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Show - -- --- j Jiunting the Catfe j 1 Jiger. j I You Crawl Into His Parlor With a I I Torch and Pot Him. --- --- There Is good hunting In China exciting excit-ing ennugh to suit nnv sportsninn It Is thoroughlv sportsmanlike, also for It Is an equal contest between the hunter nnd his qunrn 'I he iiunrr) Is n tlgei Tigers In the Chinese hunting country nro found In eaves In rockv termor). Tho method of getting one Is simple The hunter entirs tho tigers envo whon the tiger Is In It, nnd shunts There nro no elogs. no beaters no nlds of any kind, savo n native trncker holding u torch. Therefor" It Is advisable to see tho tiger quick!) to shoot even moro nulcklv when you do see him, and not to miss lilm when 5 on shout. A returning American who tried this strenuous sport eiiue onl) once wus telling tell-ing about his experience! the other day. This Is his story of the most exciting huntlrg trip he ever took or ever expects to take "I happened to be nenr Amny, not long nfter tile recent unrlensintness In Chl-nn," Chl-nn," he said, "nnd there I met n friend who Is cmplo)cd In the Chinese customs service. Ho Is u keen sportsman, nnd I i thought then that I wus Naturally, when ho showed me severil lino tiger skins nnd told me Hint ho had shot the tigers himself In tho country nround nbout there, I wanted to shoot a tiger mvself "I said so Mv friend explained that the tigers were found among the caves, but 1 didn't raise any serious objection j to that, hcurlrg that thero was little Jungle about there. Vou sec, 1 didn't know, 1 "My friend said he'd fix It for me. When 1 was so set on the tiger shooting he was as anxious ns I He lont mo a 1 rifle, found a native tracker and tho noxt morning 1 set off, '"We went by boat up the river to tho tiger country After nn hour or two wo enmo to n spot vvhero the banks were high nnd rocky and honevcombed with mnny caves nnd openings Then we Innd-cd Innd-cd nnd my guldo began to examine the cuvo mouths rcr truevs A . Inu, ... tVi.i mnltlll it n li.xn ,tfttlr "At last nt the mouth nr a Urge, dark Assure, ho polnteJ out some marks In tho sand which he said were the trncks or n tiger, lie wasn't sitlsllcd that thoy wero fri sh, but nevertheless ho lit n torch and signed to me to enter. "Then Tor tho llrst time I realized Just what I was up against. "I confess froel) that I didn't like It. 1 think I'd have bicked out ir 1 could, but theio 1 wns, commlttoj to tho enterprise. Thore was no getting out or It, so, reas-suilng reas-suilng in self with the notion that If mv friend could kill tigers thiu wj) I could, I saw that ray rllle was properly loaded and stopped In front of the tracker. "Tho t-ivo widened Inside and In tho llnor or clear white sand the tracks were plainly vlslb'e Tho cue wns not large, though, and there was no tiger lnsldo. Helng sure or that we went on "Tho guide said It was not the regular haunt of the tiger, but he occasionally used It and now ho was pietty sure ho knew the cavo where that tiger would be. llo took mi to another cive I "There were many trncks at this ono They led Into n narrow dark opening which )ou couldn't enter upright Hut tho tracker relighted his torch, signed to me to get down on my hands and knees und get In "Again 1 was ashamed to refuse, I went In "Hehlnd me. blocking the passage, camo tho trncker, with his lighted torch Just over my shoulder O-opIng on hinds nnd knees nlong a winding ho'o. I could see onlv two or threo ynrds ahead "He) ond that was Inky blickness Moro than unco I thought I saw tho tiger's shape In rront or me Hut each tlmo tho guide behind prodded mo to go on. 1 haled to. but I went "Wo must havo penetrated firteon or tvvonty )nrds In this wny when I found tho passage widening nnd saw that It led Into a larger cave I was Just about to enter this congratulating myself that hero nt nnv rate 1 toul.l stand upright nnd move. Instead of being cramped on hands and knees nt the rnircy of whit-evci whit-evci thero was nhead when the trucker clzed my linn rrom behind und pointed over ni) shoulder Into the darkness "I couldn t see n thjng nt llrst nnd I couldn't describe mv reelings, hut then the guide inlscd his torch a little ami I perceived onlv a row )urds In rront of nio two burning c)cbulls, uppircntly close to Ihe ground "It was a cise nf netlng qtilckl) nnd making no mistake I raised my rlllo. I und with the light of the torch behind mo I on the sights, 1 nlined straight betw"ii tho two points of lire nml pulled the trigger trig-ger "Tho concussion, In tho confined spico almost tleifeneil me At tho sune moment mo-ment the trncker Jammed his torch Into the smd and extinguished It, leaving us In totul darknoss Jicfoio I knew whit wus happening 1 felt htm drugging me , bickwurd through the passage and In a few seconds we wero In the open nlr i "1 usked the man what wns to b our I next move 1 didn't tell lilm so. but I was determined on ono thing, Nothing would Induce me to enter that cuvo agiln, with posslbl) onlv n wounded tiger in it 'However, the mini was Juhllint llo i declared that 1 hnd killed tho heist How ho knnw, seeing that he hud extinguished tho light the moment I flreil I couldn t Imagine nnd he didn't oxpliln , "Now, I win by no means suro tint I had hit the tiger nt nil but after relight- ' Ing the torch the native slid thero vv is no danger and he was go'ng In to see llo . wont I stayed outside and registered a mental vow that nothing should ever persuade per-suade mo to so tempt I'lovldenee agilu "Th" man came out again after whit seemed to me an Interminable Intel ml, i nnd ho wns beaming with Jo) He said tint the tiger wns stnne doul, shot through the bruin Then ho went to fetch tho two bontmen to help us haul tho beast out "Wo did It by t)lng a rope around tho hodv and the thrco of us pulling on It, whllo the fourth guided the weight ovi r the rough srots. It took nn hour of hauling haul-ing to do It "It proved to bo n male tiger of not very largo size, but In excellent condition, with a bmiitlfully marked skin 1I afternoon aft-ernoon wo had that nlT nnd wero on our wnv home "Now, my rrlend assured me later tint tiger hunting or that port wns ns sure ns such sport could he. Among th mnny expeditions after theio eavo tigers that ho had token part In, he said lie had never known n mischance The tiger, whether mloscd or not, never charged Whether tho light and lis sudden extinguishing extin-guishing confused him or not he dldn t knnw but no accident ever occurred ' It may be true," concluded the man who had tried It once "hut I m nil In on that sport. Never ugaln for tnc New York Sun |