Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1893-05-08


bed, got one out, reached down to the
floor and struck it.
Never will I forget the sight that
met my eyes. Across the room stood
an enormous leopard, its fiery eyes
cleaning in the light, it's tail gently
waving to and fro as it watched me,
and just behind it, at one of the open
windows, the head of its mate was
visible, looking in from the veranda.
I gazed as if fascinated, too horri
fed to move until the match burned
down to my fingers, and dropped it.
And there [ was in the dark, with two
leopards for company. gave shout
that might easily have walked the
seven sleepers, and that rung through
the silent house with a terrible roar,
and at the same time threw myself to
the back side of the bed, next to the
wall I did it without any definite
purpose, except to get as far as pos
sible from the danger. The moment
I struck the wall, however, thought
of something else, and jerking up the
edge of the mattress, [ rolled back
upon the springs and pulled the mat
tress down over me. At the same
moment one of the 1eopards struck
the place where l had been lying the
minute before, and [ felt this awful
weight upon me, and heard the growl
that told how he resented having
missed his prey.
70 n ord on no
[ saw light suddenly shine on the
floor beneath the bed, and peeping
out, beheld Tibboo standing in the
door with a lamp in his hands. His
dusky face was pale, and he, too, gazed
as if fascinated.
"Help, Tibboo, help!" 1 shouted as
loud as I could, but instead Of waiting
to help, Tibboo set the lamp down
upon the floor and ran. 1 could hear
his retreating footsteps as they grew
fainter and were finally inaudible.
gave myself up for lost. felt that it
would be very short time indeed
that I would be able to keep them
away from me with the paltry protec-
ton of thin wool mattress. They
walked over me again and again, their
huge bodies crushing me as l lay
there helpless. They walked around
and about the bed, peering under it
at me, for they could distinctly see
me through the springs. They made
several endeavors to get under the
bed, but the bedstead was low one,
and they were not able to get under.
Then they nosed about the edges of |
the mattress. Every moment was an
age. Never in all my life was SO much |
suffering crowded into SO brief time.
My agony of apprehension was terri
BILE. I knew that if one of the leop-
ards tried to insert his head under the
mattress all would be up with me, be-
cause he could do it so easily. And
there was my gun in the corner Of the
room, not ten feet away, but SO far as
that was concerned it might as we'll
have been ten miles away. What a
horrible thing-to be caught like rat
in trap and torn to pieces in the very
room in which had thought myself
so safe.
But still, for some unaccountable
reason, my fate was delayed. They
both mounted upon the bed again and
went prowling over it,growling fierce
ly at their failure to reach me- And
they were both standing on my help
less body, when I heard presently a
shot that was SO near it sounded like
the very crack of doom.
With a wild, snarling scream the
two leopards leaped from the bed.
threw aside the mattress and looked
out to catch glimpse of Tibboo's form
flying through the shrubbery. He had
slipped up to the window, fired one
shot, and fed for his life. On the
floor lay one the leopards, gasping and
dying. The other stood by it, nosing
it over, licking it's wounds, and max
ing low moan that was half growl.
1t paid no attention to me when
looked out. I saw that Tibboo had
left me to my fate again, and that now
or never was my time to get the gun.
If I failed in this attempt my last
chance was gone, for I could easily
understand that the killing of its mate
would make the savage creature more
ferocious than ever.
Slowly and carefully dragged my
self from beneath the mattress, and
prepared to spring without further
hesitation. just as I was ready it
turned at me with growl that would
have daunted far stouter heart than
mine was at that moment. [ sprang
for the gun, notwithstanding, but a
blow from one of those terrible paws