Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1894-05-25

us / lOOktu ~ lllt SuOl-ENu III hloEuobf
then looked again at the antelope. 1t was
exasperatng. / was determined to have
shot. at any rate, and, in the hope that |
might stun one OF them or at least Devil
der him for an instant, whispered to Sa-
iad to be ready with his knife and make
dash the moment | fired.
Cautiously raised the gun to my shout
der and was pressing the trigger, when
Salad touched me and whispered: "Wait,
sahib. Look there!'
l looked and my shotgun fell. AT
slight angle, but little more than halfway
between us and the antelopes, there
crouched a royal Bengal tiger a single
glance was sufficient He was surely
man-eater. Evidently he had been on the
point of satisfying his hunger with an an
telope when he caught sight of us.
He was within an easy leap of the
antelope, but was deliberately turning
away and facing us. The motion startled
the deer and they bounded off, but the IL
ger paid them no further attention. The
huge creature opened his great jaws till
his head seemed nothing but a red, yawn-
| ing gullet, bordered by long, ragged, glis-
tenng teeth, and, with savage snarl, he
began to approach us.
There was no need of looking about for
a place of safety. The Jungle was sparse
| " wooded at the best, and the largest tree
we had passed in coming from camp would
not have borne even Salads weight ten
feet from the ground. Salad had only his
hunting-knife, nothing but my shotgun.
cone of us must go, sahib," Salad NUT
tered, without taking his eyes from the IT,
ger. "If we run together, we shall both
90. He will overtake us in a moment.
Let Allah decide as it is written in our
foreheads. Run that way, for your life,
sahib. / will run this way. Be quick
before he comes nearer"
There was no time for thought, 1t
seemed a fair proposition, and even as he
spoke the Hindoo started at the top of his
speed away. 1t was useless standing still
or following him, and acting upon his sug-
gestion l started in the opposite direction.
After running a rod or two, | looked
over nv shoulder The tiger had made a
leap and was Just landing, already crouch
ed for another spring. He was following
me,
| will not admit that | hoped he would
follow Salad, but did hope that he would
not choose me. 1t amounted to the same
thing.
started on for one more desperate strug
GLE | was doomed. | knew it perfectly
WE'LL vet while there is life, there is hope
and | ran as | never ran before. | re
solved to 90 as far as | could, and then whir
about and give the tiger charge of fine
shot full in the face. 1t might put out his
ewes. There was at least that possibility
TO hang a desperate hope upon, and throw
ing my gun to my shoulder, turned. TIL,
tiger was not there. Looking farther back
t l saw his tawny hide in the underbrush
| In w a wa m a a. n
, but it was not toward me- One thrill o
gratitude shot through my veins when N,
e heart stood still with horror There wa
one sharp yelp as the huge form swep
! through the air and, crushing the leave
, and branches as it fell, landed upon tn
l PROSTATE figure of the Salad, silently wait
, ing for the blow.
, | stood there petrified, the cold perspira
ton dripping from my forehead. There wa
| not sound from Salad. There was onl
= one fierce howl from the tiger. Then al
5 was still.
1t was only an instant, but in that in
slant, we two, my Hindoo servant and
, stood out before me in very bold relief.
r had run for my life, knowing that tn
4 chances lay between us two, and hoping
e at least, that the tiger might not follow me
d He had run, too, knowing that the chanc
J. lay between us, and because the tiger d
: not follow him he had come back agail
: and tempted him, called him away fror
= me and given his life for mine.
e He was a poor benighted heather, an
d only an average sample of his kind. II
r could not help stealing petty things II
h could not stop telling lies. But surely h
y was a truer, Drawer, nobler man than
d and if the image of God can be found tC
a day, in any of his creatures, it would Re
: quire no very deep theologian to decid
:, which of us two betrayed it, least profaneC