The Dillon herald. [volume] (Dillon, S.C.) 1894-????, 1910-03-24

clothes offered little protection. They
dashed in his mouth when he tried
to shout, and their buzz was like the
humming of a mill. There are por-
tions of the south coast along Yer
million Bay where cattle have died
from the mosquitoes torture. and
| Bayou Dupont is almost as badly in
! tested.
| Allen called again and again, and
once he thought he heard an answer
| ing halloo. The gator was now
Quilted, although the gag was out of
his mouth and the ropes all but of.
Cautiously the young man sat down
| cross-legged, his knees not a foot
from the ugly snout, watching the
closing dull eyes of the saurian.
Allen had literally nothing for de-
Tense or escape.
He might have swum to shore, half
mile distant, but this would mean
losing his camera. So he sat slap
ping the mosquitoes and scolding
"Old Man Captain Fowbs fool pup"
which tore round on the other seat,
nipping the gators horny hide and
barking. Already the huge alligator
had smashed the upper boarding of
the flat-Sided boat. He was all but
free, and IL he charged ahead, Allen
would have nothing to do but dive
off. And the gator would surely up
set the bateau, leaving Allen to take
his chance of getting ashore in the
swamp, which offered no escape, had
no fresh water, and not even solid
footing.
After a while he heard q faint
shout. The captain and the creoles
were out looking for him. He
shouted, and the far answer came.
But the others had gone up Dupont,
and they could not imagine that the
ba;eau had crossed the wash" and
was drifting on to open water.
Allen had hoped to ground on a
muddy point which shone in the star
light to his left, but the John-boat
f!oated a quarter-mile from this with
the splashing gars all about. Again
he yelled, and again Ponto howled
dismally. The gator moved uneas-
lily; once se surged forward, thrust
ing his snout over the gunwale, and
Allen hoped gingerly to one side.
And there he crouched, holding his
pack, the mosquitoes torturing his
bent back and face, the evil smell of
the saurian making him sick. Dis
| couraged, he knew now that the cries
were fainter and fainter. He was
drifting on to the big lake, and the
men were padding the other way.
Now he saw, too that the bateau was
| leaking badly; and at tho next shift
of the gator it took a bad list. He
| reasoned that if once the gator saw
the water he would plunge for it ard
sink the craft.
Allen was so far away on the un-
known waterways that he might not
be found for a day, and day in the
salt marsh might mean death from
| sun, insects and thirst. The captain
would look everywhere for him ex-
cept across the lake. And while he
, shouted, now and then, weaker and
| more hoarse, grasping at some plan
of signaling, an idea dawned on him
He had his fiash-light machine and
powder, always carried on the
! chance Of getting some night pictures
, of bird life.
Cautiously he swung the camera
about on his shoulder, got out the
| metal box and tube and powder.
Then, measuring the distance from
his feet to the gators jaws, and bal
| ancing carefully on the seat, he ele-
waited the apparatus as high as pos
sible, shouted as long as he could
on1 Cd hn fr;o :op 1-a, tiNo N
| the flash.
1t seemed, on the wide lake, that
the whole heavens were lignted up.
And instantly he felt the bateau
surge under his feet. He dropped
back at once. but too late, for the
alligator had made his last charge up
to the shattered gunwale and over
! going down with a mighty splash.
Allen fell, holding his camera and
plate-box high. He heard Ponto s
yelp, and then felt the tug of the
swamped beat as the alligator tore
about in the tangle of rope. The
bateau was jerked here and there
the mud boiled up and spattored on
the castaway. who thought of moth.
ing except holding aloft his plate.
carrier. And then at last the disturb,
! ance ceased, and in minute Allen
saw a great swirl in the water yardi
away.
Allen held to the side of the John.
boa, the camera and holder ill his
grasp. The cases were wet, bat the,
had not been under. His feet were
down in mud, and presently in chok
ing growth. where he found some
semblance Of footing. And here nt
clung and splashed water to keel