The Carolina Spartan. [volume] (Spartanburg, S.C.) 1852-1896, 1856-07-24

!
The perspiration streamed from him with
the mere exertion of saddling his horse,
and as he mounted him to rouse up his cat
tie, horse, dogs, and cattle, manifested n
| lis;lessness that only an extraordinary con-
dition of the atmosphere could produce. If
you had seen the tall, handsome young
man seated on his tall and noble horse,
you would have felt that they were togeth-
er .ormed for any exploit of strength and
speed. But the whole troop-cattle, man,
and horse--went slowly and soberly along,
as if they were oppressed by great fatigue
or the extreme exhaustion Of famine.
The forest closed in upon them again,
and they proceeded along narrow track,
tlanked on each side by tall and densely.
growing trees; the creeping vines making
OF the whole forest one intricate, impene-
trable scene. All was hushed rs at mid.
night. No bird enlivened the solitude by
its cries, and they had left the little stream.
Suddenly there came q puff of air; but it
was like the air from the jaws ola furnace:
hot, dry, whitening in its very touch. The
young settler looked quickly in the direc.
ton from which it came, and instantly
shouted to the cattle before him, in wild,
abrupt, startling shout, swung aloft the
] stock whip which he held in his hand, and
brought it down with the report of pistol,
and the sharp cut rs with knife, on The
ear of tho huge bullock just before him.
The stock whip, with handle about n
half a-yard in length and thong of three
yards long, of plated bullock hide, is a ter
riblo instrument in the hands of practs-
ed stockman. Its sound Is note OF terror
to the cattle-it is like the report Of
! blunderbuss and the s.ockman ut full
ga'lop vii! hit any given spot on the beast
that he Is within reach of, and cut the piece
! clean away through the thickest hide that
bull or bison ever wore. lie will strike n
fly on spot of mud al tull speed, and take
away the skin with him, making the rosy
blood spring into the wind, and the aston.
ished animal dart forward as If mad.
Louder and louder, wilder and moro
hercely, shouted the squatter, and dashed
his horse forward over fallen trees, through
crashing thickets, first on one side of the
road, and then OH the other. Crack, crack.
went the singing, slashing whip; loud was
the bark Of dogs; and the mob Of cattle
rushed forwards at headlong speed The
young man gazed upwards; and, through
the OILY narrow opening of the forest, saw
strange vo'u.IeS of smoke rolling south
ward. Hotter, hotter, stronger, and more
! steadily came the wind. Ho suddenly
checked his horse. and listening, grow pale
, at The sound which reached hun. Ii was
low deep roar, as of wind in the tee
top, OF of a heavy waterfall, distant, and
smothered in some deep ravirc.
! IL,
bush FIRE. and in this tlick forest" Once
more he sprang forward, shouting, thun.
dering with his whip. lie aud tie herd
were gallCping along the marrow wood
track. Bat AS he had turned westward ia
the direction Of his home, the woods--of
which he had before seen the boundary
now closed for some miles upon him; and
rs he could not turn right or left for the
chaos OF vines and scrub that b.tructel the
forest, the idea OF being overlaken there by
the bush fire was horrible. Such AN event
would be death, and death only.
Therefore, lie urged on his flying herd
with desperation. Crack upon crack from
his long whip resounded through the hol.
! low wood. The cattle themselves seemed
| 10 hear the onnous sound, and sniE the
now strongly perceptble smell of burning
| The roar Of the fire came louder, aud ever
/ and anon seemed TO swell and surge us il
urged OH 10y rough rising blast. The heat
WAS fierce and sufocating. The youny
sqnatter's clothes hung TO him with stream
ing prespiration. The horse and cattle
steamed and smoked with boiling heat.
Yet onward, onward they dashed with loll.
ing tongues. Sorcercr, specked with patches
OF foam on bis dark shining body, seemed
to growfuriously impatient Of the obstruc
ton offered by the bulocks in his path.
As his masters whip exploded on their
flanks, he laid back his ears; and, with
flaming eyebais and barred teeth, stroye to
tear them in his rage.
Robert Patterson knew that the extraor
dinary heat and drought ofthe summer had
scorched up the grass-the very ground;
had licked up the water from crahhole
pool, and many creek; had withered the
herbage into crisp hay, and so withered the
foliage, that you might crunble it between
/ your hngers. The country appeared tho
roughly prepared for n conflagralion, and
only required this fiery wind to send blaze
Of determination over the whole land. For
weeks-nay, montLs-tho shepherds and
sawyers had spoken OF fires burning in tho
hills; and in the fern tree breaks of this
very forest he had been recently told that
flames had been observed in various drec.
tons burning redly BY night.
Ii the fire reached him and his herd be.
fore they escaped into the open plains
they must be consumed like stubble The
cattle began TO show signs Of exhaustion,
hanging out their Parched tongues, and
painting heavily; the Precipitation on himself
and horse was dried up by the awful heat;
and the dogs ran silently, or only whining
lowly TO themselves, as they hunted every
hollow in their way for water. Suddenly,
they were out in an open plain, yet with
the forest on either hand, but ut couside
rable distance
What scene! The woods were flaming