The commercial. (Union City, Tenn.) 190?-193?, 1906-06-15

! weather, III snow you Iue SOFT o.
man l am. / should love bit Of dan
ger for your sake.
About a week later, the girl was
sitting on the poOp-deck, reading q
book. The sOld man was marching
uD and down with a quarter-deck trOL
casting glances at her and thinking
how pretty she was, when suddenly BE-
uttered howl that would have fright
ened an elephant and sprang into the
port mizzen rigging. | was near al
the time, and l looked at him, wonder
ing whether he had gone mad. Then
l saw what he had seen, and went up
to the starb0ard mizzen shrouds as
quickly as he had gone up the port
ones. The girl raised her head and
looked up at the Captain and he gained
down at her and tried to shout. But
for some time he could only make
faces.
Look look!" he yelled at last.
come up the rlggingr' The lion is
Io0ser'
She sprang to her feet and looked
about her. Not four yards away from
her the lion was playing with a coil
OK rope, the terrible claws alternately
exposing and sheathing themselves.
The creature was paying no sort of
attention to the girl at the moment.
but of course it might take it into its
head TO spring ON her at any instant.
AS she stood, she was cornered be-
tween the stern of the ship and the
cabin door. There was nothing to be
done but to climb up the rigging.
She tried, but the first step was too
high, and she could not manage it:
when she realized that, l thought she
was going to faint.
Hoskins was just going down to
give her a hand, but at that moment
the lion looked up and saw him.
and flashing its tail gave a mufiled
roar. The " old man. stuck where he
was then, and sort of shivered all over
Ike jelly. AS for the girl, she moaned
despairingly, and gave herself I'D for
lost. Just then-Out of the cabin came
Professor Hay.
He took one look around and saw
the lion. Then he picked up broom
that someone who had been washing
decks had left leaning against the
deck-house, and pushed at the lion
with 1t, looking it straight between the
eyes. He kept walking forward, ush-
ing the beast gently before him Yight
into the waist and back into it's cage,
in spite Of several ugly snarls. When
he had it safely fastened in, he came
astern again, looking not the least bit
excited or worried, and put the broom
carefully back in its place. The girl
was looking hard at him, and her eyes
were shining; but he didn't seem to
De aware of it. Captain Hoskins had
come down the rigging and was look
ng q trifie ashamed of himself. He |
hadn't known it was so easy to push |
lions into their cage, with broom.
After bit he spoke up.
THAT was fine bit of work. SIR
le said. IF hadn't seen 1t, couldn't |
lave believed it."
"Oh, it's nothing said the Pro-
essor. ut was my business. have
amod wild animals"
After that he seemed to dismiss the |
Whole subject from his mind, and went |
Town into the cabin. But | saw him,
alter in the evening, talking to that |
sirl, and he must have had something /
to say to her, for when the
old man" met her next morning and
began making excuses for himself.
The cut him short
Captain Haskins," she said, ssdo
you remember advising me to marry
| brave man?"
Il do" said Hoskins, a bit puzzled.
WE'LL she said softly, ''he asked
ne yesterday; and I'm going to take
your advice"
All of which shows you, Doctor, that
bravery is very much matter of Gus
ON. As for poor old Hoskins we had
weather the whole way
lone, and he hadn't even chance to
show himself.-Sketch.