of reward!

"Crowds from the city and suburbs bought tickets eagerly in response
to the beat of drums announcing the unique contest. The day of
battle saw hundreds turned away for lack of seats. Many men broke
through the tent openings, or crowded any space below the galleries."

As the Tiger Swami's story approached a climax, my excitement
mounted with it; Chandi also was raptly mute.

"Amidst piercing sound-explosions from Raja Begum, and the hubbub
of the somewhat terrified crowd, I quietly made my appearance. Scantily
clad around the waist, I was otherwise unprotected by clothing. I
opened the bolt on the door of the safety room and calmly locked
it behind me. The tiger sensed blood. Leaping with a thunderous
crash on his bars, he sent forth a fearsome welcome. The audience
was hushed with pitiful fear; I seemed a meek lamb before the raging
beast.

"In a trice I was within the cage; but as I slammed the door, Raja
Begum was headlong upon me. My right hand was desperately torn.
Human blood, the greatest treat a tiger can know, fell in appalling
streams. The prophecy of the saint seemed about to be fulfilled.

"I rallied instantly from the shock of the first serious injury
I had ever received. Banishing the sight of my gory fingers by
thrusting them beneath my waist cloth, I swung my left arm in a
bone-cracking blow. The beast reeled back, swirled around the rear
of the cage, and sprang forward convulsively. My famous fistic
punishment rained on his head.