Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1881-08-28

no words can ever describe--the hungry
howl, the clashing teeth, the kissing
breath of the tigers along with sharp
clang of the iron bars spurned by their
rushing feet. The Circus fairly shook
with the plunge of Death toward its
victims.
Suddenly, IN this last moment, the
maiden. by great effort, writhed to her
feet and covered the youths body with
her own. Such love! 1t should have
sweetened death for that young man.
How white his face grows! How his eyes
flame, immovably fixed upon the coming
demons! Now, look at the bounding,
flaming eyed tigers! See how one leads
the other in the awful race to the feast!
The girl is nearer than the man. She
will feel the claws and fangs first. How
wide those red, frethy mouths cape! How
the red tongues loll! The sand flies up
in cloud from the armed feet of the
leaping brutes.
There came from the place where Com
modus stood, clear, musical note, such
chord of Tyre if powerfully stricken,
closely followed by keen, far-reaching
hiss, like the whisper of fate, ending in a
heavy blow. The multitude caught its
breath and stared. The foremost tiger,
while yet in mid-air, curled itself up with
a gurgling cry of utter pain, and with
blood gushing from its ears and mouth,
fell heavily down dying. Again the
sweet, insinuating twang, the hiss and
the stroke The second beast fell dead
or dying upon the first This explained
all. The emperor had demonstrated his
right to be called the Royal Bowman Of
the World.
For the first time since the ordeal the
youths eyes moved. The girl, whose
back was turned toward the beasts, was
still waiting for the crushing horror of
the assault.
A soldier, as directed, now approached
the twain, and selling an arm of each,
led them farther away from the emperor,
where he stationed them facing each
other and with their sides to Commodus,
who was preparing to shoot again. Be-
fore drawing his bow, however, he cried
aloud:
'sBehold! Commodus will pierce the
center of the ear of each.'
Commodus drew his bow with tremen-
duous power, fetching the cord back to
his breast, where for moment it was
held without the faintest culver of a
muscle. His eyes were fixed and cold as
steel. The polished broad-head of the
arrow shone like diamond One would
have thought that the breathing of
breath could have been heard across the
Circus.
While yet the pink flush burned on the
delicate ear of the girl, and while the
hush of the Circus deepened infinitely,
out rang the low note of the great wea-
pon's recoil. The arrow fairly shrieked
through the air, so swift was its flight.
What surge the youth made! 1t was
as if Death had charged him with omni-
potence for the second. The cord leaped
from his wrists-he clasped the falling
girl in his embrace. All eyes saw the
arrow hurtling along the sand, after it's
mission was done. A suppressed moan
from multitude of lips filed the calm
air of the Cifcus.
Locked for one brief moment in each
others arms, the quivering victims wav-
cred on their feet, then sank down upon
leaning forward to note the perfection of
his execution. His eyes blazed with the
eager, heartless fire Of triumph.
The two tigers lay in the sand in their
blood where they had fallen, each with a
broad-headed arrow through the spinal
cord, at the point Of its juncture of the
brain. The emperor's aim had been alb
solutely accurate. Instant paralysis and
quick death had followed his shots.
But the crowning event of the occasion
was revealed at last.
Pale and wild eyed, their faces pinched
and shriveled, the youth and the maiden
started, with painful totterings and weak
clutchings at the air, and writhed to their
feet where they stood staring at each
other in way to chill the blood of any
observer. Then, as if attracted by some
irresistible fascination, they turned their
mute, sunken faces toward Commodus.
What look! Why did it not freeze him
dead where he stood?
stLead them out and set them free!"
cried the emperor, in loud, heartless
voice 'tLead them out and tell it every
where that Commodus is the Incompar-
able Bowmani''
And then, when all at once it was dis
covered that he had not hurt the lovers,
but had merely cut in two the cords that
bound their wrists, a great stir began,
and out from a myriad Overjoyed and
admiring hearts leaped STERN of thanks
while with clash and bray of musical in
struments, and with voices like the
sound of winds and seas, and with clap
ping Of hands like the rending roar Of
tempests, the vast audience rose as one
person and applauded the emperor!
THE GLIDE.