TOMMY CHASE WIGGIN THE ELEPHANT HUNTER

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TOMMY CHASE WIGGIN THE ELEPHANT HUNTER

By Kinsly Liyanage – Kandy

A past tragedy episode of a brave Sportsman.

There were many articles written to magazines and papers by many wild life enthusiasts how Tommy chase wiggin was trampled to death by a rogue elephant at Yakkure.

In 1916 in the month of March Tommy had gone behind this elephant to shoot down for killing a boy at Dastota, a wild side small village on the banks of river Mahaweli in the district of Polonnaruwa.

This was the place where people crossed the river by boat to Yakkure, where semi coastal Veddas lived in their little habitat in the vicinity of Gunners Quain.

After hearing the news about the elephant, Tommy had decided to go on the chase with the purpose of securing the big game hunt, Villagers had named this elephant as the “Yakkure Hora Aliya”

It was the 33rd rogue elephant that he was preparing to go and shoot down. This time he had come armed with a new Paradox rifle replacing his old 303 rifle.

Previous day Tommy had been on the Polonnaruwa tank bund trying to zero his new rifle aiming and shooting at a few aquatic birds. While firing over there on the bund he had met one of his friends. Tommy had shown him his firing skill by placing silver coins at Certain distances away on the tank bund tree trunks and plugging those with his new Paradox rifle bullets. His amazing shooting skill had amused his friend. Tommy displaying the new rifle to him and had said, I am going to get the Yakkure rogue tomorrow with this. His friend by responding to him had said, you must by knowing about guns better than I, but to go behind a dangerous elephant such as this Yakkure rogue why don’t you depend on your old. 303 rifle that you had bagged 32 wild elephants before.

This gun is also a good one, you see those coins that I have hit, I can do it with this also.

Naturally his friend must have had the premonition instinct impulse of a future danger. He must have thought for himself that known devil is better than the unseen angel. But Tommys knowledge about guns and game was far beyond the instructions given by a novice, as always experience is far more better than the advice.

Tommy had known better that his new Paradox rifle is not going to shoot out plantains at elephants from its muzzle end.

Next day early morning he had gone along with the village headman of Dastota in search of the elephant on the Dastota area and until mid day had not seen it.

Crossing the river by boat to Yakkure they had searched all over and not finding the elephant they had rested to have some food brought by them.

At the same time a man had come with the information that he had seen the elephant roaming in that area.

It was not the case of eating a sandwich at a time like that, but to chase behind the elephant that his opportunity had come, the intense feeling the desire of going on the chase to let go the first shot from his new Paradox rifle. The home made sandwich cannot be compared with the wine of adventure for a hunter by nature as Tommy, so leaving the food package aside soon he was on the trail behind the elephant as the man had guided.

According to the evidence, Tommys approaching and firing had been as clever as before. He had placed the first lightning shot for the Yakkure rogue to fall down at his heels.

Later the elephant had got up and charged at tommy unexpectedly. He must have been at close proximity to the elephant after dropping his prey. We cannot imagine in what position he must have been near the elephant after putting it down, whether he was seated resting, or had been smoking a cigarette when the elephant got up and charged at him.

Similar thing Jim Corbett has mentioned in his book man eaters of Kumaon, after shooting Mohan the man eater, I sat down on the fallen tree and lit a cigarette and allowed my thoughts to wander. Any task well accomplished gives satisfaction, and the one just completed was no exception, the reason for my presence at that spot was the destruction of the man eater.

The behavior of good sportsmen is similar to each other in their way of life. The presence of Tommy at that spot was to destroy the Man Killer.

Tommy was not a reward hunter, neither Jim Corbett, but only on behalf of the poor people lived in terror.

A charging elephant at close quarters is difficult to explain. It is difficult to aim and shoot at a vital spot in a critical situation like Tommy had faced never before, when the elephant was badly wounded and charging with violent rage. Tommy had fired the other eight shots re loading and firing while trying to get away from the charging elephant running for cover avoiding getting caught.

His shots may have hit all over the body and skull without having any immediate effect.

But who knows whether a couple of bullets had gone whistling over the mountain of Gunners quoin. He could not put the elephant down after firing the eight shots.

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