Baton-Rouge gazette. [volume] (Baton-Rouge, La.) 1819-1856, 1850-12-07

moth but to her fatal humanity. | restp,
the but OF my rifle aud reloadeJ Will
d guilty look s'ild d faltHrina haud raises
the piece antl fired. MY hand was sieadi
en1tah to 10 tile work When tha stnpk.
aobted aside. | eoHId see tie the it'll,
creature beedug ipeu Tie grass, he
hend resting upoa the body Of her muf
tlpfad i1iate.
| | slinnldtfed my rifle aud whs h1srt Il
move Forward. when to my nstgii+l,tnpht
| found myself held by the feet, aud firm
" as If my boots had been sers wed in i
vice | made III effort TO rtiise my LEGS
but cottld neither raise one nor Tie other
another effort lnure tiplriit was euinIiy
unst,ceessiul4-a third more desperate. and
losing my balance. | fell back with q
| rIasl upon the water Half s,iIForatel,
| endeavored 10 recover my upright posi-.
| tiul, This | ehsiIy accomplished us Inv
knees were iIreatly below he surface oi
tie sand, aud, IN fuet, ,iow he,lt will, diff
| entys On my feet ataih, Wlat could [
10 ! was still fast as before. I still
IA Il rs before. ! coliiH neilnr move for
ward nor back Wati-to the right OF left
and | bncalne Rensble that | uns gradual
y pnl',g down deeper md deeper. Then
the fearful truth flashed upon lne--I rms
sihhtHg m Il ysirhsdRd
A feeling Of horror ran through me.
! renewed my Efforts with the energy Of
desperation. | bent 10 one side. tlei to
the other Almost pulling my Iegs from
their sockets but my feet--I could not
move them an inch The soft. clinuy
sand already overfopppd my horseskin
boots, Wet'eilg them around my leg, So
that | vainly endeayored 10 draw them
forth and | could feel tliat | was still
sinking, slowly btt surely as thou Il, some
horrid monster was eisiiry dragging Inc
downward The very thought was horror.
aud cried aloud 4ur hep 10 whom2
There Was 10 ole within tnl'es-n, livint
thing. Yes the neigh Of my horse ali
sWerel ne from tie hill mocklnI my
DESPAIR.
bent forward ~ we'll rs Inv constrained
position would allow, anl with pll,ensied
fingers. commenced tearnin1 up the sand
could barely touch tie little laIow I
Was able to serape out Gled Up quickly as
it hnd deei formed
A thonght occurred to me. II will
place my rlhS between my thighs. hor-
zoli'alIy; It mnv support me for II rinie .
looked around f,r the object had
dropped it III my first efforts to ret free
1t was beyond my teacll==it had disap-
penrnd.
The next thought Can I throw my
body Hat, aud thus, by constant exerion.
prevent myself from sinking dHepef =
No the surface ofGhe water was two
feet al,ove tint of tie strd IN this 20.
sitou | should have been drowned nj
once ! proved tlnt by bending forward
ana resting my hands upon the bottom
Tue running stream swept my face aud
slion sers, and | rose agnln half rhpted
viii, The water. This last hope Ind left
Inc could think of 40 other-l made
uo ctfft 10 ihnk A strange stnppf
seized upon ln"--,ny very tl,uu tl,ts were
knew that / was gong mad
-~iuf moment teus mad.
After an interval my SENSES returned
| made an effort 10 rou q my MUD from
this paralysis, III order that might meet
my death, which uow felt vhs certain
like u,au. stood erect my eyes llad
sunk TO ths prairir level, aud resting
tipo, the still bleeding victims of my
cruelty my heart smote me at the sight,
aud could not help ieairg that my fute
was fetributlou from God
With bunbed aud panltent thoughts
turned my faee 10 henvetl, almost
j teadng that some sign Of Dmnipotent
'nger would scowl upon mo from above.
Bnt 10 the sun was shining rs br' pht- |
" as ever, and the blue cnnopy Of the
world was withont Il cloud. | uhzrd
npon it, hl,I prayed with an earnsstness
known to the heurt only in similar stu
ltinns.
Az continued looking up, an object
my attention. 1t was but II |
apsek when my eye first rested upon it |
,at every moment it grew larrrr. luti |
'galnst the sky, Distinguished the dark
outlines Of huge dark hinl=-t knew it |
o be the obscene bird Of the pnln s---
he l,tizzafd vusttre Whence had il |
'one who knows? Far beyond the
'each Of human eye it had seeh or scent.
ID tue slaughtered antelope. aud with |
| broad. silent wing, was now descend. |
ng IN spiral gyratlons To the feast Of death. |
Presently another, anl another, and an.
,tlier. and many others. lnottled tie deep
'znre, eiirving and wheeling silently earth
ward and then the foremost swooped
lown npon the bank and after gazing
'round tapped off towards tie prey In
| few seconds the s,rface Of the prHirle
vas black with filthy birds. who carnbeied
,ver the dead animals. and bent their broad
wings agalnst each other, aud tore out tho
ongues and eyes with their fetld braks.
ind now came gaunt htin1Iy wolves --
ne white and coyote--4teaint from
actns thickets, aud lop,ng, cowartliike,
'ver the green swells Of the prairie; ilie4e
rove away the vutures anI drag red
onh { entraiIs with the qnickness OF
bought, aud growled, and snareI, and
mapped veangefuIly at each other, anI
lcked their bood-cotted jaws with looks
f guilty enjoyment.
Thank heaven. shall at Ieast b
aved from this. | was soon reiieee,
'on the sight of il; my eyes bad sunk
Glow the level of the bauk, anl | had
ooked my last upon the fair, green earth
eon!d see ony the white gypsum walls
hat contained the river, and the water
hat ran heed essiy between them. Again
liked gaze my upon the sky aul viii
rayeriul heart endsavofc1 to re.it ~, aIys.ifl
,my fate In spite Of my dn!eavor~, the
le1lOrg OF earthly rtea~urpa AMI friend.