Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1872-09-12
Battle with an Alligator.


my first arrival at the hdcteRda, at about
four o'clock in the afternoon. | was id,
ing homeward, then, thinking of many
things--of the friends that | should per.
.haps never see again in the flesh Of
"What was that A cry of pain ?"
Yes, cry, certainly Of pain or terror
the shrill, appealing cry of a child's
agonized voice and started and wheeled
my horse toward the quarter from which
the sounds seemed to come. The cry was
repeated, more feebly than before and
as | had now no doubt as to the direction
whence the call for help proceeded, |
dashed across "a ravine, and, scrambling
up the steep bank opposite, came in sight
of the chain of lagoons, connected with
the mighty Rio Plata by a small river,
which skirted the plantations of rice and
tobacco, and on the banks of which had
shot many snipe and tlamingo. 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 geranium, | beheld sight that
chilled my blood with horror.
Close to the margin of the water, knee
deep in the flowers and the tall pampas
grass, Just where the white and yellow
pond,lilies mingled with the rich colored
blossoms of the lowered prairie, was a
child-little Chariie-Don Miguel's hope
and heir-his one tie to life aud its afiec.
tions-I knew the bare little golden head
at once. But the boy stood, rooted to- the
ground, transfxed by terror, crouching
down, his blue eyes, dlated by mortal
fear, fixed on something huge, shapeless,
upcean. that drew nearer and nearer vet
a grim and monstrous thing, that had
more the aspect of a large log clisteninr
with slimy mud than of ANYTHING
else What is the ugly thing that
has crawled out from the creek.
fringed with bushes of the laurel
rose. and that is clumsily climb
ing the bank with awkward hurry of
its ungainly claw.tipped feet ? An al.
Iigator, by Heaven for | see the slanting
sunlight glisten on its scally back, and
the Formidable laws omen and display the
curved row of cleaning white teeth, as
with its cruel red eve fixed upon its prey.
it approached the spot where stood
the fated child. frozen bv a terror, that
denied him the powel. to flee
uRr, Cber1ia nm, RIM, toward mo y,
7 called aloud at the earne time urg;ng
NV horse down rho hank The lit,Ie feI,
low turned his nalp face toward and
frncopni1ed me INIT fear was stili foo
notent with him, and he remained where
he was, CRYING out to "Mirry Warhur.
ton" to save him. | dashed in the spurs
rowel deep, and at one bound came crash,
ing through the rhododendrons to within
some three or four feet of the place where'
the child stood. The alligator wheeled
angriy round, to confront the intruder
who dared to come between him and his
toothsome supper and my horse, driven
wild with terror at the sight and smell of
the monstrous reptile, reared, swerved,
and threw me, galloping off like mad
creature. was on my feet in moment,
and had lust time to throw myself be-
tween the alligator and the bOy, before
the bloodthirsty laws could close in the
first fatal snap, The brute recoiled lit
tie, for alligators are cowardly as well as
fierce and they have been known to
watch for hours in their reody ambush,
allowing ruen TO pass them upiniured
until they could bounce securely on a
woman or a child But the reptile's slow
blood had been too much stirred by the
exnectation of an easy triumph to per-
mil him to decline The fight. and he
crawjed in unon me. utterjng the hoarse
crv half roar wbimperinp moan,
thai a cavman gives under the stjng of
main ar furv
Ihod ,n, hooth.L,ifo ont q strorc
aonh tI'u od i,5 hiara nf RarcaI, no stnaI
u l,';ti 80. l o, and h,oi,har, boft
~ a ~ ,o,,,a .'I" no, a,a,st
s,,oh 'n'3 fna 10 hoStv ;rnn',lSnH no Of
80 oh q ,i ~ ,hn,o,,a .hn,
.no2' o''', ,.;I 90 e
thev were the worsbininrs of insniration
II tore The blne wooden nonc5o from nv
shonidere-hanni1v bad adontad tho
NJ, Sno;n stvla If drees-~and wran.
49,, ,be manila sround the touch bondIa
- r. ~, 1rhaIahone RIDING Win forced if
t,a,r Wy ,ho .,IIi,r,tor'e iaws az no closed
t,,i,h ,r,n yShiin 81 The same time bend,
~,,t sa ,ru, r strnrk hard with NV Two.
n17a9 l,,;fa o. his ybita throat which
rs son,,narativalv nnnrotncted The
S,st atah tnId t,r The whi,e stro,k was
ano, ori,nsoned Win HOOD. bnt the
Sooa,d s,rnla failed for the knife sIinned
o,,d ra,t,na nselesslv on the armor.nlates
af tbo creoture,s mailed hack and then
became struggle for death or life be.
tuoo, NV terrible antagonist and mvself
Nv strength was notbinp4o that of the
bnce ren,iIe and I felt myself dragged to
rigIt and left AS if / had been
rat in the CRIME of a terrier.
vet | held on fast to the whalebone
handle of the wbip while the sharpteeth
vainly crashed and tore at the sponqy