The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1876-12-20

dispelled my immobility. 1 raised my
gun and took careful aim and fired.
"The beast looked up wildly, bounded
forward over the girl, then fell down
and lay still, the blood oozing rom his
| breast. Idashed through the branches
and ran toward the girl, hearing the
natives push along some way behind.
One OF them must have been in advance
Of the rest, for before had reached the
girPs side / heard shrill cry OF warn
ing and horror from the rear, and in the
same instant saw the tiger struggle to
This feet agaIn; l caught the green and
yellow glitter Of his eyes, the snowy
sheen of his iangs. All that saw in an
instant--the next he had sprung upon
me. l felt, in the second OF the greatest
physical horror can Imagine, his teeth
crushing through my fesh-then felt
him leoping, away with me; then merci-
fully the b1ankness OF unoonsclousness
came to me-"
| CAPTAIN Roland paused for moment,
| his face white, the hand that held his
forgotten cheroot trembling little. He
had spoken in the low, quiet tones that
impress SO deeply; and by the quletness
of that camp fire, with the distant howis
of fierce brutes in the air, VITA that sol.
emn sky overhead, we all felt the horror
OF the story he told.
"When l awakened, the blazing sun
had long since passed the meridian;
long horizontal rays of yellow light came
lin narrow bars between the boles of the
trees OF grove few rods away. l Was
living on an open plain in place did
not Know, though l could not believe it
to be far from the gully. But could not
feel much less think, at first. BY de-
grees sense Of pain began to grow upon
10 hp,l ioad an m " hnd
ached everywhere. Only my left arm
was free from pain, and | looked down
in wonder al it, glad that something had
escaped.
Il can not tell you the sensation that
came over me as saw, not my arm, but
mass OF flesh, and the linen OF my
sleeve-a mangled object without shape.
"Just above my elbow, my arm Ie-
gained its form, it was not apparently
Injured there. There was no sensation
In tit was for the time being incap-
able of suffering.
( CAT the hrst moment did not emem-
= Der the cause; then L looked about me
tor the tiger, for it must have been he
who had brought me here. l found him;
I he was lying close at my head-utterly
motionless; / could see his eyes, and |
J knew by them that he was dead; 1T was
J. nv shot that had killed him at last,
though he lived to taste partial re.
: Venge.
r Wi began to suffer acutely. And be-
side all my real pains, l thought of the
! dreadful death that awaited me. could
S not live long in that situation, perhaps
not even if found and cared tor; but thai
!, | did not expect. | was young and
e hopeful. l had friends in that far-of
+. and pleasant England. My heart Dled
s as thought Of them, and tried to ban
II ish such ideas from my mind, but
could not. Again and again they would
return, and l lived over my happy lie a
8 the old manor-nouse, which is my home
At last, when the SUN had finally gon'
@ down, and a full red moon had swun!
d itself up the horizon, staring wildly a
me, a sort OF stupor came over me, ald
o ell into heavy sleep which was NOR
e stupidity than sleep. Thus spent tnt
j. n ght, alternately waking and falling oi
a INTO a sort of trance. l thought 1t likeI,
that l should fall prey to some wander
l. ing beast, but was not troubled bl
!. the thought. But heaven had decreet
l that they should find some other toot
Il that night.
o "In the earliest light of the morning
is before the sun was up, l became con
e scious that some one was kneeling b.
INV side, had laid cool hand wet il
ia water upon uCdus Gnu w 40 AOiu
d ing drink to my lips. started wild
g. awake at this, and looked vaguely at tu
n glrl. for it was a girl, the one whom
r Had seen lying at the feet Of the tiger i
e the gully,
= with mute horror in their faces, wer
W the half dozen men OF my command
n They lifted me upon stretcner, an
IT put an awning above it; then they traN
1t eled slowly along 10 the Village wher
70 had lett them.
IS "rhe girl had not been materially In
v, ljured by the tiger, but WAS in swoo
g. when l frat saw her. She had rouse
up to life In time to see the tiger gallo
lie off down the gully with me in his mouJt
le and she had hurried back as we'll as sh
I'd could, with the natives who had com
Ot out with me, and told my men. The
ye had tracked me there not expecting I
I'd lind me alive.
s. II never saw human being so gratt
lie full to any one as that girl was TO M
is Through all my long illness at her vi
y lage she tended me with entire dew
1e tiOn, and it is Just as true that she save
IN my life as that l saved hers. l kno
~ that 1 should not have survived thu
a days work if it had not been for her.
IL | it was, it was almost year before
could enter again upon active duty.
re "You remember that woman who cam
le to the camp some SIX months ago-ths
e. handsome native woman, with the beat
l tiful eyesH Yes; well, do you wonde
er that l was angry when some of you ad
L disagreeable. joke about my KNOWN
he her? That was the woman who foun
le me that morning. She is married, an
'ft was going off up the country, and Can
IS Ito bid me goou-by for fear she shou
I'll never see me again.
"Now, gentlemen, have only to hop
I'd you may never suffer what did in tina
ne twenty-Ionr hours"
3, ---s~.
at