The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1903-06-21

minutes afterward Danbury was gallopng into the
.'The wood was very closely planted. and 50 dim
that he could hardly right left the
narrow path down which he was riding. kind OF
chill struck Wat Danbury, and il flashed through his
mind that there had been very singular points
the fact that from the first no one had ever
caught glimpse CT the creature. Some silly talk
which had been going round the country about the
kinds of foxes-a of demon fox so fast that it
could outrun any pack and fierce that they could
do nothing with it if they overlook it-suddeny
back into his mind. The nervousness which had been
on him in the morning and which he hoped that
ne had shaken on swept over him again in over
towering wave. He would have given pounds
to have had Joe CIarkes homely face beside him
Anu tnel just al mat moment tnere broke out from
the thicest part of the wood the hula
balloo that ever he had heard in his life The hounds
wet Danbury tried to force his mare through
the trees to the place where all this hdeous
ing ana moving came from out the wood was 50
thick that it impossible ride He sDrang
way through best he could, with his hunting lash
over his shoulder. But he forward he felt his
never heard such sounds As these They we're net the
cries Of triumph, but of fear Every and then
breath he ran on until he broke Ibrongb fE i1ter
lacng branches himself a little clearing.
The hounds were standing in half-circle round
jaws gaping In front of them lay Of them with
his throat torn out Wat came running out into the
clearing, and at the sight of him the hounds took
heart again. and one Of them sprang with grOwI
into the bushes. At the same instant a creature
the size OF a donkey jumped to its feet, huge
gray head, with monstrous gstening fangs and tap
and the hound was thrown several feet into the air
and fell bowling among the cover Then there
clashing like rat trap closing, and the bowls
sharpened into a scream and then were stin.
"Danbury had been the lookout for symptoms
all day and now he had found them. He looked once
more al the thlckeI saw pair OF savage req eyes
fixed him, and fairly took to his heels 1t might
only be passing delusiOn. it might be the perma
nent mama OF "hlcn the doctor nad spokeh pu any
how the thing to do was to get back to bed and 10
mare, galoped her madIy over the downs and only
stopped when he found himself at a country station.
Ha InfNE do hack
evening before he GOT there s6iverne with apnrebeT
sion seeing those red eyes and savage teeth at
every turn He went straight to bed and sent for Dr.
I'VE got EN-. DOCTOR said he. TT came about
exactly you said-strange creatures, optical delu
sions and everything. All ask you now is to save
.'The doctor listened to his story, and shocked
1t appears to be a very clear case said he.
This must be lesson to you for life.
through this, cried Wat Danbury.
Well my dear boy, if you will stick to that it
may prove a blessing in disguise. You see, it is
as if there was only delusion. There have been
several. The dead dogs, for example, must have
been a well the creature in the bush
I saw it all as clearly as see you
One of the characteristics Of this form of delir-
ium what you see is even clearer than reality.
I wondering whether the whole run was not
wat Danbury pointed to his hunting boots still
lying upon the floor hecked with the splashings Of
Hum That looks very real certainly No
doubt. in weak state, you overexerted yourself
Well our treatment will the SOOth-
ing mixture which I viii send to you and shall
put two leeches upon your temples tonight
so. Wat Danbury spent the night in tossing
about and rejecting what a sensitive thing this
chnery Of is and how foolish it is to play
tricks with what is easily put out of gear and
difficult to mend So he lay, tossing and still repent
ant, when his door flew open in the morning and in
rushed the doctor with a newspaper crumpled up in
his hand
My dear boy ne cried I owe you thousands
apologies. You're the most iI-used lad and the
greatest numbskun in the country Listen to this
And the side Of the bed and began to
read
.'The paragraph was headed, Disaster TO the As
combe Hounds and it went to that four Of
the hounds shockingly torn and mangled, had been
found WintOn FirwOOd, upon the South Downs,
although the cause of their extraordinary injuries
was still unknown. so you see said the doctor,
that I wrong when put the dead hounds among
the delusionsl
But the cause cried Wat
Well, I think may guess the cause from an
item which has been inserted just the paper went
to press. Late last night Mr.. Brown of Smither 5
farm, the east of Hastings, perceived what he i'm
agined be enormous dog worrying one Of his
sheep. He shot the creature, which proves 10 be a
gray Siberian wolf. 1t is supposed to have escaped
from travelling menagerie.'
That's the story, gentlemen, and Wat Danbury
stuck to his good resolutions, he never touches
anything stronger than lime juiceat least he hadn't
before he left this part of the country five years
next Lady day.