The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1897-06-20

as cucumber, and, expect for that
trembling about the legs, my own man
again. That | had been drugged or poi
soned by an insufficient dose / more than
suspected Just then, however, | didn't
bother my head about that. ] wanted to
renew the light on Mat Aris. Round the
cabOose in which the lantern used to
hang, as I've told you, for all the world
like leg of mutton in. a meat safe, ran
lockers filled with tins of kerosene, waste,
rope, oakum, and such matters. Knock
ing the hands of a couple of the tins in,I
poured the oil over all literally, saturat-
ing everything. After this, a match was
all that was needed, and before / was
halfway along the bridge the flames
were six feet high. Just looking i'm her
den to see that the Hag wasn't there,
went down the ladders like lamplight-
er, and ran along the bank towards
where | knew the false beacon must be,
swung high aloft in some tree.
"Over logs and stumps l stumbled,
ooking back now and again at the big,
tall glare till, rounding a point, the dense
forest shut it from sight. Getting along
somehow, | stopped at last and listened.
But l could hear nothing of the Badger.
Inland, however, high overhead, hung
the light. Pulling out my sheathknife
| made for it, hell for leather through
bush and briar. AS | guessed, it was
hung to a tree, and, feeling all around,
l soon found the rope behaved to a root,
and before you could say Jack Robiti-
SON. I'd slashed it through, and was
watching the lantern coming down by
the run when a fellow jumped out of the
dark and muzZled me round the throat.
Hello, Peter / said, as | returned the
compliment, you see the coffee wasn't
strong enough l hadn't time to say
much berg very oLsy, for tue brute, in
spite of the opium, was stronger than |
thought, and / weaker. Down we went,
rolling over and over; while, to make
things warmer, the lantren capsiZed, and,
setting fire to the coarse grass, 1T blaZed
up all about us. Also the Hag, with a
big club in her fist, was dancing around
screeching blue murder, but too frighten-
ed to hit, so closely entangled were we. l
still graspd my knife. could see Peters
also CLEAN as we turned and writhed
+ Presently [ felt sharp pain in my
shoulder, and knew | was stabbed. That
| made me real mad, and as we rolled
away a bit from the fire the bag made
a smack at me, but missing, caught Pc
ter on the point of the shoulder, causing
him to drop the knife. He stretched out
to recover it, and | got home ON him
! till | felt the wooden haft jar against his
ribs.
He went limp all in a minute, exactly
! like one of these bladders the children
play with if you shove pin into it.
Well. we'd rolled down a bank into a bit
of swamp, and when the hag saw what
| had happened she gave one yell, and
jumped fairly on top of me, and got her
stick to work in great style. AS you
may imagine, was by this pretty well
knocked out, and | don't know how
matters would have gone, only that a
boats crew of Badgers just then came
ON the scene and dragged the bag off
me, swearing, kicking and striking right
| and left, until one of the men gave her
poke with a bayonet, when she sud-
denly Gained down, and started to raise
the Malay death wall.
"And she had cause to, for Peter peg
ged out before we got him. ON board.
Mine turned out to be nothing much
worse than a flesh wound, although I'd
lost @ lot of blood from it.
GAS you may guess, the skipper of the
| Badger was in pelter when he'd heard