Beaufort Republican. [volume] (Beaufort, S.C.) 1871-1873, 1872-09-05
FIGHT WITH AN ALLIGATOR.

A few years since, circumstances over
which had no control"-this, believe is
the popular way of putting it-had re-
ducei me from aff1uence to poverty. !
was but twenty -four years Of age, strong
of heart and of limb; and so, instead OF
idling away my life at home, 1 resolved to
cmierate to South America, where an old
friend cf my fathers was likely to aid me
in the restoration of my fallen fortunes.
reached Buenos Ayres in due season, and
soon after found myself at the eStonzio of
Don Miguel Ramon, Of Cerrado, near the
city of ST. Jago de los Caballos. Don
Miguel was a very wealthy man, growing
cotton and coffee, tobacco and corn, as
well as other South American productions,
but deriving, in patriarchal fashion, the
greater part Of his income from bis tlocks
and herds. Unfortunately, he was wild
over, with only one child, hoy, now of
some five years of age, and of whom hIs
father was dotingly fond. Here I was
frankly and generously welcomed, and,
what with riding my hosts horses, shoot
ing among his rice fields, aiding him in his
accounts, and giving little Charlie lessons
in French and English, passed my time
most agIeeably.
was returning from balf-built sugar
mill one cay, perhaps a month after my
first arrival a. the hacienda, at about four
o'clock in the after Oon. l had left the
dIngy complexioned masons slipping their
chocolate, and bad received the forcman'S
solemn assurance that a fresh course Of
blocks properly Cemented should be laid
before he permitted his gang to give over
work. was riding homeward, then,
thinking Of manv thinss-of the old days
at home; Of friends and schoolfellnws that
| should perhaps never see again in the
flesh; Of
"What was that? A cry of pain %
Yes, a cry, certainly Of pam or terror-the
shrill, appealing cry of ctild's agonlzlng
voice; and | started, and wheeled my
holsc towards the quarter from which the
sounds seemed to come. The cry was re
pCated, more feeblv than before and as
bad COW no doubt as TO the direction
whence the call for help proceeded, ]
dashed across ravine, and scrambling up
the steep bank opposite, came in sight O
the chain of lagoons, connected with the
mighty Rio PLATA by small river, which
skirted the plantations Of rice and tobacco
aud on the hanks of which | had shot
many o snipe and famingo Here, at the
edge of a cane bordered creek that ran up
from the nearest lagoon into the broken
ground, where the hillocks were gay with
purple rhododendrons and the wild gera
mum, I beheld a sight that chilled my
blood with horrsr.
Close to the margin of the water, knee
deep in the flowers and the tall PampaS
grass. Just where the white and yellow
pond-liIreS mingled with the rich colored
blossoms of the lowered prairie, was a
chld-httle Charlie-Don Mjguel's hope
and heir-tne one tie to life and it's affec-
tions. knew the bare little golden head
at once. But the boy stood, rooted to
the ground tranSfxed bv terror, crouchng
down, mis- blue eyes, dilated by mortal
fear, fixed on something huge, shapcess.
unclcan, that drew nearer and nearer vet.
grim aud monstcous thing, that had
more the aspect of large log, gli>tenin.'
with Shiny mud, than of any thirg else.
What is the ugly thing that has crawled
out from the creek, frlnged with bushes of
tie lduI el-rCse, and that IS clumsily climb
ing the hank with awkward hurry Of its
ungaInlv claw-tIpped feet} An alligator
10y Heaven for ! see the Slanting sunlight
gliSten on its Scaly back, and the iormid
able Jaws open and display the curved row
OF cleaning white teeth, as, with its cruel
red eve fixed upon its p,ey, it approached
the spot where stood thc fated child, frozen
bv a terror that denied him the power to
fec
Run, Charlie, run run towards me y
| called aloud, at the same time urging my
horse down the bank. The little fellow
turned his pale face towards me, and re
CogniZed me but fear was still too potent
with mm, ana he remained where he was.
crying out to "M,rv WarburtOnn to save
him. dashed in the spurs rowel deel,
and at one bound came crashing through
the rhod odendrOrS to within some three
OF four feet of the place where the child
stood. The alligator wheeled angrilv round,
to confront the intruder who dared to
come between him and bis toothsomc sup
pcr and my horse, driven wild with ter
rOr at the sight and snellof the m0nstrous
reptile, reared, swerved. and threw NE,
galopins off Ike mad creature | was
"n my feet in moment, and had Just time
II throw myself between the alligator and
tho boy before the bloodthirsty Jaws could
close in the first fatal snap The brute
r,co'le little, for alligators are cowardly
~ we'll as fierce, and they have heen
known to watch for hours IN their reedv
a0rhuSh, allowing men to pass between
them unmjured, until they could pounce
securely on woman or child But the
reptiles slow blood mad been too much
stirred by the expectation Of an easy
triumph TO permit him to d, cline the
fight, and he crawled in upon NE, uttering
the hoarse cry, half-roar, half Whispering
moan, that a cayman gives under the sting
Of pain or fury.
[ had my sheath knife out, a strong,
double edged blade of Barcelona steel,
with a cross-handle and buckthorn haft /:
but this seemed poor weapon against
such foe. By hastv impalse-one of
those lite-saving thoughts that come upon
lis at moments of pxframe npril as H thoy