordingly we
devoted the following day to the churs or islands of the river, where we
should expect no heavy game, but we might come across a tiger.
In driving the grassy islands of the Brahmaputra some persons are
contented with the chance of moving tigers by simply forming a line of a
quarter of a mile in length with forty elephants, without any previous
arrangement or preparation. This is wrong.
To shoot these numerous islands much caution is required, and unless
tigers are exceedingly plentiful, the whole day may be fruitlessly
expended in marching and counter-marching under a burning sun, with a
long line of elephants, to little purpose.
There should be a small herd of at least twenty head of cattle under the
special charge of four shikaris, and five or six of these poor beasts
should be tied up at a distance of a mile apart every evening as bait
for tigers. At daylight every morning the native shikaris should visit
their respective baits, and send a runner into camp with the message
should one or more have been killed. The elephants being ready, no delay
would occur, and the beat would take place immediately. In that manner
the tiger is certain to be found, as it will be lying somewhere near the
body of its prey.
There is a necessity for great precaution, lest a tiger when disturbed
should steal away and escape unobserved from the dense covert of high
grass. To effect his destruction, at least two scouting elephants should
be thrown forward a quarter of a mile ahead from either flank of the
advancing line; and, according to the conditions of the locality, two or
more elephants with intelligent mahouts should be sent forward to take
up positions ahead of the line at the terminus of the beat. These men
should be provided with small red flags as signals should the tiger show
itself; the waving of flags together with a shout will head the tiger,
and drive it back towards the advancing line of elephants; at the same
time the signal will be understood that a tiger is afoot, and the
mahouts will be on the alert.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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