The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1879-04-02

sible to find my way in such a place.
Vainly I took out my compass and
tried adjust it to u position; [ put
it back into my pocket 10 wiser than [
was before. Nothing but some happy
chance could bring me again into the
right trace.
Commencing my soul to the Creator,
1 turned toward the four cardinal
points. The west seemed to attract me.
T felt as if q sacred power drew me in
that direction-as if an inward voice
said, "There you will find deliver
ance."
began with great strides to 60 in a
westerly direction. Bushes, brambles,
reedlike grasses stood in my way. but /
overcame all obstacles; the sensitive
ness occasioned by a peaceful life had
left me. What to me now were the sharp
brambles which tore my clothes and
pierced my flesh? Soon the twilight
deepened into night; Icould hardly dis
tinguish the trees; and only the stars,
which looked sorrowfully down from on
high, seemed to assure me that l was yet
on earth. In this darkness I wandered
about, from time to time stopping and
listening for a human voice but all was
still.
Suddenly I remarked, notwithstand-
ing the darkness, through a gap in the
foliage, the form of a hill or 8 distant
mountain. I could hear my heart beat.
I began anew to run. In another halt
hour 1 felt that I was ascending a noun.
tain, the bushes became thicker, and
there were no trees. Like q hunted ami
nal l pressed on, crept, climbed, unit
I reached the summit. Then, and then
onlv, I breathed freely and deeply; the
feeling that I could at least look around
me made me u%nspeakably happy. But
the night-the night reigned here also,
and shut out all sign of my companions.
Ha is that smoke or fog? Do my eyes
deceive me?
For a long time I stared in this direc-
ton, hardly daring to breath, and the
longer I locked the brighter shone the
spark of hope, which fear had already
nearly extinguished in my heart. = =
1t was no fog, it was smoke!
I had soon descended the mountain
and re-entered the forest, keeping stead
lastly in the direction of the smoke, for
a quarter of an hour longer. I continued
aiming on, hoping, longing to see
again a human face. There wa a noise
in the bushes near me. I stopped
quickly and listened. It seemed as if a
man or animal we're gliding through the
brushwood. When l stopped the sound
ceased. "Who is tt" I exclaimed, and
grasped my sword, but as no answer
came, [ concluded that it must be an
animal, a hungry wolf or a fox. I con-
tinued my way. Anew steps farther, and
the same sound was repeated, but near
er. Looking quickly round, I saw moth
ing, and redoubled my steps in the d.
rection of the friendly smoke. Crack |!
the noise was close behind me, like the
falling of broken branches. Quick as a
w~eathercock, I turned and saw, not far
from me, two g~littering eyes, which
disappeared Immediately in the dark
ness. ga WOLF" T thought! I don't
know if I was right, but l felt consoled
aver with the idea that it was only a
wolf that was pursuing me. And there,
at last, was my long .sought-for token
Never in my life have 1 experienced
such a feeling of supreme delight as 1
did on seeing again those waves OF curl
ing smoke mounting to the heavens. A
few steps more and I should stand by
their burning source. On, on! what
was exhaustion or fatigue, when deliver
ance was so near? In the foggy dis
lance I saw q red light shimmering
through the trees. at first small, like
the fire of shepherds, then larger and
larger. At last I sax several fires and
men moving around them. But who
we're these men, We're they not, per-
haps, those from whom I was feeing2
I shuddered with the thought; but moth
ing remained to me but to approach
silently and cautiously nea enough to
observe who they WERE. ASH approached
within two hundred feet OF the nearest
fire, I noticed, with terror, Turks squat
ting IN the ground, quietly smoking
their pipes, as if they had just finished
some work pleasing to heaven. My
blood stood still in my veins, a cold per-
SEPARATION covered my forehead. But
this was not all. 1t was well known
that the Turks possess many dogs,
which accompany them duringth the night
on their marauding excursions. Sud-
denly a great white dog, followed by
others, rushed at me, barking
furiously. I seized my sword, and dis
appeared in a northwesterly direction.
For nearly half an hour I was persecut-
ed bv the barking and bowling of these
dogs. until at last the sounds died away
in the distance and darkness of the
I did not think of where I was ggeeiingg
1 continued my way always farther and
into the forest, not daring to
Only once-it might have been
midnight fell to the ground and be-
gan to sob and pray; and in tears and
PRAYERS T regained new strength. After
this I climbed several hills, crept
through many bushes ard desert places,
which looked as if they had. never been
trodden by the foot of man.
At last the morning broke. AS 1 had
outlived the night, I hoped the day
not see me perish. Forward,
then, with renewed strength
At last T found my companions under
the Pirkovac-Hau. Guided, as it SEEM
ed, by an unseen hand, I had struck
into the right path during the dark
hours of the night. What Joy fox me
to see my friends again! And what joy
for them, too, who had already counted
me among the dead!