The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1883-01-17
The Tree.

two OF them brothers, the third,
Osona, a young savage from the ga
boon upiaads, a mere lad In his
teens-and one day, leaving my
mule with the Two men, who were
pitching my tent for the night, l
went on with my gun, the boy ac-
companying me, toward a fern forest
which 1 saw in the near distance.
As | approached it found that the
forest was cut in two by a wide glade,
and seeing Il small herd of the com
mo0 antelope, IN excellent beast III
the pot. browsing their way along
the shaded side, 1 crept after them
Though ignorant OF their real dan
ger. the herd WAS suspicious, aud
slowly troJling before me enticed me
ftr a ulle ar IA r. along the verge
uf Use lcra lr1@ti4s. IufhiHg d
corner | suddenly became aware oil
a solitary tree growing IN the md
die OF tue gladv-uhe tree alone. Ii
struck me al once that l had never
seen a tree Just like IT beiort; but,
,,rlug intent, on veuison for my sup
Ter, / iobke at II only long enough
to satisfy my surprise at seeIiig a
single piaut OF such rich growth
Auunsliug ~luXurlanllk Ia a spot
where only the harsh fern cil.e,
seema. 10 Lnrive The deer, mean
whlle. we're midway betgeen me and
tie Tree. but suddenly, instead OF
nas,iug d. sNtrted in iheIr caretr
AID swept around 1t at some ydr'i-
distance. Mas | mad. ar dad the
plant really Try 10 catch the deer?
On a sudden | saw, or Thought l
saw. lie tree Violently agItated, aud
while the fern. all around were
standing motionless la the dead
evening AIR, it, boughs were waved
by some sudden gust toward the
herd, and swept IN the force of their
impulse almost Ia the ground. j
drew my hand across my eyes. clos
ed them Tor a moment, and looked
again. The tree was as motlOnless
az myself!
Toward it, and now close to it, the
boy was running IN excited pursuit
of the fawn. He stretched out his
hands to catch 1t. 1t bounced from
his eager grasp. Again lac reached
forward. and again It escaped him.
There was another rush forward,
aud the next instant boy and deer
were beneath the tree. And now
there was no installing what | saw.
The tree was convulsed with motion,
leaned forward, swept its thick To-
Tagged bougns to the ground, and
enveloped from my sight the pursuer
and the pursued. | was within a
hundred yards, and the cry of Oto-
ma from the midst of the tree came
to me in all the clearness of its ag-
ony. There was then one stihed,
strangling scream, and except for
the agitation of the leaves where
they were closed upon the boy there
was not a sign of life.
4 called out, "Otonai - No an
swer came, | tried to call out again,
but nv utterance WAS like that OF
some wild beast smitten ut once
with sudden terror at its death
wound. stood there, changed from
all semhlance of A human being.
Mt all the terrOrs of earth together
could have made me take my eye oil
that terrible plant, or my foot of
The ground. | must have stood thus
for at least half an hour, for the
shadows had erept out from the for
est half cross the glade before that
hIid-nus ~paroxisn of fear left me.
My first impulse then WAS to CREEP
ste4i,hily away, lest the tree should
perceive me, but my returning rea-
san babe me approach it. The boy
might have fallen into the lair OF
Some beast of prev.
The vegetable first discovered my
presence at about hfty yards dis
tant. | then became aware of "A
steaiihy motion among the thick
dipped leaves, reminding me of some
wild beast slowly gathering itself up
from long sleep, a vast coil of snakes
in restless motion. Have YOU ever
seen bees hanging from a bough-a
great cluster of bodies, bee clinging
Ia bec-and by striking the bough or
agitating the AIR. caused that massed
lite To begin sulkily to d~isintegrate.
each insect asserting Its individual
right to move? And 10 YOU remem
Der how. without one bee leaving the
pensile cluster. the whole became
gradually instinct with sullen life
and horrid with a multitudinou-
motion? EIch separate leaf was az
itated and hungry.
WAS | hewildered BY terror?
Had nav senses abandoned me in
my need? | know not-but the tree
seemed 70 me to be alive. Leaning
over toward me, it seemed to he
pulling up lis roots from the soften
ed ground and to be moving toward
me. Anountaneous monster. with
myriad lips mumbling together for
my life, was upon mel Like one
who desperately defend himselffrom
imminent death, | made an effort
for life and fired my gun at the ap-
preaching horror. To my dizzied
senses the sound seemed far off, but
the shock of the recoil partially re-
called me to myself. and starting
back, reloaded. The shot had torn
sheir way into the soft body of the
great thiGg. The trunk. as it receiv-
ed the wound. shnddered. and the
whole tree was struck with a sud.
den culver. A fruit fell down. slip
ping from the leaves, now rigid with
swollen veins, as from cavern foil
age. Then / saw a large arm slow
~ dreep, and without a sound il
was severed from the juice-fattened
bole. and sank down softly. noise
lesslv. through the ~glistening leaves.
I fred again, and another vile frag
ment vas powerless-dead. At each
discharge the terrible vegetable
yielded a life. Piecemeal I attack
ed il, killing here a leaf and there q
branch. Ny fury increased with
abe slaughter till, when ammunition
vas exhausted the splendid giant
was left a wreck AS if some hurri
cane had torn through il. On the
ground lay heaped together the frag