gain,
it got out of her way. Meanwhile, the crocodile was dragging the
unfortunate tigress still nearer and nearer the river. She turned her
eyes round, as if to look for some branch which she might grasp, and
save herself from her impending fate. At that moment they fell on
Reginald, when she gave him a look which seemed to implore his pity, as
he thought. In a few seconds the crocodile would have reached the
water; but just then the tigress caught a firm hold of the trunk of a
tree projecting into the river, to which she held on, at the risk of
having her paw bitten off. Possibly the saurian might, at the same
time, have seen its human foes, or it might have been that the sudden
jerk it received in consequence of the powerful resistance put forth by
its captive, made it open its mouth. The tigress on this quickly drew
out her fearfully-mangled paw, leaving the crocodile to plunge with a
loud flop into the water, deprived of its expected prey; while she,
fearing perhaps that it might again return to seize her, crawled back
howling with pain towards the thicket.

"Shoot, sahib! Shoot!" exclaimed the shikaree wallah; but Reginald had
not the heart to do so. Slowly the tigress crawled on, probably fearing
him more than she had her late enemy, and turning a glance towards him,
in which defiance was mingled with dread. Feeling herself unable to
fight, it was evidently her intention to escape if she could; but
overcome at length with the fearful pain she was suffering, she sank
down exhausted on the ground. The native huntsman seemed to think it a
piece of folly on the part of Reginald not at once to despatch her.

"No, I will not do that," said Reginald in answer to his expostulations.
"It is not the custom of white men to slaughter a fallen foe. See!
The poor tigress looks up as if imploring my assistance."

"As you think fit, sahib," answered the huntsman; "but if she recovers
she will become the mother of numberless tigers and tigresses; and who
can tell how many people they will destroy?"

This argument would have prevailed with Reginald, and he would, at all
events, have allowed the huntsman to kill the tigress, had she not at
that moment cast at him a look, which he seemed to fancy implored his
mercy. As he approached, however, while she lay on the ground unable to
move, she uttered a loud snarl of anger, and ground her teeth, and
opened out the claws of her uninjured feet, as the feline race are wont