Litchfield enquirer., 1873-06-05

1 rum. mOurnful interest thus belonged
 to the ''Meadowes place" and the super
 stitious avoided the island in the swamp
 after nightfall.
 had been with Alice Meadowes when
 she died. and had taken home the poor little baby, who, however, lived but few
 days, and was buried in her mothers
 grave. As looked at. the desolate log house, there came to me q vivid remem-
 brance of John Meadowes as he had stood Tn the door and watched me as I went l away with his child.
 But had small time for thought. for the next instant the ugly dog, who had run on before us out out of sight. came tearing back along the road and barking and yelling apparently quite out of his senses; he sprang at the horses heads. and seemed determined to stop the buggy or even turn it from the path.
 Good Heavens! The dog is mad p said Diana. in alarm.
 The next instant, snorting, screaming. wild with terror, the colts wheeled short round. overturned the buggy, and kicking desperately, broke from the traces and dashed back on the homeward road. We l were all thrown on the soft grass, and ] sprang to our feet unhurt. Diana was in mortal fear of the dog, for she thought him mad; but knew that some other 1 danger threatened, and, looking round for place of refuge, made toward the log house, to which Dick was already urg- l ing hls sister; while the dog, running 1 backward and forward from one to the other, whined and yelped in an ecstacy of lmpatience and distress. The one room l of the house was bare and empty, but il ladder led to the loft above.
 "Up the ladder, Mrs. Graham. ouck r cried Dick, and he flung to the door "Quick knew what is coming! Good God This door won't fasten r'
 Flying from we knew not what, we rushed up the ladder into the loft, and WitR Ks ssgsa ttasgstfRgE R ter rb"s5 dr from its fastenings, and sent it crashing there was a trap-door over the opening, and Dick pullek it from the rusty wire which held it to the wall, and secured it with large iron hook which slipped into staple in the floor. On the trap-door the dog took his stand; and, alternately growling and wagging his tail, seemed at once to defy the canning danger, and en- courage his friends.
 There was small window in the room. The glass was broken, but the heavy wooden shutter still swung to and fro on the wind, and Dick pulled it close and fastened 1t on the inside, so that but for the faint light that shone through the cracks in the roof and up through a hole in the floor, we were in darkness.
 "What is it ?" asked, in whisper, but before Dick could speak, was answered. There was terrible soand between a yell and roa1. the door below was dash ed from it's hinges by some great weight, and then roar on roar of bafied, brutal rage rent the air. We elung together, expecting death, though. as yet, neither Diana nor knew the nature of our c: emy. There was moments pause m the deaf ening uproar, and looked down through the space left by missing board in the floor What was the creature that carried its vast tawny bulk to and fro across the lower room, swift, easy, and graceful, as bird? As looked, the thing lifted it's huge head and showed it's green eyes. glaring with hate. and the white glitter of its terrible teeth. There was no mistak- ! ing the nature of our peril. The beast [ was the Bengal tiger we had seen few days before in the caravan.
 l Spiritleas and dull as the brute had | been in his cage, he had struck me then 1 as uncommonly powerful and fierce, and we had been told that his temper was un- | tamably savage.
 What were we to do? We had no means of defense should the creature break in upon us, It was Q lonely place, 1 and very few people passed that way. Any 1 trave]er who saw our wrecked buggy and l came to seek us would only be rushing on certain death. The horses might run 1 home, and onr friends might come in search of us, but the worst they would l apprehend would be some accident from the runaway horses, and, if they came to l the lonely house in the swamp, it would only be to meet death at the threshold. 1 For the moment we were safe. I had natural history enough to know that the | creature could not get up the rafters and tear away the boards of the upper floor. Probably the beast had been missed immediately, and thought it likely that more than one party were out searching with dogs. and might follow up the trail, but it might be some time before they could fall on the traces, and in the mean time here we were besieged by wild beast as cunning as 1t was cruel. The most exposed point of our fortress was the little window in the gable. The shutter l opened nearly flush with the floor, and beneath was little lean-to from the roof, of which the window could easily be reached, and I knew that the boards would not long sustain the attack of those 1 claws.
 1 The beast might not, however, find out 1 this point, and, in the mean time, it be- hooyed us to keep as quiet as possible. 1 He might get tired of waiting and watch ing and go away, but, even if he did, we should never dare to stir from our shelter. My greatest fear was that the horses might | go home, and that my husband, on think l ing of nothing worse than the overturn, might come to look for us,, unarmed and l defenseless. My mind was so full of this dread that do not think fully realized the terrors of our own position.
 | Diana, happily. was not one of those girls whose first impulse in any danger is to scream She slipped down on the boards, and, laying her head in my lap, held Dicks hand tight, but she did not say a word, nor utter 9 cry. Dick was far more moved than his sis ter He trembled all over, and turned a face so white and miserable, that in all our distress was conscious of surprised feeling at seeing boy of his spirit and character so overcome.
 'sAll is not hopeless yet, said, in a whisper.
 70 Mrs Graham" said he, 'it Is all my fault.
 ''Your fault? How can that be g
 "Oh, I've been self-willed fool When I went for the horses met Mir. Moore, and he told me he had just heard that the tiger had got loose, and never let him know that we were going to Galoosa, be- cause was sure if I did he'd come up
 and put stop to our ride; and I didn't
 want to drive round by the mill, for thought the captain might have heard and
 all because I was so determined to show
 1 could drive and to have my own way,
 and do what I'd set ont to do, and l
 wouldn't believe there was any danger and
 till after we had started, and then it be. gan to come over me what had done, and
 tbat was why I wanted to take the short
 road, and now I have killed you and Di.
 ana !''-and poor Dick hid his face with a
 moan of -remorse and despair.
 Poor Dick! Many piece of boyish