The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1879-09-10

AAd0A 0OO you nave GOMEZ SAID he,
his face pale and his voice agitated. eWe
didn't expect you at this time. Make
haste in" said he, as he began early to
close the door. Fritz fingered in the
road.
II don't know what's the matter With
Kaiser tonight; he has been wonderfully
restless for the last hour, and now he is
smiling about the road as if he smelt
danger. There are footstepts in the snow"
attentively examining the ground. '"Who
has been here, father? or what? Here,
Kaiser, Kaiser, come here, old dog"
The dog. obeyed. The animal and his
master had now entered the door of the
inn. The door was Immediately slam
med to, and the pale, terrified host told
the dreadful story to Fritz.
"My father. you have never sent that
traveller aaay?"
IL have, boy. He was hunted hard by
pack of wolves, and we dared not open
the house lest the whole pack had come
in upon u.s." and the wretched mans
teeth chartered in his fright.
"Oh, father, what have you done! It's
disgrace to the valley, it's disgrace to
Switzerland; it will be a lasting, lasting
disgrace to our family"
And the boy rushed toward the stable
door. In minute after, in spite of his
fathers earnest expostulatlon, he had
flung himself on to the unsaddled horse,
and with Kaiser at his heels, dashed up
the Louterbrunneu Pass. The wretched
parents listened in anguish to the rapidly
receding sounds of the horse, and Sec
ond time the valley was left to silence,
to solitude and the night. ..-
The gallant boy rode almost wildly on.
1t was long before he caught sound,
although he often stopped to listen, but
could hear nothing above the wall of the
wintry night. At length he fancied
he could discern very far away, be-
yond the Staubach, the faint bay of
wolves, u sound to which the ears of Fritz
had been accustomed from his childhood.
He urged his horse on with greater eager
ness, hoping he night not arrive too late
to be of use to the unfortunate traveller.
His horse suddenly swerved, and Kaiser
dashed forward on what turned out to
be the bloody carcass of wolf on the
road. It was evident that the man had
had desperate struggle with mis- first
assailant. On went Fritz, and found the
snow upon the road marked with a long
track OF blood stains; another animal.
not dead, but disabled, lay by the side
OF the road, to which it had crawled.
Kaiser soon settled the matter and left
it dead.
Fritz was now in an agony of distress
expecting every moment to come upon
some trace of the object of his, pursuit.
A few yards further and under the boughs
of some trees which overhung the way,
lay stretched the still heaving body OF
the horse. The miserable man had evil
IDENTIFY deserted the horse to become the
prey Of the ravenous brutes in hopes OF
saving himself; but not wolf remained
near the body of the horse, which they
had satisfied themselves with decorating
in the eager pursuit of its rider. At that
instant human voice sounded upon
Fritzs ear some little way further on; it
was clearly the note of a person in the
extreme agony of despair-that despair
which was SO naturally awakened by a
solitary valley among the mountains on
winters night, and the presence Of hun
cry wolves.
The great difficulty of Fritz at this
moment was how he was to save the I'm.
fortunate man, who was cllnging hazard
ously to the bough Of the tree, which
could not support him long. Between
the boy and the terrified traveller was now
ranged circle of silent wolves, for these
animals, when they feel sure of their
prey, give up their baying and their
bowling. The moment was critical. but
the instinct and experience of an Alpine
boy told him at once what to do. He
looked at the figure upon the bough and
gave signal OF encouragement with his
hand. He was not more than twent;
yards from the tails of the pack. Kaiser
remained quiet, with his tail between his
legs; he was dog far too well trained to
advance step without his masters bid |
ding, though ready to spring at the
throat OF any wolf, or do battle with any
three: ANY but a thoroughly Alpine boy
would have been in perfect perplexity at |
this time.
Before him upon the bow of the tree,
"a VnSn Il L.