Part 5 (2/2)

Up to this crisis, our travellers had watched his every hter; to which, however, they dare not give utterance, lest they th, Ossaroo knew that the tihter; and, descending fro spear, he beckoned the others to folloith their guns

The shi+karree could have approached and thrust the tiger, without er; but, to make sure, the double-barrel, already loaded with ball, was fired at hi hi hi hio covered his eyes, as to render hi thee claas, that these were so wrapped up in the leafy envelope as to render theaged with hi scene was over, all of the party indulged in hearty laughter; for there was so extremely ludicrous, not only in the idea, but in the act itself, of trapping a royal tiger by so simple a contrivance as birdlime

CHAPTER TWELVE

A RARE RAFT

Ossaroo did not fail to skin the tiger, and to eat for his supper a large steak, cut off from his well-fleshed ribs The others did not join hih the shi+karree assured theer-beef was far superior to the venison of the sambur deer

There may have been truth in Ossaroo's assertion; for it is well-known, that the flesh of several kinds of carnivorous ani Indeed, the delicacy of the meat does not seem at all to depend upon the food of the animal; since no creature is a , and what is nicer or more tender than a bit of roast pork? On the other hand, ly bitter, feed only on fresh grass or sweet succulent roots and plants As a proof of this, I as and zebras of Africa, and even some animals of the deer and antelope tribes, whose flesh is only eatable in cases of eency

The same fact may be observed in relation to birds Many birds of prey furnish a dish quite equal to choice gae chicken-hawk of Aroes) is not , inferior to that of the bird upon which it preys

It was not for the ”er of his skin, but rather for the skin itself; and not so much for the absolute value of the skin, for in India that is not great Had it been a panther or leopard skin, or even the less handsoreater But there was an artificial value attached to the skin of a tiger, and that well knew the shi+karree He knew that there was a _bounty of ten rupees_ for every tiger killed, and also that to obtain this bounty it was necessary to show the skin True it was the East India Coers killed in their territory This one had not been killed under the British flag, but what of that? A tiger-skin was a tiger-skin; and Ossaroo expected some day not distant to walk the streets of Calcutta; and, with this idea in his er-skin a its topmost branches, to be left there till his return from the hbourhood, and the plant-hunter was very successful The seeds of many rare plants, some of them quite new to the botanical world, were here obtained, and like the skin of the tiger deposited in a safe place, so that the collectors ht not be burdened with them on their journey to the mountains It was in this way that Karl had resolved uponthe seeds and nuts he should obtain at various places upon his route; and, when returning, he trusted to be able to e them carried to Calcutta or soain took the route, still facing due northward in the direction of the uide to point out their course, as the river which they had resolved upon following upwards was guide enough; usually they kept along its banks, but sole forced thee and keep away for some distance into the back country, where the path was more safe and open

About midday they arrived at the banks of a stream, that was a branch of the main river This stream lay transversely to their route, and, of course, had to be crossed There was neither bridge nor ford, nor crossing of any kind to be seen, and the current was both wide and deep

They followed it up for rew shallower nor yet more narrow They walked up and down for a couple of hours, endeavouring to find a crossing, but to no purpose

Both Caspar and Ossaroo were good swimmers, but Karl could not swim a stroke; and it was entirely on his account that they stayed to search for a ford The other tould have dashed in at once, regardless of the swift current What was to be done with Karl? In such a rapid running river it was as much as the best swimmer could do to carry himself across; therefore not one of the others could assist Karl How then, were they to get over?

They had seated themselves under a tree to debate this question; and no doubt the habile Ossaroo would soon have offered a solution to it, and got the young Sahib across, but at that moment assistance arrived froround--a sort of meadow upon the side opposite to where they were seated, which was backed by a jungly forest

Out of this forest a e, and take his way across the meadow in the direction of the river His swarthy colected over his shoulders--his dress consisting of a single blanket-like robe, held by a leathern belt around the waist-- his bare legs and sandalled feet--all bore evidence that he was one of the half-savage natives of the Terai

His appearance created a great sensation, and astonished all the party-- Ossaroo, perhaps, excepted It was not his wild look nor his odd costume that produced this astonishment, for men who have travelled in Hindostan are not likely to be surprised by wild looks and strange dresses What astonished our travellers--and it would have had a like effect upon the most stoical people in the world--was that the individual who approached was carrying a _buffalo upon his back_! Not the quarter of a buffalo, nor the head of a buffalo, but a whole one, as big, and black, and hairy, as an English bull! The back of the aniainst the back of theover his shoulder, the legs sticking out behind, and the tail dragging about his heels!

How one man could bear up under such a load was more than our travellers could divine; but not only did this wild Mech bear up under it, but he appeared to carry it with ease, and stepped as lightly across the !

Both Karl and Caspar uttered exclaatories were put to Ossaroo for an explanation Ossaroo only snificantly in reply, evidently able to explain thisthe surprise of his co as he could decorously withhold it

The surprise of the boys was not diminished, when another native stepped out of the timber, buffalo on back, like the first; and then another and another--until half-a-dozen men, with a like nu the meadows!

Meanwhile the foremost had reached the bank of the river; and now the astonishment of the botanists reached its clie animal from his shoulders, embrace it with his arms, place it before him in the water, and then mount astride _upon its back_! In aunder hi his ars as paddles to i the water, acted in a precisely similarthe streaether

It was not until the foremost Mech had arrived at the bank close to where our travellers awaited them, _lifted his buffalo out of the water, and reshouldered it_, that the latter learnt to their surprise that what they had taken for buffaloes were nothing more than the inflated skins of these anienious natives of the district!

The same contrivance is used by the inhabitants of the Punjaub and other parts of India, where fords are few and bridges cannot be built The buffaloes are skinned, with the legs, heads, and horns left on, to serve as handles and supports in ht and inflated, heads, legs, and all; and in this way bear such a resemblance to the anis are deceived, and often growl and bark at them Of course the quantity of air is for ht of a oods and other articles are to be carried across, several skins are attached together, and thus form an excellent raft

This was done upon the spot, and at a e people, are far froers A word from Ossaroo, accompanied by a few pipes of tobacco from the botanist, procured the desired raft of buffalo-skins; and our party, in less than half-an-hour, were safely deposited upon the opposite bank, and allowed to continue their journey without the slightest molestation