The New Bloomfield, Pa. times. (New Bloomfield, Pa.) 1877-188?, 1880-08-31

little trail toward the river the blood
oozing from the rifle wounds In my
head, my eyes wild and fierce, my heart
painting, my life half gone.
As thought Black Dan must have
followed and ambushed me, then, sup
posing me slain, he had the grace to
seek to bury me. II was owing 10 his
haste or his carelessness that my dog
had been able to paw the loose dirt from
my grave and save me. If 1 could
reach Johnson's might live; II not,
had been saved but to die second time,
for fierce storm was brewing along the
mountain tops above my head. My
horse was gone, my rifle. pistols and
knife, gone; only the dog remained,
and, faithful to the last, followed as 1
slowly and painfully trod the descend
ing trail toward the river.
Suddenly, amid wild roar of wind
and creaking of trees and whirl of
freezing snow, the storm burst, and In
Its fury swept me from my feet, and
rolled me, crying and shouting, far
down the canyon side, until great
bowlder caught and held me. Then It
ragged on.
Fierce and relentless the wild wind
tore through the wilder forest, pltiless
and cold the snow fell, and except l had
dragged my broken, bruised body into
crevasse of the rock-ledge before me /
had died where j laid. Then even
blacker then ever fell the storm, and
ragged increasingly through all the slow
hours of the day, until night came o
second time to cast It's pail upon the
scene And as the darkness crept up
from the east, my last friend, my dog,
who all day had laid at my feet, deserted
me, speeding away through the shadows
and snow. / was alone.
And so, faint, wounded, cold, despair
ing, as the moments grew life flickered,
and when at last midnight broke, my
lamp went out. Again l lay uncon-
scious.
All night the gale continued, and not
until dawn of the second day did it
cease, when the newly-fallen snow lay
ueep ana Whlte over all
Within the crevasse of the rock, shell
tered from the touch of the cold white
death and yet beneath it, 1 lay notion
less above me the storm had spread o
shroud 80 thick that no ray of light
penetrated to my tomb. Halffrozen, In
a dreamless, painless sleep, the forerun-
ner of a swift coming rest, mere wreck
of man, was stretched upon a rock,
and the CLINT of the sunshine among
the pines or the tread of the wild beasts
Of the forest overhead mattered naught
to me. When my eyes opened they be-
held nothing, when my hands were out
stretched they touched only the stone
and the snow, when my tongue cried
out no ear listened. Again 1 was in
tombed, and this time by an enemy
more relentless than Black Dan even,
by hands more stern and pitiless than
his. Fate and the storms of the noun
tain had combined against me. I was
buried second time, but now with
death for companion
knew that could not escape, and
the very thought quieted me.
There was no struggle, no moaning,
no agony only a dull recklessness and
want of care for life that betokened the
depth of my despair. was dying
Slowly the moments passed. My
thoughts were few and simple-thoughts
of fire and wood, thoughts of home
and friends and comfort, thoughts of
things warm and bright, but even these
were fading and my mind was wearily
wrapping itself in the cloak of annihila-
ton, and my body was fast sinking to-
ward inanition when bit of snow fell
upon my upturned face.
Had it been fire it could not have
aroused me more quickly.
The next instant more fell, and still
more, and then light began to gleam,
and heard the hurrying scrape of feet
mingled with low whining.
Don had returned and was digging
me out.
The revulsion of feeling was terrific
a moment before had laid passive in
tomb, longing for death; now fought
and tore at the loosening snow like a
mailman, wild with the thought of
life.
Nearer and nearer came the rescuing
feet, deeper grew the pile of snow be-
meath me, brighter the light above. The
whining was mingled with growls now.
Don had friends to aid him. The bar.
rier was but three feet thick-two-one
IL WAS gone and. even as hreathed