Upon another occasion, at a place called Soondah in the same district, I was upon Hurri Ram; I had been working through the high grass in the first-class reserves throughout the day, having killed a splendid stag sambur, when we were attracted by the peculiar short roar or moan made by a tigress calling either for her cub or for some male companion. This was in the sal forest, within a quarter of a mile of our position. It was a dangerous attempt, upon such an untrustworthy elephant as Hurri Ram, to look for a tiger in a thick sal jungle, as that species of tree grows in long straight trunks exceedingly close together, to an extent that would make it impossible for a large elephant to continue a direct course. Should the animal run away, the result would probably be fatal to the rider. We again heard the cry of the tiger repeated; this decided me to make the trial, and we entered the forest, carefully advancing, and scanning every direction. The sal tree produces one of the most valuable woods in India for building purposes, and for railway sleepers. The bark is black, which gives the forest a sombre appearance, and the trees grow perfectly straight, generally to a height of 30 or 40 feet, before they divide into branches; it may be readily imagined that an elephant would find a difficulty in threading its way through the narrow passages formed by these mast-like growths. In addition to this difficulty, there were numerous clumps of the tough male bamboo, which nothing will break, and which is terribly dangerous should a runaway elephant attempt to penetrate it, as the hard wiry branches would lacerate a rider in a frightful manner. There were numerous ravines in this forest, and we kept along the margin, slowly and cautiously, peering at the same time into the depths, in the expectation of seeing the wandering tiger. It was very perplexing; sometimes we heard the cry of the tiger in one direction, and upon reaching the spot, we heard it at a different place. I was determined not to give it up, and we worked for at least two hours, until we had thoroughly examined every ravine, and all the smaller nullahs that would have been likely hiding-places. "Past five o'clock," I exclaimed, upon looking at my watch. It was time to turn homewards, as it would be dark at six, and should we be benighted in the forest we should not find our way, neither would it be possible to ride an elephant, owing to the thick bamboo. We accordingly gave up our search for the tiger, and steered in a new direction towards the camp. We had advanced for about half an hour through the gloomy forest, and were within about 3/4 of a mile in a direct line of the tents, when I observed a peculiarly dark shadow upon my right, about 35 yards distant, close to a dense mass of feathery bamboos. I stopped the elephant for an instant, and at the same moment the black mass moved away towards the thick cover of the foliage.