The Washburn times. [volume] (Washburn, Wis.) 1896-1976, 1901-11-14
came out ard drove them away with

between It's banks and powders,
Kissing and foaming and roaring,
and in the quiet backwater of the
river lie hungry alligators, waiting
for something feshy to take snap
at. Snakes of all lengths between
six inches and fifteen feet lie sleep
ing in the long, moist grass; mos
quitoes in myriads buzz and sting;
long lizards skurry up and down
the smooth trunks of the trees, and
the monotonous sss-k-rrr of the
Scissor grinder" sounds all day in
the thick roof of foliage overhead.
1t is not a nice place for a Sunday
school picnic, and long before Jessie
had reached the bottom she had be-
gun to wish she hadn't come, but
the calm young man beside her
made her feel ashamed of owning
up.
They walked beside the river, and
little, lobsterlike black insects
crawled up their limbs and gave
both of them agony. They entered
an open glade, and a ferdilance
snake suddenly reared up before
them and was only lodged with
difficulty, Algie giving him a crack
on the head with his stick as he
passed that left him powerless for
ali further malice in this world.
Wherever they went they encoun-
tered fresh dangers, and all the
while, unseen and unknown by
either of them, a big leopard was
stealthily logging their steps, keep
ing, artfully in the shadow, but with
eyes that ever burned and glared-
two circles of green malignant fire.
At last they reached the tree on
whose topmost branches were
blooming the orchids Jessie had
seen.
GLOW high they are~ said the
girl, looking up. 81 thought the
tree was quite short one"
''Not too high for me- answered
Algie, preparing to climb.
''No, no; don't attempt it." cried
the girl. "Half the branches seem
rotten. You might fall and be
killed"
"And what if l were? Who
would miss me? Not soulw And
he gave short laugh that was lit
tie bitter.
''Do you say that because l
brought you down here ?" asked Jes-
sic slowly.
81 never dared to think of you as
taking the smallest interest in me
one way or the other"
"Why ?R asked Jessie, making the
soft eyes at him. And the leopard
behind, seeing them thus absorbed
in one another, crept little nearer.
Don't look at me like thatw
cried Algie, as her face suddenly
paled and her eyes opened wide with
horror.
''Turn quickly" whispered Jes-
sic. But she was too late. The
beast was upon him, its claws in his
shoulders, and it's teeth in his neck.
He turned and writhed, but the
brute stuck to him; he gave the
stick to Jessie, and, with scream up
on scream, she struck it on the
head again and again, while the
blood poured down the lads shout
ders, and his strength was visibly
ebbing away. At last she brought
the cudgel down upon the animals
head with a force that broke its
skull, and it relinquished it's hold
and fell to the earth dead, and Al
gle fell back upon it in a swoon.
Jessie knelt beside him, wiped the
blood from his face and neck and
bathed him with water from the
river. Hour after hour passed, and
though he opened his eyes and
spoke to her he was utterly unable
to rise. At last the sun set, the
forest darkened, the lantern flies
began to dart hither and thither
and all the strange sounds of the
night commenced. Then Jessie be-
gan to tremble, and a tear fell upon
the lads face.
81 feel as though | were dying"
he murmured family.
ENo," cried Jessie, and leaped to
her feet. 'Help! Help!" she scream
cd at the top of her voice. "Help!
Help! Help" And the echoes died
away in the blackness of the night.
"Goodby," whispered Algie. "Will
you kiss me once ?"
She stopped and pressed her lips
against his, and his head fell back.
But he was not dead. Oh, dear,
no! That kiss, with the magic
force that a kiss may have, had re-
vived him, put life into him, set
the blood running fast once more,
and presently he raised his head