The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1874-10-28

pns al TOO late. My heavy rifle was to my
shoulder, but the tiger was quicker in his
movements than L.
4 "a cry of agony rang through the air,
and the beast sprang upon his enemy before
could deliver my fire. My finger pressed
the trigger with nervous movement, but 1
dared not fire, for the man and tiger were SO
entangled in their writings; that l was
| fearful Of missing my mark.
! "Springing forward, was soon in close
proximity to the growing animal. The
tiger, with his eyes on fire, his mouth all
bloody and covered with atoms of quirerins
flesh, his tail switching rapidly to and fro,
abandoned the motiouless body of the unfor-
tunate Selim, and prepared to spring upon
me.
"1s was my first experience with an Afri-
can tiger, although had hunted them often
in the jungles of India; but had heard the
shouts of my friends approaching on run,
and the fact braced my nerves, filling me
! with confidence. Both of my shots followed
one another in rapid succession. had
aimed at the brute's Leart, and, dropping
the rife, drew my revolver as 8 last resort.
The tiger launched himself into the air, his
paws extended and teeth cleaning in the
dim twilight; but Jumped aside in time to
avoid the charge, and the dying brute rolled
at my feet, tearing up the grass and dirt
with q last, expiring effort. -
"My three companions appeared upon the
scene at that moment, and the tableau would
have formed wild, mournfal, but striking
subject for an artist. ~ Ea .; ~. shs
''In the centre of the group was the large,
ta$ny carcass Of the tiger; further on the
mangled corpse of poor Selim, stretched on
the green-sward, dyed with his life-blood,
with the dark shadows of the trees and un-
dcrbrush for background. We buried
him beside the clear, running stream, and
the tragic event was soon forgotten, at least
by the Frenchmen. A negro's life is not
considered Of much importance here on the
coast.
cat supper the laughter and aippant
Jokes Of my comrades grated rather harshly
! my ears. had not forgotten the horri.
,'leevent so lately enacted. In fact, my alb
sencc Of mind nearly cost me my life, and I
had a,narrow escape from sharing the fate
! of the black.
eve had taken our respective stations,
rife in hand, waiting for our game to steal
forth from their hiding-places. Night is
the ,favorite time for beasts of prey to prowl
over the desert in search of food or water,
and our patience was not severely taxed, l
can assure ycr.p
81 had chosen'a small elump of bushes, a
short distance from the spring, where I had
q clear, unbroken view ofthe desert. Twas,
startled by the great change that had taken
place in the appearance of the weather.
The moon had risen far above the horizon,
enreloped in a light .yellowish mist. The
stars were completely hidden from view by
o gauzy yuil Of the same hue, and dark
cloud of threatening appearance was rapidly
rising along the whole extent of the eastern
horizon. The air had suddenly become no.
and oppressive; a fine, subtle dust that ap-
peared to fly in the atmosphere annoyed me
exceedingly. 1t was very evident to my
mind thatwe were to have storm or hurri-
cane that frequently sweeps over the vast
desert with such terrific force and fatal yio-
lence.
Twas on the point of seeking my friends,
in order to confer with them, and had, in
fact, advanced several yards from my cover,
when, without moments warning or pre-
paratbn, found myself confronted by an
enormous tiger.
"Likea thunderbolt he had leaped from
the bushes, and the shadow cast by his large
body extended far out into the desert. The
brute was crouching for spring, his head
rested between pair Of formidable paws,
and his eyes glowed like Goals of fire in the
pale yellow light of the moon.
E"Of course l was startled, as most any
man would have been in like position, but
the instinct of selfpreserration more than
the force Of reasoning caused me to bring
my rife to my shoulder. I pulled both
of the triggers in rapid succession, but with
sharp click the hammers fell on bare nip
pies.
"With sense Of sickening horror it
flashed through my brain that had ne
elected to reload my rifle after shooting the
brute that had been the cause Of Selim's
death. d..
Before l could grasp the rero,vers in my
belt. the tiger was upon me. felt his hot,
fetid breath upon my cheek, was uncon-
scious of the sharp claws and sharper teeth
piercing my flesh, for one brief moment
heard the shouts Of alarm and horror from
my comrades, then all was darkness and OBJ
lirion. I had tainted.
'"When l regained consciousness, found
myself on the back Of the animal which was
trotting at rapid pace toward a series of
sand-hills which hsre before mentioned.
ga portion Of my strong shooting-coat
was firmly grasped in the tigers capacious
jaws, and at every step the brute growled Us
If impatient to commence his meal.
Snow, shall not attempt to describe the
sensations I experienced while in the very
flaws of death, but, strange as it may appear
to you, captain, i did not feel a thrill Of
terror. The shock had received, together
with the loss Of blood and severe pain of my
wounds, had produced stupor similar to
that which seems to be felt by a mouse after
the frs: shake of O cat It caused sort Of
dreaminess, in which there was no sense Of
pain nor feeling of terror, though was
quite conscious of all that was happening.
NH s.S,o,od - voo ;pop;t, hIa ond T