The Talla Des Man-eater resurfaces by Diggory Hadoke
Born as a child of the Raj to Anglo-Irish stock of modest means, Jim Corbett had free reign over the forests of northern India during his youth, at home under the jungle canopy and intimately familiar with the ways of the beasts and birds it housed.
Initially a recreational hunter, Corbett later focused on hunting man-eating tigers and leopards, becoming renowned for his prowess in dispatching these deadly predators when others failed. He refused payment, only demanding all other hunters vacate the area until he succeeded. His journeys through challenging terrain were perilous, often with minimal gear and food.
He often carried a Rigby rifle that had been presented to him in 1907 following his first dispatch of the man-eating Champawat Tigress. It was a .275 (7×57) magazine rifle purchased from Manton & Co. in Calcutta on behalf of Sir J.P. Hewett. It’s engraved with: ‘Presented to Mr J.G. Corbett by Sir J.P. Hewett K.C.S.I Lieutenant Governor of the United Provinces in recognition of his having killed a man-eating tigress at Champawat in 1907.’
This Rigby features in many of Corbett’s stories, including that of the Talla Des man-eating tigress and her two unfortunate cubs. Like many man-eaters, the tigress carried an injury which hampered hunting of her usual prey. A deep wound in her leg meant she was likely in constant pain for the eight years she stalked humans, accounting for around 150 souls.
