The Last Day On The Job

[Major Khan]

Thank you.

You are welcome , WAB .

 

[Major Khan]

@Major Khan
My dear friend Ponton. It is a pity that bitch Ghandi ruined such a beautiful country and noble profession. India could have still played an important part in the international shikarees.
I'm very happy you will be still able to live out your days still hunting in your adopted country.
Your humble reader and friend
Bob

She got her karma , Bob . She was assassinated in 1984 , I believe .

 

[Major Khan]

Major Khan, Sir,
That was a most revealing and factual description of the last days of shikar in India. It was and is a tragedy that such a fulfilling lifestyle should end in such a way. I am happy for you that you picked up the pieces, aided in forming a new country and prospered. Many happy returns, my friend.

Why thank you so much for your kind words , my friend . The 3 corners of my house are adorned with the 3 most dear keep sakes of mine , from my life in Old India .

 

[Major Khan]

Thanks for the story Major. It was a sad one to read.

Fate has a way of not letting us choose our own endings , Master Smith . But what we can all aspire to do ... Is to make the most of what we end up with .

 

[Malambo]

Dear Major Khan, Thank you once again for sharing your memmories. So interesting and nice to read. Wish you well. Best regards

 

[Major Khan]

@Major Khan
My dear friend it was a fitting end to a magnificent career. A beat, A royal Bengal tiger, a perfect one shot kills and all in the presence of and shared with your best friend Tobin.
As the hunting had to finish I could not imagine a more fitting end. Imagine if it was just a deer or fowl hunt to finish on.
I share your sorrows on having to finish such a job because of such stupidity and ignorance.
Your humble reader and friend
Bob.

I certainly did see the irony , Bob ! The very 1st client whom I had ever guided in my career ... Was an American gentle man who used a .375 Holland & Holland magnum caliber bolt rifle ( Loaded with 300 grain Winchester Silver Tip soft point cartridges ) to successfully dispatch a male royal Bengal tiger . The very last client whom I had ever guided in my career ... Was also an American gentle man who used a .375 Holland & Holland magnum caliber bolt rifle ( Loaded with 300 grain Winchester Silver Tip soft point cartridges ) to successfully dispatch a male royal Bengal tiger . Adding to the grandness of my final day as a professional shikaree ... Was the fact that Dan had opted to hunt his royal Bengal tiger by way of beats , as opposed to the ( Less grander ) methods of baiting or stalking . Now , baiting and stalking are perfectly fine by me . How ever , none of these methods are even REMOTELY as grand as having your royal Bengal tiger flushed out towards you ... By a group of beaters .

 

[Major Khan]

Hell of a finish, Sir!

Start the career with a royal Bengal tiger . End the career with a royal Bengal tiger , Ben !

 

[Major Khan]

@Major Khan
My dear friend to have experienced so much heartache and tragedy at a young age then become severely wounded in combat would be trying for anyone.
To come out the other end as you have my friend is a true credit to your guts and determination to not let the past dictate your future. You are a credit to yourself and your generation. Young people should be proud to have you as a mentor, the same as I am proud to call you a friend despite not having met you in person.
Your humble reader and friend
Bob Nelson.

Thank you so much for your kind words , my Dear Bob . 1 thing which I have slowly come to learn over the last 80 years ... Is that happiness is a choice . What is once lost , will never come back . How ever , if 1 searches hard enough ... Then , they may be able to find other things which can bring happiness to them . I consider myself perfectly happy now , on the grand scheme of things .

 

[Major Khan]

I Just feel your pain Major when reading this. Such raw emotions and so eloquently written. God bless you Sir.

Major Khan that was one of the most poignant stories I have ever read. You are an honorable man I would be happy to call my freind. I am so sorry that you lost your family and were betrayed by former colleagues Life is journey full of ups and downs. You have persevered and lived an honorable and full life. Thank you for sharing this story with all of us.

Thank you so much for your kind words , Mannlicher Schoenauer . I always aspire to live my life ,to the fullest ... Because I have come to learn how precious human life really is . The Bangladesh Liberation War Of 1971 taught me that , the hard way . It made me learn how to cherish and appreciate life . Know that you have found an elderly friend , in me . And you have earned yourself 1 cheetal deer shikar , 1 kakar deer shikar and 1 Bengal Bush Boar shikar with me ... Completely free of charge ( Should you ever visit Bangladesh ) .

 

[Major Khan]

Major, such a tragic story you have told, I am totally lost for words.

I am truly grateful that you have survived, as you share such wondrous stories of adventure, and in depth knowledge, of your life in India and East Pakistan, during 'the good old days', which a lot of our forum would never have had the chance to experience.

I am sincerely grateful that I have been lucky enough to see life through your eyes, and man, what a life you have lived, you are absolutely 'Legendary', a hunter, a scholar, and a true gentleman.

It has been a real honor to meet you, and I look forward to hearing more of your great work.

Take Care

Regards
Rob

Why thank you so much for your kind words , Rob . You are too generous in your compliments towards me . I assure you . FAR more noble and greater gentle men exist on God’s Green Earth ... Than I . I am a most unremarkable human being ... Who simply had a few interesting experiences in life . I take take pride in 1 thing , how ever : I am the ONLY living Indian professional shikaree ... Who managed to bring back 1 of his trophies from India , after the 1972 rise of the vegan socialist Gandhi Regime . I genuinely consider THAT to be an actual accomplishment !

It is the tanned hide of the “ Child Eater Of Terai “ . It is 1 of my 3 dearest keep sakes , from my days as a professional shikaree ... In India .

 

[Major Khan]

Dear Major Khan, Thank you once again for sharing your memmories. So interesting and nice to read. Wish you well. Best regards

Why thank you so much for your kind words , Malambo . It is my utmost privilege that you have enjoyed this reminiscence of mine , so much .

 

[Newboomer]

Major Khan, Sir,
Life is a series of tragedies and triumphs. I daresay you have had your share of both but in the end you have won a major triumph. You are truly a legend in your time. I sincerely hope you keep contributing to our forums.

 

[Major Khan]

Major Khan, Sir,
Life is a series of tragedies and triumphs. I daresay you have had your share of both but in the end you have won a major triumph. You are truly a legend in your time. I sincerely hope you keep contributing to our forums.

Of course , my friend . After 3 days , again . I am having a bit of a snake problem on my new property .

They are terrifying all of my workers .

 

[Newboomer]

Tell us about it. Looks like an interesting story.

 

[WAB]

You are welcome , WAB .

Major, your post took me back to Botswana in 2013. We had a wonderful hunt taking a fine bull elephant and an old dugga boy. The buffalo was the last buffalo harvested in Botswana prior to the hunting closure. I’ll never forget the final dinner at Thamalakane Lodge on the river in Maun. A bittersweet time knowing that something so grand was coming to an end.

 

[Major Khan]

Tell us about it. Looks like an interesting story.

Well , the boys dug out this nasty King Cobra ... Half an hour ago , New Boomer . Fortunately , they had it surrounded with scythes and axes ... Long enough for me to arrive and shoot it with my " Old Belgian ". 28 gram Winchester 2.75 inch # 7.5 bird shot cartridges fold these brutes nicely ... Provided the head is selected as a target. So far , we can found and killed 19 of these slithery rascals in 4 days .

When dispatching King Cobras ... it is imperative that 1 always crush their heads after shooting them , as a necessary precaution .

 

[Major Khan]

Major, your post took me back to Botswana in 2013. We had a wonderful hunt taking a fine bull elephant and an old dugga boy. The buffalo was the last buffalo harvested in Botswana prior to the hunting closure. I’ll never forget the final dinner at Thamalakane Lodge on the river in Maun. A bittersweet time knowing that something so grand was coming to an end.

Did you use your .458 Lott caliber Winchester Model 70 Safari Express , WAB ? By the way ... Is it true that ( Unlike the pre 64 Winchester Model 70 rifles ) , the new Winchester Model 70 rifles are NOT hand fitted ?

 

[WAB]

Did you use your .458 Lott caliber Winchester Model 70 Safari Express , WAB ? By the way ... Is it true that ( Unlike the pre 64 Winchester Model 70 rifles ) , the new Winchester Model 70 rifles are NOT hand fitted ?

That hunt predated my Lott. It was that dugga boy that convinced me to buy the Lott!

I used my CRF M70 in .375 H&H. No they are not hand fitted from the factory. However mine are custom rifles, so yes, they are hand fitted.

 

[fourfive8]

Major Khan,
Thanks for that story... so well told as always. I read it with a heavy heart as I'm sure you wrote it with a heavy heart. I think many of us have been there... witness to something of value that we are powerless to prevent from slipping away. Something we know will never return. A lost history if you will.

As an aside to the part about Pakistan. I had a friend in school who was from Pakistan. His father by coincidence would have been employed by the federal government in Pakistan as what amounted to a federal forest and game ranger/supervisor for a district in an area in Pakistan that had a relatively healthy population of the large cats. He spoke about his father having to deal with the big cats often. Had your plan for hunting in Pakistan gone as hoped no doubt you all would have crossed paths. Been too long for me to remember the details about exact location though. The time frame for his father's involvement with the cats there would have covered the time of your story- from the late 1950s to the early 1970s. I do not know the fate of my friend's family in Pakistan past about 1971-2. At that time, mid to late 60s though at least the early 70s many students from both India and Pakistan were going to universities here in the US to study engineering. I had several roommates from both India and Pakistan. Quite a mixture I'll tell you!

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

Why thank you so much for your kind words , Rob . You are too generous in your compliments towards me . I assure you . FAR more noble and greater gentle men exist on God’s Green Earth ... Than I . I am a most unremarkable human being ... Who simply had a few interesting experiences in life . I take take pride in 1 thing , how ever : I am the ONLY living Indian professional shikaree ... Who managed to bring back 1 of his trophies from India , after the 1972 rise of the vegan socialist Gandhi Regime . I genuinely consider THAT to be an actual accomplishment !

It is the tanned hide of the “ Child Eater Of Terai “ . It is 1 of my 3 dearest keep sakes , from my days as a professional shikaree ... In India .
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Major Khan
My dear friend
It is the unremarkable man that achieves great things.
Remarkable men only try and achieve what the unremarkable do without knowing they have done so.
My bit of philosophical thinking for today my friend.
Bob