Jul 11, 2002 08:13 PM
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(Updated Jul 12, 2002 08:22 PM)
Man eaters of Kumaon is Colonel Jim Corbett's first widely published book, came out in India in 1944. During the second world war, the veteran hunter and naturalist was confined to a wheel chair at his home in Naini Tal after suffering from tick typhus and malaria he contracted from the Burmese jungles while training soldiers in jungle warfare. Man eaters of Kumaon was written at this time, in 1943, an expansion of his previously self published book ''Jungle Stories'', limited to 100 copies.
The book immediately became a run away best seller. Corbett was already famous as a slayer of man eaters and a great friend of the poor in Kumaon area, this book brought him much fame throughout India. In 1946, it was published in various parts of the world, including the US, Canada and UK. Major book clubs in Britain and America also selected this title for their members. As a result, the total printing of Man eaters now exceeded a million copies.
The book was a welcome relief to millions of readers after the ravages of the war. Here many found comfort and relief in a man who went after dreaded man eating tigers by risking his own life, to save the lives of others, without expecting anything in return.
The only difference between the original Indian edition and foreign editions is, apart from its size, that all the foreign editions lacked a final chapter titled ''Just Tigers'', featuring Corbett's attempts to film tigers in the wild, inspired by F.W. Champion, after the book ''With A Camera in Tigerland'' (Chatto & Windus-1927).
Man eaters of Kumaon contains 10 stories. Corbett went after his first man eater, (a tigress- the Champawat Man eater) in 1907,that killed and devoured over 430 human beings The book has been widely read in India and translated into all major languages including 14 different Indian languages.It has been a text book in schools in various states in there. It is still being reprinted by Oxford University Press, India.
The publisher sent contracts to Corbett to write 5 more books, which he eventually did. The Man eating Leopard of Rudraprayag was published in 1948, My India in 1952, Jungle Lore in 1953, The Temple Tiger in 1954 and Tree Tops in 1955.
When India became independent in 1947, Corbett and his sister Maggie went to Kenya and settled down at the Outspan Hotel in Nyeri in a cottage called paxtu, previously occupied by Lord Baden Powell. Jim Corbett died there on 19th April 1955.He was nearing 80.
Man eaters of Kumaon has been compared to J.H. Patterson's ''Man eaters of Tsavo', set in Kenya during the construction of the Uganda railway during 1896-99. While Patterson's book is filled with conflicts between himself and the Indian labourers, in addition to an overdose in self praising, Corbett's book(s) are filled with compassion, love and high adventure and told in such a modest way. The original 1946 US/UK editions are still available at a reasonable price. In India this title is currently available in paperback (Oxford) only. The Jim Corbett Omnibus, and the Second Omnibus are available in hardcover each featuring three different books.
The photo illustrations from the later editions of man eaters of Kumaon were replaced by drawings made by Corbett's favourite artist, Raymond Sheppard. The films Corbett took in the Indian jungles (and later in Africa) are now kept at the archives of the British Library.
In 1948, a film titled ''Man eater of Kumaon' was made in Hollywood, starring (Mysore)Sabu and Wendel Corey loosely based on the book. Corbett's remark on this film was that the best actor was the tiger. The government of India did not allow the filming of it on location by necessity due to security reasons , as India was in turmoil shortly after the independence, and as a result of the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi at the time. In 1985, the BBc made a low budget film based on Corbett's life and sold it to the National Geographic Society in Washington for distribution. Although this was filmed on location, the docu-drama failed to bring justice to Corbett's radiating character.
Various editions of Man eaters.. were published over the years including paperbacks by Penguin and Bantam. The best one was undoubtedly by John Culler and Sons of Camden, South Carolina (USA) in the 1980s, beautifully bound in red leather, with raised bands, gilt covers and spine and illustrated with colorful endmaps and paintings by leading artists. Published as a limited edition, the book was sold out very quickly. It's current market value is estimated at $125-200.00 US. They published all Corbett's books this way, except Tree Tops, A complete set of 5 volume, which is very rare, was recently sold for US$1500.00 (appx. Rs.75000/). Most first editions of Corbett's books now commands a high price.
I highly recommend Man eaters of Kumaon to every one.
