Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1898-08-10

planning TO her The manner Of capturing
the "four-footed jungle god which facts,
instead of frightening the child, only
helped to increase the stock of her play
gods and demons, which she moulded delft
~ from the red clay Of the rayine. For
two days nothing was heard of the tiger,
and Punda-Tsang began to fear that he
mad gone back to the hills by another
route.
On the afternoon of the third day I
SAT- on the cliffs edge, watching the mists
rise from the roaring river bottom, pine
nOmenon which always accompanies the
closing day. Suddenly there was a great
shutting of sandals about the compound,
and knew something extraordinary was
taking place. [ turned quickly: the big
form of Punda-Tsang. the innkeeper,
burst upon me suddenly, his fiat face as
pallid as a demons. ferocious, but with
the ferocity of nameless fear.
seen Iali:'
Nor I replied. almost in a whisper
He did not wait. but sped toward the So
called bullock sheds, which were really
caves cut in the solid rock beyond the
Oak. / had become attached to the child,
whose marvellous beauty had charmed and
whose weird ways mystified me.
The coolies We're flying hither and thith-
er. making the air ring with their loud
walls. Such agitation on the part of
| these yagabOnds reused me to a reallza-
| ton Of the child's danger. Suddenly l
| turned my eyes and thoughts IN the direc
| ton of the ravine where the tiger trap
lay. [ recalled wildly the child's interest
in the Jungle, god who was to be cap
| turad in the deep pit: and knowing the
| little creatures absolute fearlessness,
| thought that. acting upon some childish
| impulse. she might have Strayed down
| the narrow path to the pit. Meanwhile
the wailing about me increased.
| dropped over the ledge, soon reaching
| the pathway by a short route. AS / pen
! etrated the Jungle. now suffused with
mist in the ruby glow Of the expiring day.
| [ realized with what risks to myself [
was entering this dangerous spot, all I'M
armed. | was still debating whether or
not to return for a weapon of defense,
| when, as | leaped over soft spot in the
red clay, / saw two footprints that shot
| terror into my heart; one was that of
| mammoth tiger, the other belonged to
little child. l dropped down beside them.
| No. There was no mistaking them, so
| clear and fresh were both. Then | crept
| forward, scarcely daring to breathe, my
| heart beating faster and faster with APP
| prehenSiOn.
The distance to that tiger pit seemed to
| be doubled, and the time that elapsed be-
| fore reaching it everlasting. The crack
| ing of the leaves and twigs on the moss
| beneath my feet added to my trepida-
tons. Almost before l realized it | had
reached the big trap and then halted
| short, thrilled by the sound by something
human. Looking ahead through the
| deepening mists and Intervening bOughs
I saw the little child figure of Iali creep
ing out upon the withered branches over
| the pit. For the instant | had no power
to move. nor dared [ speak, lest. over
come with sudden fright. the frail little
one might lose her foothold. Suddenly a
new horror disclosed itself. What were
LIZ i
just beyond the pit, burning their way
| through the shadows? 1t was the tiger
III.
In moments like these ones reasoning
powers become superhuman. | saw that
in all probability either Iali or | was to
/ be sacrificed. which one depended merely
upon the caprice of the wild beast
| heard that the calm, steady, fearless
stare Of a human is more terrifying to
wild animals than guns that kill. On the
| instant [ resolved to practice it; it was
my only eXpedient. SO | stared at those
| two coldly bright and glowing points of
| light like a mailman.
Suddenly | saw the little figure waver
on the dead branches over the mouth of
the pit, and then, with weak little cry,
poor Iali had lost her foothold and slipped
| slowly through the yielding boughs into
silent Then I heard her childish pratt
| tie. The soft sand had broken Iali's fall
and saved her life, while | was brought
face to face with the most awful prob
i lem of my life. For what seemed hours,
| stood like pillar of stone, the perspira-
ton pouring down my neck, my tongue
] hot and parched
Suddenly, as | stood like one in a
trance, facing this growing problem,
| was conscious Of a stir in the reeds and
underbrush at my right hand. Though
| the sound caused me to tremble | dared
| Sp from tho oh cr
monster beyond. The next instant. a
| strange, huge shape creDt stealthiIy out
of the underwood and advanced into the
clearing toward the pit-a ponderous
black monster. 1t was a mammoth
| Orang-Outang.
The tiger crouched lower. He seemed
to be as nOnplussed, as stunned by the
| intrusion of this huge interlOper as | was
| In motlOnleSS silence, he transferred his
burning gaze to the mammoth monster.
Advancing to the very edge of the pit,
the huge ape slipped, but he recovered.
| He saw that the branches were only a
blind. Then he walked around the edge
of the trap, and knelt down like a human
being, slowly, deliberately reaching out
his long, hairy arm till his giant hand
| clutched that bullock bone Then, to
my intense relief, the orang slowly
| dragged the great mass of flesh off the
network of branches upon the solid
| ground.
For a moment longer the CLEAN of those
two terrible eyes. now like peepholes into
hell, followed the unsuspecting pilferer.
Then came rustic, a strange shock like
sudden thunder, a bound and roar and
| the Jungle god'' had sprung into the
air and come down like flashing ava
lanche full upon the broad body of the
kneeling orang. A single paw struck the
mammoth ape in the back, and with an
almost human groan, the rescuer of my
life and hers gave up the booty, together
with his own life. Then the tiger, with
a final fash of eyes full into my own.
snatched up the carcass of the bullock in
his flaming jaws, and slid off into the
thick of the jungle.
After that when he knew all. Punda-
Isang burned incense harder than ever.
for he avoWed that the gods had at last
forgiven his former crime; and, generally
speaking, Punda became better sort of
Malay than before.-London Mail
Hands that Perspire.
Excessive dampness of the hands is
usually due to delicate state of health.
| and young growing girls are often trou-
| hlpI in this way lII Slcb cacnS