The Savannah morning news., 1903-07-12
BY THE SKIN
OF HIS TEETH
BY Marstyn Pollough Pogue.

There are many men who have never
felt any greater fear than timid
child feels when sent to bed in the
dark" said young Langton. the sur
veyor, when Spalding had finished a
story of a man who was tracked all
day by a panther and attacked at
nightfall while eating his supper beside
his campfire, but that is because those
men have lived sheltered lives and have
never seen or known anything to
make them afraid.
"A man may be as brave as men ire
made, yet the fear of death will clutch
his heart when death falls black across
the road he must tread.
Il was chased by panther once
myself, and the fear of death rowelled
me for many miles. 1t was in New
Brunswick, in 1897. when winter was
closing its grip.
winter cold-mailed the lake with a
four-inch plating of ice. To me skat-
ing is one of the greatest pleasures of
life. One night the moonlight lay
on the ice in cold silver, the snow on
the spruces was like alabaster, the
shadows were inky black. When
sat down on the beach to put on my
skates l drew deep breath of won
der at the dream-like loveliness of
the landscape.
Across the lake went merrily
rocking and swinging, and my shadow
pirouetted ahead of me. The steel
skate blades Iasped and changed loud
ly in the frosty air, and the suffering
crackle of ice as / swept over it COM
pleted the symphony.
"A few minutes later 1 dashed in
to the wide mouth of a narrow creek
that curls for many miles through the
lonely forest, and rushed upstream
between the ancient spruces, Slowing
and lurching and scampering around
the long curves. the exhilaration of
the swift motion thrilling me like
wine. About five miles up, the creek
/ stopped myself and sat down upon
the grass-thatched roof of a muskrat
house.
THE keen air was still; a great
silence brooded over the forest; the
big spruces cast inky shadows across
the ice; the ranging stars spangled the
solemn sky, twinkling icily; the moon
at the zenith Of her path poured down
a flood of light. Soon 1 felt the
glamor of the solitude stealing over
me. The loneliness entered my soul,
and 1 felt the stirring of a vague
dread.
Il tried to shake off the nervousness
that was gripping me. L filed ny
pipe and scraped a match on my hip.
CAS- the match snapped and famed
a sudden peal of golden laughter
sounded behind me. Dropping the
match l sprang erect and whirled
around. Shrill and clear and sardonic,
the peal rang out again.
"A thrill of terror went through
me, and a short, ripping scream froze
the blood in my veins. Then two
spruce boughs that sagged low over
the ice parted with rustic, and a
panther pushed between them and
crept slowly out of the black shadow
upon the moon-lit ice-long, lean and
yellow-gray.
For a moment l stood petrifed
The big cat crouched within twenty
yards of me. his topaz eyes glowing
with yellow fire. Then, just as the
brute. with fierce smart, sprang to-.
ward me. i wheeled quickly and
skated away down stream.
"Over the shadow-mottled Ice
raced with desperate energy for my
life, skating with hands clasped be-
hind my back and my mind full of
the fear of horrible death. Having
no weapon l knew l would have no
chance in a scufIle with the panther
If the animal caught me l should be
mangled and ripped and probably
dragged off into the bush and left TO
die slowly, If l was not eaten. But
/ knew that unless L slipped in turn
ing around a bent l had a good
chance to escape. Luckily my skates
were very sharp, and though the ice
was almost as hard as glass, the long
blades never skidded, but scratched
deeply enough into the ice to make
a slip unlikely,
Il have skated in many a race, but
don't think l ever skated so fast on a
straignt-away course as l did that
night on that twisting creek, which
is like a series Of letter sses. How
ever got safely around all those
curves Is beyond my understanding.
Behind me. almost at my heels, the
panther extended his
supple body and did his best. Above
the grooming of the ice and the scrap
ing and ringing of my skates / could
hear the soft thudding OF his big pad
ded paws. and at intervals he
screamed.
"As reeled and swung around