Savannah courier. (Savannah, Tenn.) 1885-1979, 1892-08-25

you in good ole Mississippi cotton
patch, you bet I'd larn you to move a
little pcartern what you'S q movin'
now"
! was very little surprised at last
when | saw that we had made only
about five miles, and the sun was low.
/ knew how rapidly dark comes in that
country, and must confess that lelt
somewhat depressed. But that depres-
sion amounted to nothing compared
with what felt few moments later,
when the bearers suddenly deposited
the palanquin on the ground and one OF
them said with profound salaam:
"We notgo on. Night come. No place
sleep. We go back" "PiclS up this
machine, you rascals!" shouted, but
with one accord the heet-footed
heathens went flying down the road to-
ward the village we had left. In a
moment we could hear nothing but the
sound of their footsteps, and in mo-
ment more even that died away and
everything was still.
"Well, Sam, we're in pretty mess, y
| said, anxiously, for | really could see
no way to turn. had noticed as we
came from the village that there was a
perfect network of roads, and | was
quite sure that we could not have found
our way back in the daylight, while
after dark the attempt would have been
| absurd. At last we made fire and
agreed to take turns watching out the
night. examined my gun carefully, q
good, plain, double-barreled shotgun,
which had been thoughtful enough to
bring with me, and saw that my pistols
were all right, too, and then, placing
them handy, l curled myself in the pal
anquin and in about five minutes was
sleeping the sleep of the just. Iwaked
once in the night, and looking drowsily
out, discovered Sam stretched on the
ground near the fire snoring as happily
as though he were back on the OLD
realize how great the danger was, so
merely settled myself into more com
Portable position and went on with my
last dream where left it off.
What walked me next time was q
wild, piercing scream, that made my
heart stand still. tumbled out of the
palanquin, grasping my gun as went
and was just in time to see the lion
the terrible man-eating lion, dragging
Sam across the lighted space by his left
arm. | fred, but was too agitated tc
aim well, and / gave him neck wound
which enraged him without injurins
him fatally. With a roar that echoed
over the hills he dropped his prey ant
came at me.
His onslaught was with such rusl
chat stepped backward involuntarily
and in doing so struck my foot agains
one of the poles of the palanquin ant
fell headlong, my gun flying from my
hand. In an instant the great beas
was upon me, his huge fore feet planted
ON my breast, the great open moutl
against my face, and | was as neal
fainting as man ever comes, ! sup
pose. thought of the horrible fate be
lOiC w nave my oOhco VI uoilSu ibt
my flesh torn by those cleaning teetl
that were even then so near my face
lie was evidently satisfied that l wa
dead, and that he could drag me away a
his leisure. In the meantime the wounC
in his neck was paining him, and III
sat down on his launches presently
and began trying to lick it,
And while | lay there, knowing tina
if / should move even an inch he woult
be upon me, looked up, and there il
a clear space between the trees wa
the constellation of Orion shining a
peacefully as it used to at home whel
we watched it every night and wcr
always so fond of it. The sight un
nerved me. l said to myself: ] viii
move, and give the lion a chance t,
kill me. And just as was on tn
point of stirring something else moved