About three weeks after my arrival, I was roused
one morning about daybreak and told that one of
my jemadars, a fine powerful Sikh named Ungan
Singh, had been seized in his tent during the night,
and dragged off and eaten.
NaturallyI lost no time in making an examina-
tion of the place, and was soon convinced that the man had indeed been carried off by a lion, as its
"pug" marks were plainly visible in the sand, while
the furrows made by the heels of the victim showed
the direction in which he had been dragged away.
Moreover, the jemadar shared his tent with half a
dozen other workmen, and one of his bedfellows
had actually witnessed the occurrence. Hegraphic-
ally described how, at about midnight, the lion
suddenly put its head in at the open tent door and
seized Ungan Singh who happened to be nearest
the opening by the throat. The unfortunate
fellow cried out" O0n?"
(" Let go"), and threw
his arms up round the lion's neck. The next
moment he was gone, and his panic-stricken com-
panions lay helpless, forced to listen to the terrible
struggle which took place outside. Poor Ungan
Singh must have died hard
“but what chance had he?” As a coolie gravely remarked,
“Was he not fighting with a lion ?”

Chapter 2