Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1879-05-25
A Call From a Panther.

~ suppose you're wondering why i
keep that ugly old chest said Mrs. r.,
'sand must own that it's not very orna-
mental; but it saved my life once, for all
that. l see you think I'm making fun Of
you, but I'm not, indeed; and when you
hear the story, think you'll agree with
me that I have good reason to value it,
ugly as it looks.
"This was how it happened. When we
first came out to India, my husband was
sent to make the survey of the Ncrbudda
Valley, one Of the widest bits in all
Central India; and we really were, just at
first, the only white people within forty
or fifty miles. And such time as we
had of it! If my husband liant been as
strong as nc is, and a perfect mircalc Of
patience as we'll, I don't know how he
could have stood what he had to do.
It was dreadful work for him. being up
sometimes for a whole night together, or
having to stand out in the burning sun,
when the very ground itself was almost
too hot to touch. And as for the native
workmen, | never saw such set-al-
ways doing everything wrong, and never
liking anybody to put them right. When
the railway was being made, they used
to carry the earth on their heads in bas-
kets5;and when Mr.. r. served out whcclbar-
rows to them, they actually carried them
on their heads in the same way. Icouldn',
help laughing at it, though it was terri
bly, provoking, too. And that was jus,
the way they all were; if there was a
wrong way Of using anything, they'd be
sure to find it out. Even our butler. OF
khitmutgar, who was much better than
most of them, came one day and begged q
pair of old decanter labels that my hus
band was going to throw away and when
the man came in next morning, he had
positively turned them into earrings, and
went about quite gravely with Port il
one ear and Sherry in the other.
"However, if the native men worried
me, the native beasts were fifty time:
worse. 1t was no joke, l can assure you
to be awakened in the middle Of the
night by the roar of a tiger close under
the window, or by an elephant crashing
and trumpeting through the jungle with
noise like mail-coach going full gallon
into a dollhouse. Well, as soon as tina
was over, the jackals would set up
squealing and whimpering like so man,
frightened children; and then dreadful
native bird, whose name I've never founl
out q suppose because nobody could in
vent one bad enaugh for it,, would breal
out in succession Of the most horribl,
cries just like somebody murdered
until the noise fairly drove me wild.
"And then the ants! but you've scel
them for yourself, and l needn't tell yo,
about them. But all this while I'm neg
lecting my story.
Gone day lit will be long enough be
fore forget iD, my husband was out a
usual at his work, and the nurse had gon
down to the other native servants at tn
end of the compound as we call this bi,
Enclosure; and I was left alone in tn
house with my little Minnie yonder, VIII
was then just about a year old. By thi
time had got over my first fears, an
didn't mind a bit being left by myself
indeed, all the lower windows, havin
bars across them, I thought that I wa
safe enough; but little dreamed of whs
was coming!
II must have been sitting over M
sewing nearly an hour, with the chill
playing about the floor beside me, whe
suddenly heard dull thump overhead
as If something had fallen upon the roo
I didn't think anything of it at the me
mcnt, for one soon gets used to all sort
of strange sounds in the Indian Jungle
but, presently, | thought could hear
heavy breathing in the next room but on,
and then I began to feel frightened
earnest. l rose as softly as could, an
crept to the doorway between the room
This doorway was only closed by Gu,
tain, and gently pulling aside the fold
| peeped through and found myse
within few PAGES of the largest panthe
had ever seen in my life!
'For one moment it was just as if
had been frozen stiff, and then til
thought came to me, just as if somebod
had spoken it, The big chestr
81 knew that this chest would hold NJ