The Van Buren press., 1896-02-15


i with 6 loud shout. he aimed sweep
ing biow at ths creatures head. The
panther. startled. sprang away, spit
ting like huge cat, and jumped upon
projecting ledge, where il turned again
and crouched for spring.
But the moments break had given
uncle silas time to act The instant
the fierce ewes were taken from his he
wheeled. leaped over tse log railing,
and swapping his umbrella wide open,
threw himself far out over the preeI-
piee.
The old preacher never forgot the
scream Of rage that followed his sud-
den leap. lie wondered il his old l'm-
brella would stand the rush without
turning inside out and dashing nm
down among the rocks. Then he saw
3 dark form shoot by MIN with blood
eurdling veil, saw tree-tops sweep up
in q dark mass 10 meet him, and heard
8 crash and thud below.
Meantime he had come down into the
top OF 8 scrubby hemloek. The uIn-
brella was torn from his grasp, and he
dropped through bending branches
into the snow. where he lay for long
time weak and listless. wondering and
grateful for his strange escape.
A eomTnotion in the underbrush
near brought him 20 his feet. He
CROPPED for stick u defend himself.
But the noise was stationary. A con-
fusion Of blows and low growls, and
swapping bushes With q great throb
Of thankfulness he realized thai il must
be his late terrible enemy, wounded TO
death IN mis- last mad spring.
Feeling about in me darkness
+ Uncle Siias gathered handful of dead
fwigs. These he kindled b. the aid
u flinf and punk thai ne always car
red in ms pocket. By this light ne
gathered more fuel. and soon bright
hiaze was leaping up against the hem
Ioe--
The noise In the uuderbrush had
rrown iess as he worked. Il had almost
ceased when ne parted the bushes cat
tiously and peered in There lay the
panther. struggling feehly.
The force OF Is vil5 leap had carried
i well over the tree into which Uncle
silas had fallen. The branches. stris-
ny It's legs. haz thrown it Of ca
Ike balance aud hurried IL among tus
rocks
nncle slas turned . FINK MS wav
back 70 Cardiff: for the rayine had
10 known outlet on the Dayton Side.
Int his escape lad been so wonderful
eat eYen be would hardly be believed
Z he came back without some visible
Froof Besides. he had been fond Of
hunting n his younger days. be would
GO back with the savage beasts skin.
What triumph il would be TO march
into the store. fling down the CORY
pelt and say: See, there is the beast
You have been afraid of SO longi"
md he would add, from the old book
be loved so well: Surely the Lord
hath delivered him into my hands .
So he thought. standing there in the
gloom, peering through the bushes al
the great gray beast.
Selling hind leg he dragged the
panther in beside the fire. and with his
sharp 5aekknife stripped the hide of.
Then be climbed the hemloek after his
battered old umbrella: and with the
panther skin over his shoulders. started
down the rayine.
He was near the place where he knew
a steep path led up the road, and was
cropping about In the thick darkness
to find it, when he was terribly startled
by groan from the brook on his left.
Who's there?" he cried, in strange
~ high voice, for the sound in that
lonely place had frightened him more
than the pantber's scream.
A feeble cry for help was his only
answer; but IL was enough 10 reassure
him. Dropping his burden he hastened
forward, shouting encouragement as
be ran.
At the edge of the brook he stumbled
over something in the snow. and almost
plunged into the icy water before ne
recovered himself The thing groaned,
and in an instant Uncle Silas was bend
ing over it tenderly.
who are you?" he asked.
I'm Jim Hawkins was the faint an
s"er. Il was hunting and got lost.
AZ dusk - found road - heard cata-
mount" The form shiyered and was
silent
But what then ?'' urged the old man.
Il tried 20 get down the ledge-fell-
my head - broke leg. ! think. I
crawled here to" Then he tainted.
At daylight Tuesday morning Dea-
con Swain started up the mountain
with bis OK team 10 break out the road.
The good deacon had been troubled in
spirit since be heard Of Uncle Silas' de-
parture. His tracks, and those of an
other man that came in from the right,
were the only marks in the snow 70
guide the toiiing oxen.
But halfway up the mountain other
tracks came out Of the woods in lory,
dying leaps; and the deacon stopped
with q fearful start. He had seen the
marks Of those big. padded feet once
beforehand IA his own yard.
He rushed ahead of the slow oxen,
gFasping a cart-stake. Ordinarily he
would have turned back from an en-
counter. But the panther'E track in
that Of the old man he had loved so .ong
filled him az once with horror and with
a desperate courage.
He found the bundle in the snow, and
followed the signs Of flight with the
dread growing upon him. A groan