The Monmouth inquirer., 1898-11-17
AN ADVENTURE.


west coast of Africa. The Sabbath, the
day when the events about to be relat-
ed happened, opened with the most
gorgeous beauty. Never shall for-
4 get the feelings of enraptured admira-
tion that thrilled me when gazing up
on the glorious sunrise that cOmmenc-
ed the career Of the holy day The
moon had been shining with more than
usual splendor during the night, but its
rays now gradually became more and
more dim before the increasing light
of the orb of day. until, as the purple
tinge of the eastern sky gave place to
Z reddish hue, and heralded the near
approach of the most resplendent
among all of heavens great dumin-
aries, they faded entirely away. The
I light zephyrs that gave scarcely per-
| ceptible motion to our vessel, and lazily
! propelled her over the placid and un-
ruffied bosom of the sea, served to watt
the ieecy, gauze-like clouds, in all
their different forms of natures fan
tasy, along the azure dome of heaven S
mysterious realms, and whose white
shapes, tinted on the edges with pink
and carmine, made the deep blue of the
4 sky seem only the more intense
/ The dense forest on shore at dis
tance of mile from us was such as
only tropical climate can afford, and
reflected its variegated foliage, depict
ed in all the magnificent colors of the
rainbow, upon the calm waters be-
Z meath. Never before had l seen ma
ture display her glory in such enchant-
/ ing attire. The forenoon was as pleas
ant and as delightful as it's dawn prom
ised. Religious services never seemed
SO impressive as those performed on
the quarterback, and the prayers Of
our good chaplain appeared to be ut
tered with a double intensity of fervor.
Yet, as he prayed for the safety of
those whose home is on the waters, it
almost seemed as though his words
were superf1uous, so little did we inn
agine that danger could possibly over
take us while all our surroundings
wore such a milling aspect.
Between two and three o'clock in the
suddenly overcast, and violent hurri-
cane burst upon us with such fury that
to successfully battle it was an utter
impossibility 1t is needless to narrate
the various narrowing scenes on our
decks; but it will suffice to say that in
two hours after the commencement OF
the gale. the ship was a perfect wreck.
and firmly fixed upon strand of coral
nearly a stones throw from the shore.
The boats were resorted to, and after
almost superhuman efforts, the one in
which I fortunately happened to be
placed reached the beach in safety, be-
ing the only one out of the six that
was preserved Not vestige of the
others remained Two hundred poor
fellows found watery grave almost at
4 the same spot where everything was
30 lovingly smiling at the beginning
| of this unlucky day. Those who reach
{ ed the shore were all so exhausted that,
dripping and wet as we were, we laid
on the damp ground, and were soon
wrapped in such slumber as only the
weary can enjoy.
1t must have been two o'clock when
awoke with an indefinable presenti-
ment of evil creeping over my senses.
Finding it impossible to sleep longer,
strolled into the forest, where,
save only the dampness, no traces of
the storm existed, the moon having
peeped from under the last disappear
ing clouds. All was hushed in peace
and quietness, when suddenly / per-
ceived a huge beast approaching. and
Immediately climbed tree, where,
| perched uncomfortably between two
branches, / discovered that my un-
! pleasant feIlow-traveler was an enor-
nous lion. He had seen me mounting
| to my aerial retreat; for after look
ing up and giving vent to terrible
roar, which caused echoes to resound
/ from every possible direction, he made
! preparations to besiege my stronghold.
and walked to and fro with angry
4 strides, never however going more than
/ ten yards from the tree. At last, much
\ to my relief, he disappeared. Think
| ing he had left, / began my descent;
but | had scarcely reached terra firma
when he rushed from behind a thicket
with roar that caused me hastily to
remount
Daylight arose, and with it came a
craving appetite for food. Still the
enemy guarded the only avenue of es-
cape, and was quietly seated under
meath, evidently aware of the Ito him)
pleasant fact that I must descend some
time, now and then wagging his tail
and cracking his jaws, no doubt antici-
pating delicious repast. oh, how /
1onged for a rife or even knife.
Noon passed, and still the lion had not
moved. Night came and went. When
4 morning came he had not stirred an
inch Desperation seized me. The
pangs of hunger and the misery of my
situation made death preferable to a
longer starvation. The determination
was formed to throw myself into the
jaws Of destiny, in the shape of those
I - :, ram rf,.c aIoee wild haacf IMjobiy,u o