The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1879-10-24
A PANTHER STORY.
How "a PeddIer Escaped Death
Eclipsed Exchange.

You ask me to tell you story. Well
As know of no better WAY in which "a
spend the long evening h.l,rc as, viii
do SO on one condition. Eacii i;iusl try l:is
hand at it when / am through.
Zone night stopped at a western tav-
ern which stood in The midst of Al little
settlement of not more than dozen log
houses. / had been the round Of them
and drove what bargains could, and in
the morning | WAS t0 go on at as early
an hour rs possible, for | learned that 1
had nearly a score of miles tO ga before
l should reach the next settlement
"In the evening there were assembled
in the barroom all the male deniZens OF
the place, and among them was one whom
| at once set down as IA villain. His
| looks plainly showed that there WAS lit
tie he would hesitate To do if in the end
there was anything 10 gain. Again and
again caught him looking toward my
pack, which had placed in one corner
of the room, near the bar; and at once
felt snre he was looking at me as though
calculating whether or no would he IA
| dangerous antagonist in case he should
\ rob me of it. The more | SAW of him,
the less liked his looks, and | felt re
| lIeved when AT last he left the room for
home.
Il was up betImes the next morning,
and, ms soon rs had finished my break
fast, | started AS left the settlement
behind me, / could not help glancing
about TO make sure that the man of whom
| had formed so poor an opinion was
not following me; but he was not to be
seen. Hardly any one was stirring out
of doors, and there was little life except
about the tavern, or where the white
smoke curled up above the roof of each
cabin.
"Once within the forest, | hurried on,
desiring To put as great a distance be
tween me and the settlement in as little
time as possible.
"a feeling of danger oppressed me,
which l found impossible to shake OIL
l am not naturally timid, or given To
presentiments, as many are; but on this
occasion there was sort of fear upon
me of which could nOt-rid myself, try
as hard as l might.
"All the morning l kept on in this
way, and by noon felt that had put
such distance between myself and the
settlement that had no longer cause to
fear any one had left behind me.
"As l had learned from the landlord
that should not be able 10 reach any
human habitation before nightfall, l had
taken my dinner along with me, and
now, feeling the need of it, l sat down
by the edge of a clear stream which
crossed the road, and commenced my
nOOntide meal. Only man who had
walked as / had done that morning car
know the relish had for the bread and
meat which had been provided for me,
and when the generous supply had dis
appeared almost wished there had been
more.
1.-THE extra exertion | had made, and
no I,nc rftr s,f which hnH rfoIy
made me sleepy, and placing my pack
under my head, closed my eyes, think
ing would take few minutes rest be-
fore going onward.
81 did not mean to go to sleep, yet in
less than five minutes [ was unconscious
of all that was passing around me. How
long / slept l know not. 1t might have
been n few minutes, or it might have
been an hour, but | awOke at last with a
start, and sense of some great danger
hanging over me. ! did not start up, or
move hand or foot. A certain some
thing, could not tell what, seemed to
chain me down.
81 opened my eyes and looked about
me, but saw nothing; and was just on
the point of making u motion to get up
on my feet, when | heard the slight
cracking of a branch above my head.
Looking up in the direction of the sound,
beheld sight which almost froZe the
marrow in my bones, and seemed TO turn
my blood to ice. A huge panther was
there, ready for a spring upon me.
LAS mOtionless as one dead, lay and
gaZcd up at my terrible enemy. To stir
rs much as hand | knew would be the
signal for the beast to spring upon me.
Its fiery eyes were fixed upon my face,
and its tail was gently waving to and
fro, like that of a cat.
Hope of escape there seemed none.
My doom was sealed. The panther had
me as surely in his power as though at
that moment his claws were fastened in
my flesh.
THE agony of those few moments l
shall remember to my dying day. 1t
haunts me in my sleep, and often start
up in alright, dreaming that the terrible
scene is being enacted over again.
"All ut once the fiery eyes of the pan
Their were turned from me and fixed upon
some object II little to the right. What
could it mean? What new danger was
approaching me from that direction
BY turning my head little, was ena-
bled to see what it was. a man was
creeping toward me, with knife in his
hand. He was not a dozen feet from
where l lay, and at the first glance l
recognized him.
at was the man whom had made up
my mind was villain in the tavern the
night before, and whom feared all the
forenoon might be following me. The
presentiment l had had was not
grOundless. then. But had not counted
on a double danger.
Cautiously the villain crept toward
me, with a murderous look in his face
A glance showed that one thing was ev-
ident. The villain, while he sought to
murder me, was not aware of his own
danger; for the panther no longer kept
his eyes fixed on me. 1t was watching
every motion of the villain, and each in
slant expected that 1t would leap down
upon him.
aft it would only do so before he
reached my side, it would prove my sal
walton.
"Closer and closer the villain drew
toward me. Only moment more, and
he would be so near me that he could
reach me with his outstretched hand.
There was not an instant to be lost, and
l was just on the point of springing to
my feet, when, quick as a flash of light
ming, the panther cleft the air and land,
ed squarely upon the shoulders of the
villain, with its claws and fangs buried
deep in his flesh. A terrible cry of ter
/ IOH anu IdSC puISb lIOil HIS Ups WHICH uC
went down, with his blood dyeIng the
earth. At the same instant | was upon
my feet, and drawing a pistol sent a
bullet through the heart of the beast. Ii
did its work well, though even in death
the brute chung to its victim, and when
ut last its struggles were over pulled il
from the bleeding man and saw that il
had also done its work. The impress OF
death was on the villains face, and in a
few m oments he was dead.
II left them both lying there, and hur
ried on to the settlement, where told
my story. With help l returned, and
the dead man was carried back to his
home, where no one seemed to care fol
his fate.
ain my own home l have the skin o
the panther stuffed, and should you evel
come my way, gentlemen, / should bt
pleased to show It to you. There, you
have my story. Now, the next"
THE WISCONSIN PAPER PI4ANT-A
curious plant has been discovered il
Wisconsin. which produces kind o
cotton and fax from the same stock. i
has been already woven into fabrics. ant