The National tribune., 1892-07-21

ant, troubled light in his eyes, approaches
| Mime. Novar.
dear Madame" he begins, gently. az am
neither an old nor a cowardly man; but never.
| tbeless, beg of you TO give up this fancy. Ii
is very tempting ] know. for woman like
| you; but do not. / beseech you, compel your
| host to expose himself and his servants
TO risk so terrible. For give you my word
that, with inexperienced horses, at this season
of the year, when the wolves are most ferocious,
it is deadly danger to run. l entreat you
| not to insist. Our responsibility -
Thou, too Serge!" cries Nine. Novar. with
] burst ofringing laughter. Away with fear
The more danger there is, the more one should
feel ones self alive; the more sensations one
has, the happier one should be-"
| The Lieutenant answers her, with reprov-
ing gesture: For ones self alone, yes; but
for others?"
A big sleigh in the shape of a half ship, the
horses harnessed to the PROV the coachman in
front in his usual place, waits now at the foot
| of the outer staircase; between the shafts a
big black horse his intelligent face surmounted
| by long. pointed ears and lighted by large,
brilliant eyes, stands patient and stolid be.
tween the Ukraine runners. The right hand
| horse was gray, the left hand roam, both of
| them thin, sinewy, with flowing mains and
! tails.
Timothy, the coachmau, with his strong face
and eagle glance, perched up aloft touched his
! cap to the Prince as he slowly descended the
steps, Nine. Novar on his arm. She, pale and
| fral, but smiling, is clad from head to foot in
sealskin, her flashing eyes sparkling like flame
| through her vail, light rife flung carelessly
over her shoulder. The Lieutenant follows
with Andre bearing half dozen guns.
A clear, siIvery light floods everything
| house and grounds. Each line of the harness.
| the guns, the eyes of the horses and of the men
eli: - hv,l1
| and seem to give back to it electric sparks
| Nine. Novar runs across the terrace, which the
| marvellous witchcry of snow and moonlight has
| turned to purest marble. She springs to the
sleigh; the men quickly follow. At the same
instant low grunts and squealsa are heard under
the furs. Andre filings himself down on the
spot whence come the squeals to stife the
sound, and the horses are off at gallop.
| Fast as the run is it is almost noiseless, the
fall of the horses hoos the soft snow scarcely
| perceptble. The bells have been removed
from both sleigh and harness. Now and then
the coachmans whistle resounds through the
stiffness like birds shrili call. Again, one of
the horses sneeze But ever in this arrowy
rush they cross the swelling, undulating plains
that stretch out like endless sheets of silver.
The plains once passed, they enter stately
wood, whose trees form lines, black and waver-
| ing, of limitless perspective. Timothy halts at
| cross roads. The vehicle stands out against
the snow like bit of ebony on a field of pearl.
| The frs, stirred by the wind, moan and creak
disinally; the bows rub and grind each other
with dull, crunching sound. The horses
snort. The smothered cries rise still from the
| bottom of the sleigh.
"Is it to be here, Your Excellency2" asks
Timothy, quietly.
How far are we from the Green Lake?"
| the Prince responds.
Nearly five miles. This road leads there
a ind he Lob cd
itself in the steppe on its way to the highroad,
which il joins near the post-station."
| Mime. Novar, still impatient, interrupts with
the order: MAKE the pig cry!"
cit would be better to wait, / think" Andre
replies. "This road turns sharply not far from
here, and the bitches are deep. Granting even
| that we are able to keep on the margin of the
pond -
Peace, fool!" cries Mime. Novar; "do as
you are bid!"
| And instantly there sounds from the sleigh
| bottom a hideous medley of squalls squeals,
and ear-splitting grunts, such as only pig has
| power to utter, and, whether bleeding to death
or merely having his ear pulled, his gamut of
notes is always the same. Nine. Novar
smiles triumphantly. The Lieutenant looks at
her, then turns his eyes, with slight lift of
| the shoulder.
The frightful clamor reaches far and wide in
the rarefed air. Andre, now and then, stiles
the squeals under heavy sheep-skin, and all
eagerly listen. Suddenly in one of these inter-
walls of silence, patter of running feet sounds
behind them on the yielding snow. 1t comes
| from the depths Of the forest; 10 draws nearer
and nearer. Dry branches snap. Tie horses
tremble. Soon the patter changes to regular
| piunges, like pack of hunting-dogs leaping
and bounding and back Of them, in the thicket,
lank, gaunt forms gather and multiply.
All at once the horses rear. Timothy braces
himself like rock in his seat. The edge of
the forest CLOVIS now with line of fiery sparks,
greenish aud changeful-the phosphorescent
eyeballs Of the wolves advance guard, fleeing
and skulking, but always returning with stub
born obstinacy toward the sleigh and Its tempt
ing freight. Timothy loosens the reins, and
the middle horse starts off with his long, swing
ing stride, trotting steadily, without haste or
spurts. and always restraining his companions,
covered with sweat and quivering in every
muscle.
The wolves, seeing their prey thus escape
them, hurry to pursue. There is q score al
ready, and their number steadily increases.
They run in great leaps, two and three together.
greedy, but not yet bold, urged On more by
curiosity than ferocious appetite.
Mime. Novar. calmly elated, her hand on her
rife, awaits the signal to fire. The Prince.
straight and rigid, knits his brow with somber
air. The Lieutenant watches Andre teasing the
pig to make il squeal louder. The wolves now
are scarcely ~ feet distant from the hunters,
and closing in rapidly. The troika quick
ems its pace, the side horses straining at the
bit with furious energy.
Suddenly one of them trips, falls, but gains
his footing with frantic bound, at the same
time uttering strangled neigh; the sleigh
jerks roughly, then follows with rush. But
even this brief check has brought the wolves
dangerously near; they run-wolves and
horses-side by side now, the wolves waiting
| for the horses TO give out. At this close ap-
preach ofthc brutes the Ukraine horses, wild
with terror, no longer know what they are do.
| ing. The time has come-with sharp crack
the guns 60 of, and four wolves fall. Their
comrades fling themselves ON their painting
! bodies and crunch them fcrccly.
| Meanwhile the sleigh was gaining a little,
! but the smell and taste OF blood have made the
wolves rabid and filed them with mad thirst
for slaughter; the gap is soon closed between
them. Again the guns crack only one wolf
| falls this time, but falls with a snarling yelp
that sends the side horses off in frenzied run.
! The middle horse. with the wisdom of an old
! hunter, though for some time exhausted and
painting, and no longer able to control his yoke
mates. allows himself to be borne along.
y = L IL. -t..-