Year: 1872

rOunQ, overturned Ine DuggY, ana, KICK
ing desperately, broke from the traces
and dashed back on the hOmeWard road.
We were all thrown on the soft grass,
and sprang to our feet unhurt. Diana
was in mortal fear of the dog, for she
thought him mad but | knew that some
other danger threatened, and, looking
round for place of refuge made toward
the log-house, to which Dick was already
urging his sister while the dog, running
backward and forward from one to the
other, whined and yelped in an ecstacy of
impatience and distress.


The one room of the house was bare
and empty, but ladder led to the loft
above.


Cup the ladder, up the ladder, Mrs.
Graham, quick p cried Dick, and he
flung-to the door. "Quick ! I know
what is coming! Good God This door
won't fasten !"


Flying from we knew not what, we
rushed up the ladder into the loft, and,
as we stood together on the boards, Dick,
with desperate strength, tore the ladder
from it's fastenings, and sent it crashing
to the floor below. Most happily for us,
there was trap-dOOr over the opening,
and Dick pulled it from the rusty wire
which held it to the wall, and secured it
with large iron hook which slipped into
staple in the floor.


On the trap-door the dog took his
stand; and, alternately growing and
wagging his tail, seemed at once to defy
the coming danger, and encourage his
friends.


There was small window in the
room. The glass was broken, but
the heavy wooden shutter still
swung to and fro on the wind, and
! Dick pulled it close and fastened it on
the inside, so that but for the faint light
that shone through the cracks in the roof
and up through hole in the floor, we
we're in darkness.


"What is it?" I asked, in whisper,
but, before Dick could speak, I was an
swered.


There was terrible sound between
yell and a roar, the door below was dash
ed from it's hinges by some great weight,
and then roar on roar of batfied, brutal
rage rent the air. .


We clung close together, expecting
death, though, as yet, neither Diana nor
| knew the nature of our enemy. There
was a moments pause in the deafening
uproar, and I looked down through the
space left by a missing board in the
| floor.


What was the creature that carried it's
vast tawny bulk to and fro across the
lower room, swift, easy and graceful, as
bird? AS looked, the thing lifted its
huge head and showed it's green eyes,
glaring with hate, and the white glitter of
ing the nature of our peril. The beast
was the Bengal tiger we had seen a few
days ago in the caravan.


Spiritless and dull as the brute had been
in his cage, he had struck me then as un-
commonly powerful and fierce, and we
had been told that his temper was untama-
bly, savage.


What were we to DO?


We had no means of defense should
the creature break in upon us. 1t
was lonely place, and very few people
passed that way. Any traveller who saw
our wrecked buggy and came to seek us
would only be rushing on certain death.
The horses might run home, and our
friends might come in search of us, but
the worst they would apprehend would
be some accident from the runaway
horses, and, if they came to the lonely
house in the swamp, it would only be to
meet death at the threshold. For the mo-
ment we were safe. Ihad natural history
enough to know that the creature could
not get up to the rafters and tear away
the boards of the upper floor.


Probably the beast had been missed
Immediately, and I thought it likely that
more than one party were out searching
with dogs, and might follow up the trail,
but it might be some some time before
they could fall on the traces, and in the
meantime here we were besieged by a
wild beast as cunning as it was cruel.


The most exposed point of our fortress
was the little window in the gable. The
shutter opened nearly flush with the floor,
and beneath was little lean-to from the
roof, of which the window could easily
be reached, and I.knew that the boards
would not long sustain the attack of those
claws.


The beast might MT, however, find out
this point, and, in the meantime, it be-
hooved us to keep as quiet as possible.
He might get tired of waiting and watch
ing and go away, but, even if he did, we
should never dare to stir from our shell
ter


My greatest fear was that the horses
might go home, and that my husband, on
thinking of nothing worse than the over
turn, might come to look for us, unarmed
and defenseless. My mind was so full of
this dread that do not think I fully real
lied the terrors of my own position.
Diana, happily, was not one OF those
girls whose first impulse in any danger is
to scream. She slipped down on the
boards, and, laying her head in my lap,
held Dicks hand tight, but she did not
say a word, nor utter cry.
Dick was far more moved than his sis
ter. He trembled all over and turned on
me face so white and miserable, that IN
all our distress / was conscious of a sur
prised feeling at seeing boy of his spirit
and character so overcome.


Cali is not hopeless yet" said, in
whisper.


so Mrs. Graham" said he, "it's all my
fault p


"Your fault How can that be ?''


"Oh, I've been such a self -willed fool
When I went for the horses | met Mr..
Moore, and he told me he had just heard
that the tiger had got loose, and | never
/ let him him know that we were going to
Galoosa, because / was sure if / did he'd
come up and put stop to our ride; and
l never told Mr.. Bruce, and didn't want
to drive round by the mill, for thought
the Captain might have heard, and all be-
cause was so determined to show could
drive and to have my own way, and do
what I'd set out to do, and | wouldn't be-
lieve there was any danger till after we
had started, and then it began to come
over me what had done, and that was
why wanted to take the short road, and
now have killed you and Dianar'-and
| poor Dick hid his face with moan of re-
morse and despair.


Poor Dickl Many piece of boyish will
| fulness and self f-confldence had I known
in my time, but none that seemed likely
| to bear such bitter fruit.


+ 80 Dick" was all that Diana said
| 1t was no time for reproaches, and I