Part 11 (1/2)
”Well, Uncle, that black tiger is still alive.”
”Hum! I don't know that the black tiger is good for this purpose. What do you say?”
”I know nothing about it; but, if any tiger is good, I should say a black tiger, by reason of his greater strength, should suit best, and, if you remember, you said you had a plan for trapping him. I believe he's still in the big kloof.”
”Yes, he's there. That ole man baboon's been aroun' here, and maybe he's got some notion of showing me where the black fellow takes his snooze. I'll jes' think over it.”
”If you want any help I can bring along some dogs and a couple of guns?”
”Dogs, eh! Seems to me that tiger's too smart for dogs. He chawed up one of yours. I don't want no dogs, sonny, and if this tiger is to be downed, he's got to be downed by cunning. You leave him to me.”
After the lapse of a week I rode over to see how the old man had succeeded, and found him peacefully employed boiling down wax berries for the manufacture of candles for his own lighting--the rheumatism, apparently, having been vanquished.
”Hallo! Abe,” I said, taking a look round the room, ”where's the tiger skin?”
”I speck it's on the tiger.”
”So your plan didn't succeed?” Abe solemnly skimmed a ladle full of melted wax from the water, and poured it into a bamboo mould.
”Berries is terrible skerce this season. Time was when a body could gather a bagful in a day from the bushes above the beach; but now--lor', everything's different now. This very earth's agoing downhill--it's getting played out.”
”Are you mixing any tiger fat with that wax, Uncle, to bind it?”
”Maybe goose fat would be better, sonny; have you got any to spare?”
”That tiger must be a cunning beast if he's got the better of you, Uncle!”
He shook his head gravely. ”He's no tiger. He's jes' a ole witch prowling aroun', that's what he is.”
”Eh?”
”Yes. You believe me, that's what ole Black Sam is. I worked out a plan to catch him, supposin' I could find where he put up in the daytime, and what path he took on setting out in the night, for you know these critturs in the woods don't go along anyhow, but follow paths jes'
as you or me would, and some of these paths they're more fond of than others. Well, I kep' watch on that ole man baboon, and when I see him strolling along outside the kloof I up and follered him. He knew, bless you, what I was after, and the way he led me into the dark of that kloof was a caution; so silent he went, and so careful to take the proper track. Bymby he stopped and pointed--yes, pointed with his finger at the ground--then he jumped for a bough, and there he sat grinning an'
working his eyebrows. Well, blow me, ef there wer'n't a spoor of the tiger where he pointed, and squinting along through the underbush I see a clean walk which the tiger had made--the sides of the trees worn smooth and the ground jes' trodden down. That was enough. So I went home and made a pill of meat, with enough poison in it to kill a museum full of stuffed critturs. Nex' morning I went down, and if that baboon hadn't a almost stopped me by force I'd a run bang into that tiger.”
”Was he dead?”
”Dead! Thunderation! he was jes' lying full-stretched for a spring from a tree branch jes' above where I laid that pill, awaiting for me to come along. The baboon jes' invited me to climb a tree, and looking through the leaves, I spotted that black devil, with his tail a-switching and a-jerking. I jes' climbed down, and slipped off like a shadder, with my heart in my boots. Well, I did some thinking. You know cats is fond of certain smells, so is dogs--only dogs is not so dainty as cats. It's jes' the same with a tiger, and he's got a nose for a partickler herb which he rubs his head into. I dug up one of these year herbs, and I fixed it up fine, jes' over the spring of a big man trap. Then, it being near dusk, I climbed into a yeller wood, and waited for Black Sam to walk up and put his foot into the jaws of that trap; but the dark came before he did, and then I wasn't going to trust myself in the wood--so there I stuck, with the stiffness in all my bones, till the morning. By gum! it were skeery work, sittin' up there with the wind moaning over the tree, and sounds of creeping things all aroun'. Then, blame me! the first thing I clapped eyes on in the morning was that black crittur standing there in the path, staring at that scent bush 'sif it were somethin' to be suspicious about instead of a nice smellin'
bottle. There he stood like a dark shadder, working his nose for maybe half an hour, when he walked all around, finally sitting down on his tail with a pucker between his eyes jes'sif he were thinking. Yes, he sat there working his brain; then up he stood, looked about for a spell--then, I'm hanged, if he didn't pick up a dry stick in his mouth and poke it at that bush.”
”What's that?”
”Yes, sir. He jes' sprung the trap. Of course, soon's he poked the bush the spring give, and the jaws flew together with a snap that bit clean through the stick. Then that there witch reached for the bush with his claw, and fetched a grin that spread all over his face like a gash in a water-melon. Then he smelt that trap all over and began to switch his tail, and with a growl in his stummick off he went slinking on my trail, taking long strides with his ears flattened. Luckily he went on the long trail leading from the house, and soon's he'd gone I lit out for the top of the krantz, where I could see the veld right up to my door.”
”Well?”
”Well, after a time, I saw him crossing the veld, making himself small when he was on the level, and running when he got in a holler. Right up near the house he went and hid himself in a clump of wild cotton, waiting and watching for me to come out o' the door. I tell you he stopped there till the sun was right over head, then suddenly he ran right up to the house and looked in at the winder. I never was so glad at being not at home to a visitor. He walked all round the house and got on the roof; then he came back, full lick, having made up his mind I was in the kloof. Yes, then I made a bee line for home, and shut myself in.”
”And that ends it?”