INDIAN JUNGLE STORIES.

Auckland Star, Volume LX, Issue 230, 28 September 1929, Page 3 (Supplement)

INDIAN JUNGLE STORIES.

DANGEROUS PANTHERS. (By a. w. McMillan.) PART 11. "Sahib! a pantlicr has carried ofF Milliard" and the stillness of the midnight air was broken by I'ie terrified cries of a group of girls in the heart of India. Suddenly all became excitement, and the missionary jumped from his bed, and, taking stick and lantern, went with others in the direction pointed out. A minute or two later poor frightened JVlaharo, quite a small girl, was rescued from the jaws of a bloodthirsty foe. She was badly bitten about the shoulder, and was carried back to the verandah from which she had been taken in her sleep. Later on, about midnight, an old woman was seized, presumably by the same animal, about a mile away, and, though she was rescued, she died from shock. A couple of hours before dawn, this terrible beast returned to the missionary's compound. Awakening from sleep beside the embers of a fire upon the mud floor of an outhouse, a woman was surprised to find that her husband was not there. She called out but got no response; he was nowhere to be found. When , daylight came, a search-party wandered in the direction of the jungle, and discovered that the man-eating panther had been responsible for the poor man's death! What a daring creature to make three attempts in one night! The very first evening I spent in that place a pet dog, Toby, was caYried off from just by the verandah whilst my friend and I were having our evening meal. There was only a sudden.yelp, and Toby was seen no more. That reminds me of a plucky little terrier dog that saved his master's life in the district next to ours. The missionary was following a panther he had wounded, when suddenly the beast sprang up from the grass and pinned the man to the ground. Instantly his dog jumped on the panther's back and began to worry it about the ears until it was compelled to turn its attention to the dog. A party of natives then rushed on 1 the scene and rescued the missionary, who by this time had been terribly mauled, but the plucky little terrier's life was beyond saving. On one occasion I was called to a place not far from where I lived, and after a search, found a plough-bullock which had. been dragged from a field by some ferocious animal. Climbing into a tree. I sat quietly waiting for something to happen. I had not long to wait, for in' less than half an hour I saAv a magnificent panther coming stealthily in tha direction of the bullock she had killed. In her native haunts she looked handsome. Every now and then she would "stop, look, and listen." She did not see me as I was hidden by the leaves of the tree. When she came within range, I iired, and the bullet entered her neck just behind the ear. With a terrifying roar she rolled over on the ground and began tearing savagely at the grass and shrubs. She was paralysed send unable, to stand; yet, had anyone Ijeen near her her teeth and claws would have caused terrible results. A second bullet entering her head ended her struggles, and whistling to the villagers that all was safe, I descended to the ground. How delighted the people were that their enemy waskilled, especially the old woman whose' ox had lost its life, for only a year before her son had been killed by a man-eating tiger. •■.•■•.;. Panthers are spotted like leopards, but are bigger and stronger than leopards. They are more daring than tigers and more likely to venture into villages. Like the leopards they can climb trees. The tiger is rather too heavy for that, but can do so if the branches commence within several feet of the ground. The panther and the leopard are usually found in those parts of the jungle where there are plenty of trees and rocks, but not very tall grass; thus the sunlight filtering through the leaves on to perhaps tawny-coloured soil or black rocks gives a spotted appearance which resembles the coat of the panther or the leopard. The leopard kills animals of the size of the goat, pig, dog, and antelope; but the panther possesses tremendous strength in its thick neck and its legs, and can drag away horses and cattle. Its roar resembles the noise of a large hand-saw being drawn through wood. Many consider the panther more dangerous than the tiger. It is more courageous, and at close quarters will charge with the utmost ferocity, fighting to the last. It moves more quickly than the tiger and ia bolder. How thankful we are that we have no such dangerous creatures in our New Zealand bush! i (To be continued.)