The star. (Reynoldsville, Pa.) 1892-1946, 1904-04-20

firing into one another during the
night watch. This-this thing only
follows up one man at time. II
seems, and shall CO."
And so all day long the two men
wrestled with each other upon the mat
ter, but the more Thompson pleaded
the more resolute became the young
man at his side.
All day there was a strange quiet
prevailing about the yards, and at
half-past i've Joyce crept out of the
watchman's place and started off down
the tracks alone.
There was not sound to be heard
except the putting Of the switching en-
gines working more than n mile away,
and soon these became silent
Whenever Joyce came to break in
the lines of freight he would creep
through the opening inch by inch, his
arms extended. At midnight he went
into a deserted flagman's house. He
unlocked the door, went in and
warmed himself over the still glowing
Goals which had been left in the stove.
He remained there for half an hour
looking out of the little window, until
the increasing chill inside led him to
rise to his feet, examine his arms and
then
What was that which passed in front
Of the place? Surely that wes not a
Whit of smoke, a column of SCOT,
travelling across the rails!
In an instant he was in the open
air, running swiftly alongside the
course which the unexplainable terror
was taking, with only a single line OF
fiat cars between them.
Not sound reached him, while his
heart beat almost to suffocation. Step
by step he advanced, now stopping to
| look beneath the cars, now standing
and listening at their sides.
At last he came to an opening in a
long line of freights, and there, not
| so feet distant and made visible in the
/ dim light which came from the lower
shops, he saw the dreadful form, its
| eyes like Goals of fire, standing upon
/ the ground on the other side of the
train, its great shaggy arm reaching
across the intervening space as II
searching for his throat.
The sound of his revolver seemed to
wake all the echoes of the surrounding
hills, and with a shrill scream, a roar
of fury. the horror leaped into the
air, over the top of the nat car directly
at his head.
He ran through the opening between
the cars. turned about and faced ii
again. as It raised itself for a second
clutch at his throat. Again and again
he fired directly into its eyes, and still
It screamed with an early voice as II
tried with desperate energy to reach
/ him.
Even when he saw it at last begin to
stagger and reel back against the side
of the fat-cars, he drew the hatchet
hanging in his belt and struck at II
repeatedly, until it lay at last a shape
less bulk at his feet.
In the morning light It was dragged
back to the company's Offices and ex'
amined by the railway surgeon and
other officials with utmost astonish-
ment, il being pronounced to be some
form of great ape, neither chimpan-
zee nor gorilla, which had doubtles.
escaped from q distant travelling show
possibly breaking out from a boXcal
in which It had been transported dur
ing a night ride.
But the memory of It's presence II
the switching yards of the G. /. w
Railway Company lasted for many
month, and for a long time afterwaTC
it was difficult TO find men who wor'
willing at any wages to work on thu
night force in the vicinity of the loweI
shops.-New York Sun.