MAN-EATERS OF INDIA

From as early as 1906 Corbett had started receiving requests to assist where tiger attacks took place.

Both the Indian villagers themselves and the British would petition for his assistance, with a typical villager request reading something like this:

"We, the public, venture to suggest that you very kindly take trouble to come to this place and shoot this tiger and save the public from this calamity. For this act of kindness the public will be highly obliged and will pray for your long life and prosperity."

Habitual killers:

But, no matter how much prayer went into it, Jim Corbett would never kill a tiger where he felt the animal was not a proven habitual killer. One or two attacks did not make it 'proven' and Corbett firmly believed that most tiger attacks were due to misfortune or a tigress protecting her cubs, rather than a true man-eater on the prowl.

Over a thirty-five year period Jim Corbett agreed to hunt and kill another eleven tigers on top of Champawat. Together these animals had killed approximately 1,300 people. He noted that, from his observations, tigers were responsible for daytime human kills only. Kills done at night were normally the result of a leopard attack. At the age of 63 Jim Corbett shot his last tigress. After tracking her for days he finally lured her within shooting range by imitating the call of a male.

The naming of Corbett National Park:

Jim Corbett was instrumental in creating the park which now carries his name. He did this with the help of Sir (later Lord) Malcolm Hailey, Governor of the United Provinces in the early '30s. When the park was ready to open to the public, Hailey had already left India, and the authorities named it 'The Hailey National Park', the first of its kind in India.

Many years after Jim Corbett's death the Indian government made the decision to change the name of its first park to Corbett National Park. In itself this created a source of debate.

Supporters believe the renaming was the best tribute to a great man and that there is no one better qualified to bear that name than Jim Corbett.

Others point out that though he was an ardent conservationist, Corbett was also involved with the Kenyan-based Safariland hunting company. During the period from 1948 to 1951 he was a director of the company in a land which offered some of the best hunting grounds in the world.

Outfitters like Safariland employed dozens of professional hunters and guides. These people looked after the game using rigid and strict standards, but there is some evidence which suggests their practices also helped ensure the future of much wildlife.