Amur Tigers

[brotherbear]

Beyond the Ural Mountains - Translated by Michael Heron - 1956.
I asked Vandaga how many tigers he had killed during his years spent wandering in the taiga. The old man did not answer at first. He muttered something unintelligible and began to count on his fingers. He had great difficulty in working it out. This is where a sportsman often make themselves look ridiculous. They write down when and where they shot a snipe, a woodcock, or a greedy teal and often the description of such a shoot does not even fill a whole page. Vandaga, on the other hand, was quite indifferent about all his past exploits; he only remembered the most important events of his hunting life.
He had been hunting for over forty-six years. Every year he shot one or two tigers, in good years five or six adult animals and a like number of cubs. I took an average and multiplied it by forty-five. 
If a Frenchman or an Englishman goes to India or Africa and shoots five lions or tigers with the help of native hunters and beaters, he's a hero. Articles are written about him in the newspapers, the newsreels feature him and hunting clubs are named after him. Reply