Tiger, Tiger

by Philip Caveney

  Haji fashioned his rage and frustration into a great blasting roar that seemed to shake the ground on which he stood. The noise disturbed a troop of pig-tailed monkeys resting in the top limbs of a nearby Kapok tree. Safe in their leafy sanctuary, they began to chatter and shriek abuse at him, and Haji, blind to everything but his own anger, flung himself at the base of the tree and began to tear at the wood in a frenzy, his great claws rending the soft wood to shreds and scattering bits of tree bark in every direction. The monkeys quietened for a moment, but then, seeing that they were safe, began their impudent mockery again, leaping up and down on the branches and grimacing, while Haji raged vainly, far below them.

  At last, his anger ran its course and he drew back from the tree, still growling bitterly beneath his breath. He paced up and down for a moment, ignoring the monkeys, his head low, his eyes fixed to the ground while he waited for the great calm to come to him again. At last it did. He stared once along the track the rusa had taken. No sense in going that way now, the deer’s panic would have alerted every creature for miles in that direction. Haji gave one last roar, but this time it was controlled, decisive. He struck out along a path to his left which led to secondary jungle and, eventually, Kampong Panjang.

  The monkeys watched him stalk away and they fell silent again. A couple of the braver ones stood tall and made threatening gestures with their arms in the direction he had gone; even so, it was some considerable time before they ventured to leave the safety of their tall Kapok tree.

  * * *

  THE TAXICAB came to a halt outside the Kuala Hitam Sports Club and Harry got out, paid the driver, and reached into the back to remove his sports bag and tennis racquet. The driver gazed at him with curiosity, obviously mystified by Harry’s clothing of white shirt, shorts, socks and plimsolls and despite the heat, a V-necked tennis sweater.

  “You come play tennis?” the driver inquired.

  Harry fixed him with a look.

  “No, I’ve come skin diving,” he replied drily and walked away. The driver sat for a moment, staring after him, puzzled. Then he scratched his head, shrugged, and drove away. Harry strolled in through the open glass doors, nodding to the pretty Chinese receptionist, who rewarded him with a radiant smile. He passed through another open doorway and was outside again. He turned right, past the forest of white-painted chairs and tables that ran alongside the long open-air bar, which in turn overlooked the three well-maintained tennis courts belonging to the club. Harry had come for his regular game with Captain Dennis Tremayne, a long-standing friend who still served with the Fourth and was therefore a useful source of gossip where they were concerned. He was considerably younger than Harry, but that hardly seemed to matter. Tennis was the one sport that Harry really enjoyed and he was thankful that he had never put on any weight in his advancing years. Nothing looked more ludicrous than a fat man in shorts attempting to play a game that was quite beyond his capabilities. But it was probably quite true to say that Harry cut a more imposing figure in shorts than Dennis, who, at the age of forty-four, was already a little on the stout side.

  Harry spotted Dennis sitting at one of the small tables and waving, he made his way over to him.

  “Hello old chap!” chuckled Dennis. “It seems we’re a bit early for our game today. Let me get you a drink.”

  “Fresh orange juice, please.” Harry settled into a chair as Dennis signalled to the barman.

  “Two fresh oranges, please. Plenty of ice,” Dennis grinned and turned his attention to the game in progress. “All action out there today,” he observed. “Hope they don’t expect that sort of routine from us.” He had a plump, ruddy-complexioned face that always wore a happy expression. His cornflower blue eyes were hidden today behind a pair of mirrored sunglasses. “Strewth,” he exclaimed. “Is it just me or does it get hotter here all the time?” He motioned to Harry’s sweater. “Beats me how you can wear that thing.”

  “Well, don’t forget Dennis, I’ve been living in this climate for most of my adult life. India, Burma, Malaya, all got one thing in common—they’re bloody hot. Couldn’t stand it any other way now.”

  Dennis nodded.

  “You er … wouldn’t fancy going back to Blighty ever?”

  “I should say not! I’d freeze to death.” He narrowed his eyes suspiciously. “Why did you ask that?”

  “Oh, no reason, really…”

  “No reason, my hat! What’s up? C’mon Dennis, spill the beans, you know you never could hide anything from me.”

  Dennis chuckled, raised his hands in capitulation.

  “Alright, alright, I surrender!” He leaned forward, lowered his voice slightly. “It’s just that word came through today about some more cuts and—”

  “More cuts!” Harry shook his head. “Don’t see how they can do it, frankly. Surely they’ve cut the Gurkhas down as much as they possibly can. Trimming the force to ten thousand men, it’s butchery!”

  Dennis nodded sympathetically.

  “Well, you know my views on that one Harry, I couldn’t agree with you more. But the particular news I’m referring to concerns Kuala Hitam in particular. Seems the top brass have got it into their heads that it’s unnecessary. It’s got to go, old son. Complete demobilization by 1969. Fact. Heard it myself, just this morning.”

  “What … you mean … everything?”

  “The works. Lock, stock, and barrel. What troops we leave in Malaya will be based at the barracks in Singapore. As for this lot—” He gestured briefly around him and then made a sawing motion across his throat with his index finger. “Which is why I asked you if you ever thought of going home,” he concluded.

  Harry stared at the grey Formica top of the table.

  “Dammit Dennis, this is my home. What the hell would there be for me over there, anyway? My relatives are all dead—”

  “You’ve a nephew, haven’t you?”

  “Oh yes, and very pleased he’d be to have a crotchety old devil like me descending on his household from the far-off tropics, I’m sure.”

  Dennis smiled.

  “I wouldn’t call you crotchety,” he said.

  “Well, thank you for that anyway. But let’s face it, Dennis, here I be and here I stay, until the Lord in all his infinite wisdom sees fit to reorganize my accommodation. What will you be doing?”

  “Oh, I’ll be going back home. Expecting confirmation any day now. Suffolk, I hope. Where my roots are. The fact is, I’m quite looking forward to it. I keep imagining snow at Christmas, all that sort of thing. I’m a romantic old devil at heart, you know. And Kate’s thrilled to bits. There’re lots of things she misses. Good shops, fashions, family.… Well, she’s all but got the bags packed.”

  Harry nodded.

  “And what about that pretty young daughter of yours?”

  “I think Melissa is pleased too. Things are a bit too quiet around these parts for her liking.”

  The barman arrived with the drinks, tall glasses filled with freshly blended orange juice and topped with crushed ice. He set them down on the table and left.

  “I’ll miss you,” observed Harry, after a few moments’ silence. “I’ll miss you all.”

  “Yes … well, look here, old chap. If you ever want to come and visit us, there’ll always be a place for you. I hope you realize that.”

  Harry sipped his drink thoughtfully. It was so cold that his breath turned to vapour as his mouth touched the rim of the glass; and yet the sun still burned like a grim torch at the back of his neck. He was struck by the irony of it.

  “Like an iceball in hell,” he murmured.

  “What?”

  “Oh … nothing.” He stared impatiently at the couple sweating it out on the tennis court. “Are they never going to finish?” he muttered. “In the old days, these games always finished bang on time.…” His voice trailed off as he recognized one of the players. It was the loudmouthed Australian from the night before. “I say Dennis, who is that fellow on the court?”

  Dennis lift
ed his sunglasses, peered in the direction that Harry was indicating.

  “It’s Corporal Barnes, isn’t it?”

  “No, not him! The other one.”

  “Oh! You mean Bob Beresford.”

  “Do I indeed? And who, may I ask, is Bob Beresford? He’s not an enlisted man, surely to God?”

  “No, a civvy. He’s working at Kuala Hitam on the Gurkha repatriation scheme though, so he’s been given the run of the place.”

  “Yes. He was at the Mess last night. Just what exactly is he supposed to be teaching the Gurkhas? How to tell dirty stories?”

  “I don’t think so. Farming techniques, I believe. You know … irrigation, animal husbandry, that sort of thing. How to make the most out of very limited resources, basically. I can’t help thinking that these repatriation schemes are more an attempt to salve the British government’s conscience than anything else. But Beresford seems to be making the best of it. He’s certainly well-liked by the men.” Dennis smiled warily at Harry. “I get the impression he hasn’t made an instant hit with you though,” he observed.

  Harry grimaced and shrugged.

  “Well … you know how I feel about the Aussies, Dennis. I mean, good God, they’ve all descended from convicts anyway! And that one was in the Mess last night, shouting his mouth off to all and sundry, telling some filthy story … it … shows a lack of respect, that’s all.”

  Dennis chuckled.

  “Oh come on, Harry. None of us are above telling a dirty story now and then. The British tell it in a whisper and the Aussies tell it to the world. I’m not so sure that they haven’t got the healthier attitude. It just comes down to what you’re used to really. Beresford isn’t so bad; and I tell you what, you’ve got something in common with him.”

  Harry fixed his friend with a suspicious look.

  “Really? And what might that be?”

  “By all accounts, he fancies himself as a bit of a crack-shot. Done some hunting in his time, or so he tells me.”

  Harry shook his head.

  “I haven’t hunted for years, as well you know. If this Beresford chap still does, it just confirms that he’s got some growing up to do.”

  Dennis laughed out loud.

  “Good heavens, Harry, give the poor lad a break, will you! It seems you’ve really got it in for him.”

  “Not at all, not at all! I just think people should show a little bit of resp— Ah, looks as though they’ve finally called it a day!”

  Beresford and his partner were leaving the court. The Australian was pumping his partner’s hand in what looked like an exaggerated display of good sportsmanship.

  “Great game, Ron! Let me buy you a drink.…”

  Dennis and Harry collected their kit and walked out towards the court. Beresford eyed the two of them with a mocking glint in his eye. As he walked past, Harry distinctly heard the Australian say to Corporal Barnes, “Strewth, look at these two old buggers goin’ out for a bash!” Barnes smothered a laugh, but Harry pretended he had heard nothing. He wasn’t going to let the observations of some jumped-up sheep-farmer from the outback make any impression on him. He followed Dennis into the court and closed the metal gate behind him.

  Dennis had heard nothing of the brief exchange.

  “Let’s have a quick warm-up,” he suggested. Then he laughed. “I say, that’s a bit of a joke. I’m sweating like a pig now.” He trotted over to the far side of the court and Harry served a lazy ball over to him. They played for some time in silence. They rarely bothered to score the games; it was playing that they relished, not winning.

  The white surface of the court reflected the fierce sun up at them and it was somewhat like playing tennis on a vast electric hot plate. After a few moments their clothes were sticking to them. Harry played mechanically, his thoughts not really on the game.

  For some reason, his mind had slipped back to a much earlier memory, a memory of Britain before the last war. He was unsure of the actual year, but it had been a fine summer and there was a tennis court not far from the family home in Sussex. He had been a young man in his twenties then, with no thought of enlisting in the army, no thought of doing anything in particular. His family was rich and landed and though he would never have admitted it at the time, he was a wealthy layabout. Life at his parents’ home seemed to comprise an endless succession of parties, dances, frivolous social functions; and as the potential inheritor of his father’s land and wealth, he was considered very eligible by the young ladies in the neighbourhood and did not go short of female companionship.

  But marriage had been the last thing on his mind; at least, until that particular day, the day when they had all gone to play tennis and Harry had spotted an exquisite young female on the court, a frail little thing, dressed in white, who played tennis like nobody’s business. Harry had watched her for ages as she dashed about the court, a look of grim determination on her pretty face. He had fallen in love with her then and there; and when his mother had wandered over to him to enquire what it was he was looking at, he had smiled at her and replied, “My future wife, I think.”

  How distant it all seemed now. England. He could hardly remember what it was like. And Meg. Sometimes in the night, he lay alone in the darkness trying to conjure into his mind, a vision of her face. He could not do it. Her features were soft wax blurred by time. In the end, he would have to switch on the light and fetch her photograph, just to reassure himself that she had existed. It frightened him, this loss of definition. It made him wonder if the past was not just a series of hazy ghosts set to haunt him for eternity.…

  “Come on, Harry, wake up! You missed that by a mile.”

  “Hmm?” The present came abruptly back into focus. Dennis was peering at him over the net.

  “Do you want to rest for a moment?”

  “Certainly not!” Harry retrieved the ball and stepped up to the serving line. He flung the ball skywards, whipped back his arm to serve. An unexpected pain lanced through his chest, making his breath escape in an involuntary exclamation of surprise.

  The ball dropped untouched beside him and he stood where he was for a moment, swaying slightly. He could not seem to get his breath and his heart was thudding like a great hammer in his chest.

  “Harry? Are you alright, old chap? You’ve gone white as a sheet.”

  “Yes, yes! I’m fine.…” Harry stooped to retrieve the ball but as he stood up, the court seemed to seesaw crazily from left to right. His racquet clattered to the ground and he flung out his arms to try to maintain his balance. Suddenly Dennis was at his side, supporting his arm.

  “Here, here, old chap. You’ve been in the sun too long, I think.”

  “Don’t be ridiculous,” protested Harry feebly. “I’ll be fine in a moment. Let’s play on.”

  “I don’t think we better had.” Dennis was easing him towards the exit. “Come and sit down for a while, at least till the feeling passes.”

  “This is really quite silly.… I’m alright I tell you.” Harry was aware of anxious faces peering at him from the press of tables. He felt totally humiliated, an object of ridicule. He tried to detach his arm from Dennis’ grasp, so that he might walk under his own steam, but when he exerted any effort, the dizziness seemed to get worse, filling his head with a powerful red hum. He felt vaguely nauseous.

  “Here old chap, this way. Our table’s just a few more feet.…”

  Out of the corner of his eye, Harry could see Beresford and his companion watching the scene with expressions of amusement on their faces. The Australian turned to mutter something to his companion and the two of them collapsed into fits of laughter. Harry wanted to die of shame. He was lowered into a seat and a cold drink was thrust into his hand.

  “How do you feel Harry?” It was Dennis’ voice, but it seemed terribly distant.

  Harry forced a smile.

  “I’ll survive,” he muttered. “Just a dizzy spell, that’s all.”

  “Alright.…” Dennis sounded far from being reassured. “I
’ll go and fetch your stuff.”

  “But … aren’t we going to play on again, in a minute or two?”

  Dennis didn’t answer, he just walked away, leaving Harry to brave the glare of two hundred sympathetic eyes. Harry could imagine what they were thinking.

  “Poor old man. Poor old man. Poor old man.…”

  And he knew in his heart that he would never have the courage to come to this place again.

  * * *

  BOB BERESFORD threw his kit bag carelessly into the back of his beaten-up old Land Rover, climbed into the seat, kicked the engine into life and drove away from the sports club, chuckling to himself. Honestly, these bloody old majors who thought they were still fighting a bloody war! Malaya seemed to be full of them. Bob still wasn’t quite sure what to think about Malaya. He missed the social life he had back in Oz, but it was plain that he’d landed himself a cushy number here with the repatriation scheme. The pay was excellent, considering that he only actually worked three mornings a week. The rest of the time was his own and though there wasn’t a great deal to do, he certainly couldn’t complain that he was overworked. The Gurkhas were a likable bunch of blokes who followed their various courses with quiet dedication. They never complained, though, of course, they had every reason to. After fighting Britain’s wars for the last twenty years, they were being surreptitiously swept under the carpet. In similar circumstances, Bob would have been fighting and yelling every inch of the way, but in this instance it was simply none of his business.

  As he drove, his eyes kept scanning the screens of secondary jungle on either side for signs of life. It was his old man’s influence that had turned Bob into a keen amateur hunter; Roy Beresford had been an obsessive animal hunter most of his life. He was forever undertaking extensive hunting trips in New Zealand, after deer and boar mostly. Bob had never been old enough to accompany his father, but his earliest memories were of being in Roy’s trophy room, standing beneath the gigantic spread of antlers belonging to a fine stag. Roy had told him the story of that particular hunt a hundred times. Where most children got fairy stories last thing at night, Bob got true-life adventures from his dad and thus, it was easy to see how the hunting bug had bitten him. Bob’s greatest regret was that his father had died of cancer, long before he was big enough to accompany him on an expedition. Since then, Bob had been doing his utmost to wear his father’s boots and the need to do so had become a singular obsession with him. As yet, he had not organized himself into hunting in Malaya. For one thing, the territory was completely new to him and he felt that he would first have to find himself a good guide, someone who knew how to track in such a difficult environment. The land here was, for the most part, covered in thick inaccessible jungle and Bob didn’t much fancy the idea of wandering in there unaccompanied. But most of the locals he had talked to had displayed an astonishing ignorance of their native wildlife. Oh indeed, the Tuan was quite correct. There were tigers and rusa and wild pigs and even the occasional elephant out there somewhere, but why any man should be interested in going after the creatures was quite beyond them. It was part of the Malays’ simple, happy-go-lucky policy to get on with their own lives and leave the beasts of the jungle to do likewise. Bob lived in hope of finding a Malay with a more adventurous policy.