Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1872-09-12
Fight With an Alligator.


had reduced me from affiuence to power
ty. / was but twenty-four years of age
strong of heart and of limb and so, in
stead of idling away my life at home, |
resolved to emigrate to South America,
where an old friend Of my fathers was
likely to aid me in the restoration of my
fallen fortunes. | reached Buenos Ayres
in due season, and soon after found my
self at the estanZia of Don Miguel Ra-
mon, of Cerrado near the city of St.
Sage 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 his
tiocks and herds. Unfortunately he was
a widower, with only one child, boy,
now of some five years of age, and of
whom his father was dotingly fond.
Here I was frankly and generously well
coined, and, what with riding my hosts
horses, shooting among his rice fields,
aiding him in his accounts, and giving
little Charlie lessons in French and Eng
fish, passed my time most agrceably.
was returning from a half built
sugar mill one day, perhaps a month
after my first arrival at the hacienda, at
about four o'clock in the afternoon. |
had left the dingy compleXioned masons
slipping their chocolate, and had received
the fOreman's solemn assurance that
fresh course of blocks, properly cement
ed, should be laid before he permitted
his gang to give over work. | was rid
ing homeWard, then, thinking of many
things-Of the old days at home of
friends and schoOlfellOWs that | shOnld
perhaps never see again in the flesh
of
''What was that? A cry of pain ?"
Yes, a cry, certainly Of pain and terror
the shrill, appealing cry of child's
agOnized voice and | started and
wheeled my horse towards the quarter
from which the sounds seemed to come.
The cry was repeated, more freely than
before and as | had now no doubt as to
the direction whence the call for help
proceeded, [ dashed across a rayine, and
scrambled up the steep bank opposite,
came in sight of the chain of lagOOns,
connected with the mighty Rio Plata by
a small river, which sRirted the planta-
ton of rice and tobacco, and on the
banks of which had shot many a snipe
and flamingo. Here, at the edge of a
cane-borderod creek that ran up from
the nearest lagoon into the broken
ground, where the hillOcks were gay
with purple ThOdOdendrOns, and the
wild gcraniums, | beheld a sight that
chilled my blood with horror.
Close to the margin of the water,
lznce-deep in the flowers and tall Pam
pas grass, just where the white and yell
low pond lilies mingled with the rich
colored blossoms of the lowered prair-
lie, was a child-littlc Charlie-DOn Mig
uel's hope and hrir-thc only tie to life
and its affections. ! knew the bare lit
tie gOlded head at once. But the boy
stood rooted to the ground. traneliXcd
by terror, crOuching down, his blue
eyes, dilated by mortal fear, fixed on
something huge, Shapcless, Unclean, that
drew nearer and nearer yet, q grim and
mOnstrOus thing, that had more the as
poet of a large log, gIstcnlng with
Shiny mud than Of anything else What
is the ugly thing that has crawled out
from the creek, frinocd with bushes of
the laurel rose. and that is clumsilv
climbing the bank with awkward hurry
Of its ungainly claW-tipped feet? An
dll8diOI, ny utt Eil . it'l Slt tilf
SIanting sunlight glisten on its sCaly
back, and the formidable jaws open and
display the curved row of cleaning
white teeth. as, with its cruel red eye
fixed upon its prey, if approached the
spot where stood the fated child. frozen
by a terror that denied him the power to
flee
Run. Charlie, run run toward me ="
| called aloud, at the same time urging
my horse down the bank. The little
fellow turned his pale face toward me
and recognized me; but fear was still
too potent with him, and he remained
where he was crying out to ''AIirry War
burton" to save him. I dashed in the
spurs roWel deep, and at one bound
came crashing through the rhOdOden-
drons to within some three or four feet
of the place where the child stood. The
alligator wheeled angrily around to con-
front the intruder who dared to come
between him and his t0othsOmc supper;
and my horse, driven wild with terror.
reared. sWerycd and threw me, gallOp-
inc off like q mad creature. l was on
my feet in u moment, and had just time
to throw myself between the alligator
and the boy before the bl0Odthirsty Jaws
could close in the first fatal snap. The
brute rec0ilod little, for aliigatOrs are
cowardlv as wcllas fierce. and they have
been known to watch for hours in their
recdy ambush, allowing men to pass
them uniniured, until they could pounce
securely on a woman or child. But the
reptiles blood had been too much stirred
by the expectation of an easy triumph
to permit him to decline to fight, and he
craWled in upon me, uttering the hOarse
cry, half Whimpcring moan, half roar,
that the Cayman gives under the sting of
pain or fury.
[ had my sheath knife out, a strong
dOubIe-edged blade Of Barcelona steel,
with cross handle and buckthOrn haft,
but this seemed a poor weapon against
such foe By hasty impulse--one of
those life saving thoughts that come
upon us at :mOments of extreme peril.
as if they were the Whisperings Of in
spirati0n-I tore the blue wooden pom
cho from my shoulders-h happily, I had
adopted the new style of dress-and,
wrapping the mantle around the tough
handle of my whalebOno riding whip, [
forced it between the alligatOr's Jaws as
he closed with me, while at the same
time, bending forward, I struck hard
with my two edged knife at his white
throat. which was comparatively I'M
protected. The first stab told, for the
white streak was soon crimsoned with
blood; but the second stroke failed, and
the knife slipped and ratified usclessly
on the armor plates Of the creatures
mailed back; and then began a struggle
for death or life between my terrible an
tagonist and myself. My strength was
nothing to that of the huge reptile, and
l felt myself dragged to right and left
as if l had been a rat in the grippe of a
terrier, yet l held on fast to the whale
bone handleof the whip, while the sharp
teeth vainly CRASHED and tore at the
spongy wool that clogged them, and [
retained my hold in sheer desperation,
striking in with my knife whenever I
got a chance, but usually baffled by the
tenacious armor of my inyulnerabIe adj
yersary.
Charley, few feet distant, was sob
biDp DifpOIIClv at times 0rviDr 9lO111 in