The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1889-05-18
A NIGHT OF TERROR.
Terrible Experience With Man.
Eating Tiger.

Eating Tiger.
Mr.. James Hartley, well-to-do merchan
doing business in the city of New York re
sides in one of the numerous suburban
towns of New Jersey. The train takes him
to his business in the morning, and returns
him safely to his home at night Last
Thursday evening surprise awaited him
on his arrival home. The usually peaceful
suburb presented a scene of extraordinary
excitement Substantial and staid citizens
We're patroling the streets armed with shot
guns and revolvers, and the whole village
appeared to be as if on the eve of a sangnin-
ary revolution. On inquiry Mr.. Hartley
learned that this unwonted condition of
Affairs was occasioned by the escape of a
large Bengal tiger, said to be of the man
eating species and very fierce, which had
that afternoon made its escape from tray
fiiDg circus which had been encamped lust
sutside the village for the last two days
UP 10 that time, six p. M, no trace of the
animal had been discovered. The pro
prietors of the circus thought Chat he had
taken to the woods and knowing from ex-
perience that animals which have been long
confined do not, as a rule, wander far from
their cages, they cheerfully predicted his
easy capture in the morning. They pooh
hooed the idea of any danger to any of
the inhabitants of the village and ndulged
in much merriment at the expense of the
hastily improvised patrol, the members of
which, in their opinion, were simply vast
ing so many good hours which could have
been more profitably devoted TO sleep
So far from sharing the confidence of the
showmen, the village people, on the
contrary, viewed the escape of the
ferocious animal with feelings of un-
disguised alarm, and not entirely without
good reason. Only the day previous the
VICIOUS animal had made desperate and
mprovohed attack upon one of the keepers
who happened to be standing near its cage.
with one blow through the bars it had
stripped the mans arm of theflesh from the
shoulder TO the elbow. Public feeling had
been much aroused by this CHASTITY accident.
and under the circumstances the good people
OF the village We're not to be blamed for
feeling little nervous. On reaching his
house, the merchant. in lieu of the warm
welcome which usually awaited him, found
all the doors and windows tightly closed
For the first time in their married life Mrs
Hartley was not at the front door TO meet
him Instead, he found her with spectral
face peeping timidly through the parlor
window.
80, my dear, such an awful thing has
happened
I've heard all about it." interrupted the
husband. You needn't be at all frightened
The beast is miles Off by this time, deep into
the woods"
When the time for retiring had arrived
the merchant had succeeded in laughing
away his wifes fears, and by dint of much
verbal soothing syrup had restored her
badly-shaken nerves 10 something like their
normal tranquility. Thus reassured, Mrs.
Hartley soon sankinto sound slumber; but,
try as he would, the merchants attempts 10
follow his gOod lady'S example that night
proved singularly abortive
Hour after hour passed, which he had
vainly occupied in going through all the
well known formula for producing sleep
such as counting droves of pigs, sheep. Jump
ing by myriads over impossible fences, and
running the gamut of those curious devices
popularly supposed to induce slumber, when |
he suddenly became aware, by that peculiar |
instinct which man shares in common with |
the lower animals, and which, in times of
danger sometimes become intensely and alb
normally acute, of an unseen presence in the |
apartment.
Another minute crept slowly by during
which the merchant lay in state of nervous
apprehension, vainly endeayorng to shake
OIL the indeiinable feeling of dread which
had taken possession of him. IL was while
he thus lay listening intently that he became
ID.
ominous whisper, which seemed to issue
from the further corner of the room, into
the remoter parts of which the rays of the
young moon, but then hardly arisen above
the neighboring tree-tops, hardly penetrated
He listened to this peculiar noise for some
moments, the sound increasing in volume
and seeming TO move from place TO place,
and gradually deepening into hoarse and
cat-like purr, a sound which sent "A cold
AF ha,. Il l.,
at the same instant there flashed through
his mind the words 'The tiger the tiger!"
Hardly daring to breathe, he slowly raised
himself on his right elbow and peered eau
uously in the direction from which the
sound proceeded. As he thus raised himself,
the moon, which had been for few seconds
obscured by passing cloud, broke forth
from its teecy covering and shot a pale
CLEAN of light into the interior of the apart [
ment. The hoarse purring sound still con {
tinued, and as the merchant concentrated {
his gaze in the direction from which il came
win cat-like and noiseless tread there slowly /
emerged into the strip of moonlight an OBJ [
lect which held him motiOnlcss in a sudden |
paroxysm of terror, as with straining eye {
balls he saw, brought out in full relief {
against the further wall the head and I
shoulders of a full grown Bengal tiger. {
Even IN the extremity of his terror he {
ooulu not help nouclng IL mlnutely. III was
an enormous beast. Without trace of T
name, its smooth and sinuous form uphold 9
Ing the small but ferocious head, it seemed J.
the embodiment of resistless strength '
bright tawny yellow, its body was beauti h
fully marked with dark transverse bands, b
passing into pure white on the under parts o
The tail was long and full and undulated in h
snake-like movements Its fang like teeth, n
barred by the dropping under jaw, shone s
white and cruel in the moonlight. The ex- Il
preston on its face as II moved silently for Il
ward and raising its head shifted eagerly in "A
the night air, was appalling. 1t was the Il
expression OF demon. Q
Mr.. Hartley does not know what pre- v
vented him from screaming aloud with h
error. Perhaps the thought of the help b
ess woman sleeping in peaceful uncon- Il
,ciousness by his side; perhaps sheer in s
ability 10 utter an articulate sound, pre- o