The Worthington advance., 1879-05-22

mountain, disputed every inch Of the way
which.I gained with the utmost difficulty,
oftcntimcs threatening to tear me bodily
fiom the oscillating ladder which had
served me so we'll.
~ II had but little strength to spare when
I at last found myself crouching ,on the
muddy bottom of the old mountain
gorge. II
''Thc earth yielded beneath my feet,
sand and pebbeles swirled by; and rising
above the crash of the element, l heard
the increasing roar Of some unknown tor
rent as it swcllcd and gathered force fur
above me.
'Nerved on by the strength Of despair
I rushed down the steep declivity, reck-
less as to where my feet might wander. /
Completely blinded between the mingled
glare OF the lightning and the intense
darkness that followed each flash, l
stumbled on, feeling that every moment
my steps were becoming unstcadier.
''The water was already up to my
knees, and rushing by with force that
made me grip desperately to whatever
projection I could find along the sile Of
the ravinc.
''rhc incxorablc waters rose yet faster,
and the danger Of the tempest grew
wilder still. My strength and faculties
were falling fast, my feet were lifted from
beneath me, and quicker than thought l
was rushing hclplcssly along, envclopcd
amid the spray and foam of that madden
ing whirl.
81 think l must have lost myself for a
moment, but walked amid the darkness
and roaring waters, nearly stranglcd to
death. Another instant and l was
whired heavily against some yielding
object. rallied my strength for a final
effort The next flash revealed the wreck
of u tree, with the roots still clinging
tcnaciously to the side of the bank.
~ drew myself up out of the rush of
the current, and crawled to a firm foot
hold on the shelving bank of the torrent.
'''rhc cool rain revived nc. The ter
rible strain upon my nervous system rob-
bed me to certain extent of the strength
and vitality natural to my strong consti
tuition. But my power OF endurance was
great. l stumbled forward, feeling my
way amid debris of fallen trees, pitholes
and huge rocks, all scattered promiscu-
ously about on the steep side Of the
mountain, until faint glimmcr of light
streamcd TREMENDOUSLY across my path.
1t was a welcome sight, and, prisoner or
no prisoncr,I made up my mind to risk life
and liberty and demand shelter from the
terrible storm, which still ragged, but
gave signs of abating.
II was unarmcd; the only weapon
had sallicd forth with had been aban-
.lontd on the edge Of the precipice, pre-
vious to my attempting the perii"us
passage. felt my heart beat faster AS
l ncarcd the door Of that tumhlc-down
rancho, which loome'l up, huge, shape
less mass, amid the gloom and solitude
Of that wild spot.
"a moments hesitation, and l knocked
rcsolutely at the door.
"'Quie,o pioe?' (who comes therc2) and
l heard Il click Of "A weapon.
81 am an American, replied, bitter
ly, in English; "a United States officer,
who has lost his way on the side of this
cursed mountain
''With jerk the door was thrown
back on Its rusty hinges, revealing the
figure Of a man Of brawny proportions,
armed to the teeth, and Of most villain
Gus aspect.
"He held a faring torch on high, the
uncertain light of which fell across his
Scared and scowling visagc. Kecnlya and
deliberately he scanned the torn and tat
tered remains of my uniform; then, in ~
voice harsh and growing, he demanded ::
"'What do you want here, and how
many of you are thcrc?'
II replied, in the best Spanish I could
master, that was alone, and repeated
my dolcful story Of being lost in the
storm.
"At that moment, to my surprise and
astonishmcnt, my faithful Newfoundland,
who, by some keen instinct of his nature
had succeeded in scenting me, burst from
the surrounding obscurity,' testifying his
JOY by leaping upon me and baying in
his deep, powerful tones.
1T was welcome surprise to me. felt
that I had at least one friend upon whom
could rely in case of an emergency.
''The mans appearance was indicative
Of a mixtured fcrocity and cunning, while
his eye, wild and unsettled, lit up with
an expression I could not tathom, rs he
bade me enter.
'Strange forebodings filed my heart
as gazed about the recesses of the hovel.
1t was almost bare of furniture, save a
table and two broken chairs. A fire
blazcd chcerily in the fireplace, before
which were stretched three dark forms
wrapped in tattercd and greasy blankets
The CLEAN Of firearms, as they lay pile
in the corner, did not escape my atten-
ton; and you may depend / did not feel
the easiest in my mind as l drew up be-
fore the fire, with my dog coiled down
at my feet.
"In my exhausted state, despite the
danger l felt was lurking about me,
must have dropped off asleep. my head
finding support against a projection of
the chimney.
''The low, monotonous hum Of voices
fell upon my ear, and cautiously recon-
noitcring from beneath the visor of my
cap, l found that the three slecpcrs had
| aroused themselves, and were in deep,
earnest consultation with the gentleman
whom had first accosted.
"Straining my cars to the utmost l
could manage to catch occasional frag-
mcnts OF sentences as they dropped from
the lips of the four comrades, who were
as promising candidates for the gallows
as ever cared to meet again under like
circumstances.
"The howl and rush of the gale had
ceased but the occasional pattcr of the
raindrops from the leaves and roof of the
rancho proved that the storm had but re-
Gently passed away.
"Do you notice the glitter Of those
buttons?' remarked one of the four.
| "'Curse the buttons,' broke in another
fiercely; of what value are they? It's the
glitter of gold I like to see; and we have
already wasted too much valuable time.
l for one say kill him. If the Yankee
dog had dozen lives they should all he
forfeited. He has come here unaskcd
he shall not depart so easily
"'Husl, Juan; you are too hasty. The
question is, will it pay to dispose Of him