TIGER LOOSE IN A TRAIN.

Pukekohe & Waiuku Times, Volume 6, Issue 253, 23 February 1917, Page 1 (Supplement)

TIGER LOOSE IN A TRAIN.

rFIED AND COWED BY A GAME COCKEREL.

Great excitement was caused at e Calcutta terminus a few weeks :o, when, on the arrival of the Mads mail train, it became known that full-grown Bengal tiger had broken ose from its cage in the luggage n at the end of the train, and was nning amok. The tiger—a magnificent specimen ■was part of a consignment sent by e Maharajah of Mysore as a gift to e Calcutta Zoo, the other animals ing two llamas and six kangaroos, cockerel and two hens, the tiger iving a cage to himself. A coolie entered the compartment [joining the cages on the trains rival at Calcutta, and saw to his trror that the tiger had at some ige in the journey broken out of i cage and entered the cage in iich the llamas and poultry were nfined. The coolie ran for his life obtain assistance, and soon a large owd gathered at a respectful disnce On the railway bridge to report oceedings.

Zoo and railway officials who came irrying to the scene witnessed a rearkable spectacle. It was found at the tiger had already killed the imas and the two hens, but had iled to vanquish the cockerel, hich was still walking about freely, iving successfully kept its opponent ; bay by means of a sort of "fowl u jitsu."

The tiger, again and again, tried s utmost to land its paw on the ickerel. but the latter cleverly evaid all blows aimed at it, crowing iumphantly after the end of each tund.

The.luggage van was finally deched from the train and removed the goods shed by the railway tthoritios, and after several hours me of the iron bars of the luggagts in were cut away by means of a w and a new cage placed against e opening. It was not until a bucket of water td been placed in the new cage, jwever, that the now thirsty tiger as induced to get into it. A porter e-witness of the astonishing fight stween the tiger and the cockerel ated that "if everyone was afraid

the tiger, the tiger was certainly [raid of the cockerel." The cockerel, after the removal of [e tiger, coolly hopped out of the iggage-van without so much as a ;ratch.