The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-06-07

ping their goads and flying for their lives
TO their villages as ] waved a bloody and
feeble arm to them from the tigers Shout
ders; then up into the woods, q first bare
and thin, where the peacOcks scuttled
through the dry heritage like painted
beams Of light and sulky wild bears sat
fangs and flashing hatred from angry yell
low eyes as we broke in upon their mid
DAY sleep; up into the thicker tangles
through the forests of piercing sword
grass and disiointed rocks until al last.
at the foot of a bamboo clump with a
thick loow roof Of boughs overhead, the
ti9ress laid me down in her den.
1t was a fair place enough, with the
sunlight making patchwork on the fiat
tened grass, the low couAtry. mile be-
low shimmering in the midday heat as
We saw it under the caves Of the branch
es, and half a dozen yards away the wa
Ter OF a mountain stream gathered in a
deep pool, amongst ferns and emerald
MOSES. That dim black basin of delight
fascinated me at once I liked my greedy
ploodshot eyes upon It instantly, for by
this time / was mad with thirst my
tongue black lump rafting In my mouth
and my veins filed, it seemed, with surg
ing molten metali Presently as I stared
Indifferent to fate so long as I could get
a drink-the tigress, who had dined too
well the day before to much covet the lean
meal l was to make her later on, subsidized
on her bed of leaves, and with a deem sigh
of contentment let me roll from her side
and shortly after seemed to doze. I saw
the sleepy lids shut all but down over
LnOuEnf
was mefcltul-at least 1t was given TO me
to drink before I died and inch by inch.
suffering the tortures Of the lost as my
l niil dragged Denlnd me, pulled myself
over the intervening space.
was within q foo. Of the pool, my
hand was followed to lift the blessed nuld
Up 70 the chastity face mirrored IN the
black pool when there was a velvet soft
step behind me, another face imared i'm
the messy basin, and before a drop OF the
water could touch my cracking blood--tain
ed lips, the she-devil behind had drawn me
place. t-''7
Again and again I tried with despara r.
persistence before l had been in the lair
many hours to get that draught, drag
ging my twisted limbs over the bloddv
path my first eXertiOns had made ana
every time she played with me like
woman, letting me get to the edge with
my crazy desire for a drink strained 10
madness by the sight Of the fiuid-then
tearing me from IT, until al last even my
thirst could not spur me to another effort.
and lay between the tigress' paws. onlv
wondering and hoping now for signs Of
that new appetite in the great beast,
an end to my tortures.
Meanwhile every faculty of mine was
on edge. every. perception extraordinarily
acute Instead OF being numbed bv NV
wounds the poisoned fangs Of that She
fury and the fever Of my mind had filed
me with a strange, keen, fantastic life I
lay there hour by hour, with nv head on
my deVourer's paw and sWar0y of flies
crowding to my blackenng wounds. ana
watched the low country through the
fringe of leaves. / could see the roof
ridges Of the nearest villages and the wo-
man washing at the steps: I could catch
the twinkle of their bangles in the sun
shine; an could note, 50 fine was my
sticks on the wet linen. and the creak az
the wooden Jokes as the oxen turned All
the head Of the burrows in the neighbor-
ing fields-yet still the respite came noti
But presently, late in tho afternoon. as
the sun got low, her ladyship grew piav-
ful, and would romp with me before sup
per time came, playing as a cat will play
WIN Wounded mouse, hid-
ing behind the bamboo clumps
and bounding out upon No:
harping on my fears, rolling on me in the
pure wantonness of her cruelty taking me
between her feet, and with a. plavful kick
or two of her hind legs tearing open my
half-ctosed wounds, and then suddenly
changing her snarling glee in my ago
MES, she would with an even more dread
ful pretence of affection lie down on her
side, and drawing me into her furry bo-
her left eye adding a gruesone ludicros-
ness TO her looks, would slObber over me
rrasping my lace with her hot rough
tongue, and so pretend to sleep again.
But why should / make that day so
long, sahib2" AS the sun dropped down
crimson and yellow behind the hills ana
the faint fine smells Of evening came m
from the distant villages on the blue
smoke of the new-it hearth fires the
Of delight I recognized what that meant:
l was not AFRAID now Of that hideous
red gullet and that slaughter-house
breath; 1t fired me with q last outburst
of fury. Ny hour had come, I knew If.
and all my rage and suffering lending
me one last fierce flash Of strength.
] staggered to my shattered knees and
with a savage yell of hatred and defiance
tore the bloody rags Of my shoulder cloth
from me, and splitting in that royal
harpy's face barred my breast and invited