The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1889-05-18

baleful CLEAN as they met his own, that a
that moment the animal would spring upo
him. Rapidly, as he became by degrees
: little calmer, he resolved in his mind tn
best thing to be done. He must wake hi
wife, but how to do so without attractin
s the attention of the animal and hastenin
the impending attack was problem Difficult
OF solution. Somehow or other, as witt
g really brave men in the most trying situa
tions, when face to face with danger hi
innate courage nerved him to the emer
gency. Keeping his eyes steadily fixec
upon the tiger, he placed his left hand be
II hind him and very slowly and with infinit,
caution pressed it gently down over Mrs
Hartley's mouth. 1t was a dreadful mo
ment. If she should cry out the ferociou
: beast, which had already begun to show
r symptoms of anger, and appeared to bt
gathering itself for a spring, would un
? doubtedly leap upon them.
4 AT that moment Mrs. Hartley half reused
herself from sleep. She murmured some
thing unintelligible.
my dear" said the merchant, in low
constrained voice, "are you awaken
"Yes," came back the dreamy response
and again he pressed his hand, this time
more decidedly, upon the face of the half.
conscious woman.
"What is it," she asked
"Hushl Do not stir, on your life. Look
over my shoulder. Quietly; be brave, lit
tie woman; remember, your life depends
upon your silenceln
The unfortunate man felt his wife trem-
BILE from head to foot, as in obedience to his
instructions, she glanced in the direction
indicated, where their awful foe confronted
them.
II see it," the whispered But beyond
this, and the involuntary Tightening of her
grasp upon the husbands arm, the pluclsy
woman made no sign. Face to face with
danger, her courageous nature asserted it.
self, and the woman who would have run
shrielSing from mouse lay comparatively
calm and collected in the presence of almost
certain death
Having thus awakened his wife to the
dangers of their situation. the merchant a
man of much resource, was quick to act
The bed upon which they lay was an old
fashioned and heavy one, solidly built of
mahogany Like most old fashioned bed
steads, it stood close to the floor, so that
man could but barely squeeze under it.
Their one chance of escape lay in their be-
ing able to get beneath this shelter before
the animal should make the fatal leap which
they were now every moment expecting
With admirable coolness, never for mo-
ment removing his eyes from those of the
tiger, he instructed his wife to creep out
softly on her side and get under the bed, |
she being next the wall. In few mo
ments, the words "All right coming from |
beneath, assured him that the plucl1y little
woman had successfully ACCOMPLISHED the |
feat. Now to get there himself. Suddenly
seizing all the bedclothes in his hands. with
a loud cry the merchant sprang towards the
tiger, and ere the startled beast could ex-
tricate himself from the coverings tbus
hurled upon him, Mr.. Hartley had also
squeezed his way in under the bed
'The cornerl The cornerl he shouted
desperately. and realizing the intentions of
her husband, Mrs Hartley assisted him to
push the heavy bedstead up into the corner
of the room, thus leaving only two sides of
their ngeniously-contrive fortress omen 10
attack. 1t soon came. With blood-c
ling YELL having disentangled himself from
the clothes. the enraged animal spranp
forward Maddened at the escane of his
prey, he thrust his huge paws again and
again beneath the he'd utterinp doom.
cries and endeayoring TO force his
massive head and shoulders beneath the
bedstead. Realizing that their lives de-
pended upon keeping the bedstead upon the
floor, the rror-striclsen pair clung desper-
ately to the Stats. Twice the animal sue
ceeded in forcing the rorepart of his head
the weight above him to abandon the advan-
tage thus gained. o, if the bedstead was
only an inch or two lower! THE castors,
James, shouted Mrs Hartley, ..remove the
Quick as n flash the merchant, dragging
himself to one corner, raised with his back
the heavy piece of furniture and withdrew
the castors; and this he did to the other
three corners in succession as the the oppor- |
tunity occurred thus bringing the bedstead
down so low that the animal could no more I
than get his nose under the sides. The
however, was by this time so
much exhausted by his terrible exertions as {
to be physically incapable of longer holding
the bed down upon the floor Breathing !
heavily, the perspiration streaming from !
every PORE he awaited with "A feeling ,
akin to despair the moment when the
huge man-eater, which, ba!iled for mo- ]
ment, had drawn off to a little distance, Q
should renew his fierce attempts to reach I
hem. just then his foot struck against
4 hard substance. 1t was the sharp edge !
't small box of tools which he had Z
1ut short time previously given to his son, d
| boy OF twelve, then absent on visit to a +
'choolmate in New York, and which the I
little fellow had, no doubt, placed under his !.
parents bed for greater security during his
'bsence. Thank heavens! his own gener- "
'sity to his son now provided means of o
eiverance. If the tiger would but remain q
Vhere he was Tor minute longer he could II
crew the bed down to the floor and thus :;
Hectually prevent the animal from REACH .,