When they came to one of the little villages, they found the inhabitants in a state of terror. Only the day before, the tiger had sprung on a farmer who was ploughing his fields and carried him off in sight of the whole village. The tracks which were seen in the mud along the banks of a stream showed that he was a very big and powerful tiger.
Our party followed these tracks for some time, but nothing more was discovered; and, as it was growing late, they made camp for the night.
The servants quickly put up the tents for the Sahibs and built a big fire. They did not want a tiger to pay them a surprise visit at night; and hungry tigers often do bold things.
"Ough! this is creepy. Just suppose a tiger should steal up behind us now," confided Harry to Chola, as they sat around the big fire after supper.
"It is well to have a charm; hast thou one?" asked little Chola, as he felt for the charm which hung about his neck. He always wore a charm, but this was one which his uncle had given him to keep off the evil spirits of the jungle.
"No, indeed," laughed Harry. "We don't wear such things. Still, if one does believe in charms, now is the time to have one," he added, looking behind him rather fearfully.
It was strange and wild there in the dense forest full of unknown dangers; and there were queer noises, and the firelight twisted up the shadows of the men and elephants into grewsome and unsightly things.
Once in awhile a cry would come from some wild animal or bird in the trees, and the boys would look over their shoulders and draw up closer to the fire. But it was fun, although they felt more creepy still when the beaters began to tell stories of wonderful hunts in which they had taken part in the past; and the old head beater, who had come from the south, himself, told tales of his wonderful adventures.
He told how one night he awoke and found a leopard sniffing at his head as he lay sleeping on his veranda; and how he only saved his life by holding his breath and pretending to be dead. A leopard will not touch a dead person or animal. Another time he had seen the queer little "Todas," a race of people who live in the Nilgiri Hills in the far south and worship buffaloes, and say prayers while they are milking these sacred beasts, whose temples are their dairies.