Lucknow
[316] The most interesting battles were those between a tiger and a rhinoceros.
Except for the underpart of its belly, the rhinoceros is brazen-bodied and the
tiger’s teeth and claws have no effect on it. With the assurance of this strength.
The rhinoceros cared nothing for the strongest of foes and, lowering its head,
was able to get under its adversary’s belly and rip it open with the horn on its
snout; all the entrails came tumbling out and the adversary’s days were over.
Only rarely did a tiger knock a rhinoceros flat on its back and then tear open
Its belly with teeth and claws. Generally the rhinoceros managed to kill the
tiger with a thrust of its horn.
[118] Rhinoceroses were often pitted against elephants, but usually these animals
did not like fighting each other. If it came to a fight, however, that light was
certainly ferocious. If the elephant managed to push the rhinoceros over the
latter would be killed by the elephant’s driving its tusks into its belly. If the
rliinoceros got the chance to thrust its horn into the elephant’s belly it would
make a wide gash in the hide. But the elephant with the help of its trunk could
stop the horn penetrating too deeply and would thus escape a moital wound.
[119]
Rhinoceroses
No animal is more powerful than a rhinoceros. It has been fashioned with
such a brazen body t'hat neither the tusks of an elephant nor the claws of a
tiger are effective agamst it. Only the skin of its belly is soft, and if any ammal
managed to attack that part of its anatomy it could destroy it. Otherwise an
animal would expend its strength in vain and eventually tire. Then the rhinoceros
would dnve the horn on its snout into the adversary’s belly and kill it.
In Lucknow, rhinoceroses were pitted agamst elephants, tigers, leopards and
against each other. At the time of Rung Ghazi ud Dm Haidar, some rhino-
ceroses, besides being made to fight, were so well trained that they were
harnessed to carts and, like elephants, used to carry people on their backs.
The rhinoceros is not by nature a pugnacious animal and avoids fighting
whenever possible. If, however, it is baited, it will face an opponent and fi^t
with great ferocity. At the time of Nasir ud Dm Haidar there were fifteen or
twenty fighting rhinoceroses which used to be kept at Chand Ganj. When their
keepers prodded them and set them to fight they would lower their heads,
charge and butt at each other. Each tried to rip open its adversary’s belly with
its horn. They bellowed loudly and banged their horns together. In fighting,
their heads met and their horns became interlocked. Then they both started
pushing and the one who weakened started to retreat slowly, giving up its
ground If this didn’t save the animal, it tried to run away. The stronger con-
tinued butting imtil the weaker one disengaged its horn, turned from the contest
and swiftly took flight. If the arena was limited m size, the victorious opponent
attacked its antagonist as it fled, knocked it over and killed it by driving its
horn mto its belly. In large arenas, the vanquished rhinoceros was often able
to escape by running away. The keeper, by prodding and beating with burmng
staves, got control over the victor, stopped its pursuit of its adversary and
drove it back. A fight between rhinoceroses depended upon the animals keeping
their heads down and protecting their bellies The minute one raised its head, its
opponent could take full advantage of the lapse. On one occasion, a rhinoceros
had won a fight and its antagonist started to run away. Seeing this, the victor
raised its head. The vanquished rhinoceros immediately ran m hke lightning,
lowered its head and ripped its opponent’s belly
