The Middleburgh post. [volume] (Middleburgh, Snyder Co., Pa.) 1883-1916, 1893-09-07

ont along the bank ahead Of and be-
hind me.
At that rate my death was certain
within n mile. There would be wolves
to intercept me IL I advanced, and
wolves TO cut me Off If retreated, and
to take to the opposite bank was also
sure death.
At this point saw, on the left bank,
n little deserted cabin, about quarter
OF mile ahead. II I could reach that
before my pursuers began to close in
might be safe.
bent every atom OF my remaining
strength to do this, and l had almost
reached the goal when the wolves
ahead began to shoot out over the ice,
completely cutting off my escape up
the river. Then the ones far ahead
came dashing back toward me, and the
others in the pack began to close in
from behind and at the sides. WITS
the objective point in semicircle of
fifty ravenous, man-killing beasts, and
the door of the cottage was my only
hope.
picked out the wolf that would
reach it first My race was with him.
IL all occurred in space of less
than twenty seconds. i shot up TO
the bank like stone from n catapult.
The wolf was ahead of me, but, leav-
ing the ice with bound, and with the
tremendous momentum which L had
acquired, / flew into the air like
bird, and, passing over the brute's
head, landed squarely on my feet, and
in flash had reached the door of the
cottage, forty feet away.
To rush inside and slam the door
was the work of second, but the
whole pack was behind me. They
paused for II moment, and in that time
/ saw that there was no fastening to
] door. The cabin had been stripped
. even of its bolts.
/ The upper floor was gone, but the
rafters were there three feet above my
head, and hastily thrusting the ax in
my belt | gave leap, grasped one of
them, and drew myself up. Then
dozen bodies were dashed against the
door and the room below me was filed
]
They howled, snarled and screamed
with fury and disappointment. They
| dashed themselves against the walls,
and bounded up towards the rafters.
Sometimes such was their hunger
and desperation, that they actual Sc
cured "A hold near me but then my ax
came into play, and they fell back,
cut and bleeding, upon their fellows.
Then another idea struck me. Work
ing my way toward the door, climbed
partially down, and, with II long strip
of wood which / found lying across
/ the rafters, slammed the door shut.
| 1 then thrust the strip into II crevice
| in the door casing, and with u nail
which was sticking loosely in the
upper end, | nailed it to the wall.
The wolves were my prisoners.
To knock hole i'll the roof with my
ax was easy work, and in few mo-
ments was sitting on the roof, enjoy
ing the cold nir and the discomfort of
my enemies.
BY this time those inside were thor
oughly cowed and frightened, while
the one or two stil,.ssrSsie-.tn the open
qja lad begun to'feei very neTyUes.ri'
few chunks of wood, smartly thrown,
caused them to stink off into the
woods, and then | felt almost free.
And now it was nearly eight o'clock,
and the people in my uncle's house
had grown alarmed. / could hear
shouts in the distance, and presently
lights appeared coming down the ice,
and my uncle and cousins, carrying
pine torches, and well armed, came in
sight. A shout from me guided to
them the cabin, and in a moment the
, whole party was on the roof.
A torch thrown into the cabin light
Ell up tine interior, and then we took
3 turns i'll shooting the wolves.
There were twenty-five of them, and
within half an hour they were all dead.
Next day we returned and skinned
them, and the heads and hides brought
us in II pretty penny. Time? Well,
now look here. | made some close
calculations on that and | make out
that / did that last ten miles in thirty
minutes. And there is no case on
record where that time has been
/, cqualled. st. Louis Republic.