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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Wingham Times, 1899-07-14, Page 7Ti VI3LE T(, E.T. .AV ,.,.r.: a,. sxx: l %,COPYRiGMT;QIs`$ 6Y4A•M 00, nuc the lurernaz ratotnatseemea to tiling to toe had .brought the owner to the inn, where Oy Walters was prgrnpt totake advantage of the frightful means thus placed at his disposal for my ua . going. 1 knew that tfie scent of thesa emienals approaches as close to the guar• velour"as anything in this world, It yeas impossible for me to shako off the brute or brutes (for there was no saying; wbether there was one or more on any track) except by taking to the water, and 1 know not whether there was a Istream within miles of me; nor could I guess which way to turn to search for one, These descendants of the nzan hunters of slavery clays would trail a fugitive. into the wildest recesses of a swamp and compel him to escape rending by climbing a tree, where his pursuers Could capture him at their leisure, 1 strew my revolver and with something of the panic shown by Erastus turned toward the wood which Loomed in front and plugged into Black 1VIan'a Swamp, natant only upon getting away from my enemy, who was to be dreaded. enoro than a jungle tiger. The ground was soft andspongy, the best be the world for trailing, and none could have known better than I that the brute would soon be on my heels. "If there is but oue, or possibly two," 1 reflected, "I will settle him with my revolver." The baying sounded atintervals, and I fancied it came from one animal, though there could well 'be several, whose cries were similar. The men Who Accompanied the hound did so in :silence. There was no call for them to waste their strength in shouting. I thrashed ahead, sometimes catching shy feet in the wirelike vines, with the Branches switching any face ,and a larger limb' occationally dompolling nae to 43hango my course, but all the time I, was plunging -deeper into the swamp P which had served more than ono run- away way Glave in the past. The terrifying clanger, leaving out of .account the dog, was from the mea at .his boos. Ib hadbeen aziuounceclby aim Dungan, loader of the mob, that I 'Vas to bo shot down if I tried to escape /rem my captors, and I had not only -made the attempt, but had well nigh succeeded. Consequently they would make short work of me, and Cy Wal- ters would not hesitate to give me, to variation of the "witch's parole," to he had done in tho case of znore than i one miserable wretch in wartilnes. I had run barely 200 yards when i heard the bloodhound thrashing behind " sate. He was on my. trail and emitted a ' ray whichet fancied contained a note of oxultaation in its horrible discord. Cer- tainly it was warranted. To my surprise, the ground suddenly sloped upward, and before I suspected anything of the loud I debouched into a snna11 clearing loss thou half an acre in extent, in the middle of which was n pile, of logs, evideutly the ruins of some cabin Unit -had tumbled to pieces 'through the lapse of time and the wear of weatber. With that instinctive tonging to de- fer the final calamity I ran p,wiEtly across the open space to the piled logs, ' 'where. I paused, revolver in llaand, and looked back. Since a meeting with the dog was inevitable there could be tic better place than the logs iu the middle of the clearing. "Tho men must be some distance be- hind hit"—.nh!". Matters went with a rush. I had not. stood more than threeadnutes, panti:.°y,, at bay when tbo hound here into sight i on the edge cf the clearing and charged straight for rio like n meteor. Tho true bicodhound is not of iarz e size, bot eaten hitzaself could net possess ' a more hideous front, while his strength dusky "y Berenice Cer11Cr• isprodigious. � a • " ed by ono of those black detnans 'has brained him with a club when ho made i his leap or he has slittcd his throat with a knife at ciao quarters, but the chttecee are always the other way. Ir one Itaow I better than 1 that in a hand to heed ,struggle I would• bo as lielpleee as ' against the assault of n, panther. But ' any reVolver'contained three charges. In the clear starlight the dog' eatig;ht (eight of me at the same ivattint that 1 saw him, He omitted a peouliarcry and rushed aeras the :open space as if shot from a catapult. I stood aerigid ashen. 'My panio bad vanished, and ',never was cooler in any life. Before the hound was half Way me I leveled my weapon and held my finger on the trigger'until he'WAS hardly -Ave yards distant. Then flet fly. 1 made the statement at the opening a of this "tory that l~ was an >;pekt with the revolver, as ivy numerous Moeda of the Seventh tegintent will testify, but 1 haver 'nolo 'a Brattier buiIseya than on that tt7otober night in a Mistis- elLCAN.tl '' sippi swarnp, when I sent a bullet into. the brain of the bfoodltonnd that way charging for my throat. It entered his skull betweeu the eyes, and, rouging downward, must have plceived through ids heart, my theory being based uvon ;the consequences of the shot The dog uttered a rasping bowl, and leaping straight up in the air for sir or eight feet dropped on his Sado, rolled over, furiously clawing tho ground. and air, and then lay motionless, as dead. as Julius Caesar. My fear wa.s thee he had companions of hisieIf b own epodes!. so, there fleuld be no better place than the present to have it out with them. If I could Maintain any marksmanship, I was goofs for two more. But intense listening for two or three minutes failed to bring another sound of tbo nature dreaded, It was evi- dent that only a single hound had been used at this stage of the business. A few hours would doubtless bring a change. But I heard something else that was to be dreaded with au equal dread. It 'was the sound sonde by et least two zneu as they hurried through the swamp toward the spot- whence sounded the shot of the revolver and the death cry of the dog. One at least had a Winches. ter, against which any -smaller weapon was useless. I bad no wish to meet Oy Ylaltera, and, leaping down from the log- on which I had been standing, 1 darted for the opposite side of the clear fig, With the knowledge that not a me - meat was to be lost. • ureal as was my had° it was withi e second of being too Into, for ti=e°men whp were pursuing me hot footed were oloser than I suspected, Being from un- der the protecting shadow of the trees, 1 was to plain sight as .1 reached the other side of the clearing attilemament the leading pursuer emerged from the wood. An unexpected complication ° saved ane from being winged before' I could plunge into shelter. There were three men after me, Cy Walters; Archie Hunter and the owner af,the bloocihound that had juke finished his last hunt fora flying fugitive. It so happened that the bereaved dog owner was in the lead, he probably being bet ter acquainted with the peculiarities of his animal, but the others were only a short distance behind, The sight of tbo motionless form on the ground gilled the naan with irre- strainablo rage. • With an emprecation, he bounded forward and ;paused over the carcass, as if to make sure of the truth. A Bianco ivaa sufficient. Then, Winchester in hand, be .glared around for sight of the one who had done the deed. He was in time to catch sight of 'my vanishing form, as ho brought. his grin to his • shoulder, while Waiters ane hunter had just dashed into the claw- ing. Casting ono glance over tray shoul- der, I leaned among this trees acid dodged to one aisle with My head bent low, as the bullet whistled over rue. 13ut I had not yet shaken off my -pur- suers, and the 'chase was on angio more with redoubled vigor: CHAPTEi XL My pursuers were so Wesel() ane that there was danger of betraying myself by the noise I made in hurrying through the wood. The clearing gave theta op- portunity to run ucroes it much faster than I could pick my way through the undergrowth. Bearing this in mind, my object was to reach. a point where I could not be discovered in the obscurity unless the mon came directly upon oto. • It was al- ready established that there had been but ane bloodhound ce any trail, ;and he being disposed of nothing more was to bo dreaiicil from his species. Naturally hued° an a ru pt change in toy course as soon as I was fairly in the wood. I moved to the left, consid- erably slowing my gait, with a view of suppressing every sonnei of any move- monts. It was impossible to do more than partly to succeed, for the bushola and vines were so intricate that ne one other than an American Indian Cot;ld have advanced without noise, and the sound of the eager footsteps• almost oh my Neely kept me going when I ought to have been still, l had traversed less than SO yards in this Mannar when I paused and listened for evidence of my .pursuers, but the stillness of the swamp 'lvae profound.: Probably they had stopped with the same object: At any rate they did not know exactly where I Was, mid 1 deter- nrfned not to give up the advantage. The uneasy feeling, however, which mune with the certainty that they were Clew et hand led the to edge farther Off, doing to with such hteatthy care that I was shire of not betraying myself. lily tart?grass of necaseity. Walk slow, bat atilt ;it was progress, and that WAS ra oouacuur time. teeddenly 1 felt a..cold sensation in the foot 'which 1 thrust forward, as with bowed hf'rc1 /patted the hushes in front so as to adxnat tig niy noiseles2e. advance, The Isauso a tho chid was apparent. I had ;placed zny foot in water that came Quay the lrboo top. t inoo, however, the thing could not be ltelpeci and the foot seemed to rest on firm support I diff not withdraw it. -Still leaning over 1 ad• vanced the other foot and was startled. to #end the water re.loh half way to azly knee. "This won't do," I reflected us 1 withdrew. "13y and by 1 shall be swim. Minq. That such was the fact became ap- parent the neat moment, when I per. seised with the aid of the star gleam that 1 was deeding cn the edge of a stream of water whose depth,. I had al- ready found, rapidly increased from the Elaoro. It weeeaey to distinguish the other bauk, wbioh was hardly 20 feet away. I had come • to the side of a creek that wound through 131ack Man's swamnpand could reach the farther shore wee by wi"n"ing. All will understand my feeling that safety 'could not to attained except by plaoinl znyeelf on the other bank. The belief was ohiinorioal, but it was none the less urgent for tont, My avorsiou to swimming the stream, however, was Warm. Tba water was chilly, and 1 should be excessively uncomfortable in my eaturatecl and dregglcd clothing.. Some other means of ferrying the creek must be found. Meanwhile I did not forget my pure suers, who were undoubtedly picking their way through the wood much nearer mo than was pleasant. I3eeause of this fear I began stealing along the bank of the darkstream in the wear: .hope of finding a favorable place for crossing, though sensible at the same NOW 4t the abeeedityof theezueetationt. r � . 4' I paused anditstcncd. "lSy gracious, but that's lucky!" 1 exclaimed within the following ten minutes as I halted at file base of a thick oypross, as 1 judged it to be, whieh;'starting on the edge of the creek just before me, grew straight toward the other bank, as if nature bad set out with the purpose of forming a foot- bridge, but changed her mind just be- fore .reaching the farther -shore, and, curving upward gradually, attained the perpendicular. . Thus tho first twenty odd feet of the trunk took the feral of a bow, after which the course was as, vertical hs that of a mountain pine. - • "I couldn't ask fora better bridge," was my conclusion after a brief study of the course of the vegetable crank in front cf zoo. • Being without any luggage, my limbs were free, and, hesitating only long enough to make sure of •ivy bearings, I carefully Climbed upon the trunk,. wlziob. Was almost horizontal, with a diameter. of nearly twe feet. No limbs appeared until at the point farthest from the bank which • I was leaving --that is. where the trunk began curving upward. toward the perpendicular. There a bi• furcation took place, the true dividing as near as may be into halves, each of Which again ,su bdivided until the small- er limbs and branches were numberIese I regarded this conformation as for- tunate, sines it offered a good support from vteich to leap to the shore that was not distant. ' With so broad a base and the firm, shaggy bark upon which to rest my feet, it ought to'havo been easy to trav- erse tbe brief distance upright I should have done so had the sun been shining; but, as it was, I began creeping forward onany bands and knees, ready for.auy treachery iu ray bridge. 1 had not gone Half the distance when a. slaver of fright passed through ane at the reflection that I was repeating in a small way tho experience of n few =le- ntos before. In other words, I had ad- vanced into the open, where 1 was in view of any pursuers if they shortie hap- pen to reach the stream anywhere neer where 1 clic#. Find this thought °centred o ane before setting out I should have j delayed niy action until there was inot'o assurance en that point, but it was the ate to turn back, and with more titre. oneness than I end felt sinoo starting OS my flight I hurriedly droptalong the t g Wz11*arn's Luck. Here is a good story of a elan called William who was engaged as a window ,leaner at a certain big hotel in Loudon, says an English ex change. One morning William, It:. .stead of doing his worts was amusing himself by reading the paper, and, as bad loci would have it, the marl What dyspeptics need is not arts, ager looked in, a facial digestants but somothing that will "'What's this?" he said. William will pinanufacturetheiro imacs owngso it ht digestive was dumbfounded. "Pack up Your ferments. Phirgs and go," said the manager. For twentycars now Burdock So poor William went to tine Wilco, Dined Bitters been permanently 1xrt:W the money which was owing to siring severe oases of dyspepsia, and Wee, and then went upstairs and put indigestion that other remedies were on his .Sunday clothes. Corning powerless to reach. dawn, he went to say Good bye lo. Mr, James G. Keirstead, Collina, infne of the other servants, and there Kings Co., N.B., says : he happened to run across the man- "I suffered with dyspepsia for years and ager, who did not recognize him in his beat cook; "Do you want a job ? asked the manager. "Yes, sir," said William, "Can you clean windows?" "Yes, sir," t`You, look a handy sort of chap. I only gave the last roan 22s,, but. I'll give you 25s." - • i,••,.,....r,�,.r.„..•.a,,.,,,.„ "Thank you, sir,” said William ; and in Half an hour he was back in ahc same olc4 room --cleaning the window this time, and not reading the paper. Didn t Dare TatMeat. tried everything I heard of, but got no relief until I took Burdock Blood Bitters. "I only used three bottles and now I ant well, and can eat meat, which I dared not touch before without being in great .distress. I always recommend 1. 11. B. as being the best remedy for dr all . stomach carders and as a family medicine." Appieeiation is pleasant, of course, but it is depreciation which stirs us to effort. Five special trains witlt immi- grants passed through Ottawa Tues. - day. . A .Hamilton civic committee de- clined to elose the cemetery against Sunday funerals. Vacation is that time of year when the small 'boy gaits worrying his teacher and stays at home to worry his parents. Dr. J. E. Graham, an eminent physician of Toronto, and one of the leaders of the profession, died Friday evening. Master Willie Boswell, son of the former proprietor of the Boswell House, Toronto, was drowned while canoeing at Bowmanvilie, L. J. Nadeau, of the departmental store, 171 St. Lawrence street, Mont- real, who bas a branch store on Notre Dame street west, has assigned, with liabilities of about 525,009.. Francis E. B,tooks, a machinist at E. Leonard Sc Son'a foundry, at Lon-. idoii, Ont., has been informed that. out in California there is a fortune of $7,000,000 waiting for him. t 1 runic, not paasieg until Y. reached its first forking. The vast relief of this situation Will be understood when it is Meted that. it two lase the benefit of the shadow' east by the branolees abcvo ata well as by these on the there. Them wee little eterli.Cht, but it wurl unizhtzt +crtriters- J RETURNED ON TIME. Carefully washed, properly ironed, correctly finished and fairly priced --- that's the history of your linen whena, brought here. Not a thing in clam washing preparations to Injure the fibre Of the goods and not a thing unhealthy about our work rooms. T..D. 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Ic has a surpassingly refreshing effect, brightens the pelt anti puts the skin into a thor. ougldy healthy condition. Price 51.00 per 84 oz. can. Pig Wash Persiatio Pig Wash is successfully used in all eases of skin diseases Of Swine, and for destroying nits, lice and yerfnin generally. I eops the skin in a healthy condition and ensures a healthy appearance in the dressed animal for martet. SprayHen House Ptry Powder. and Persiatio ITo, Iiouao Spray and Poultry Powderwder n l destroy vermin peculiar to the feathered etot--on fowls or in sheds. ret as a disinfectant, destroying germs and purifying the atmosphere, Used liber- ally they prevent roup and kindred diseases. Purchase these goods from your dcater or send to us direct forthetn. We invite correspondence, The Piekhardt Renfrew Co., Limited, Stouifitille, Ont. 50 YEARS* EXPERIENCE 'TRADE MARKS DESMONS COPYRIGHTS &G. etyma, senh f aSketch and oraori tion ma y tascertain our optnton - whethercher an lnVentiOis probably 1nt0ntaUlO. 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ISO frost f■ put op dm** to traitory at tuttoor i stoma datum tor tow woo If yot don't find this sort of Ripans Tabules At the Druggists tend' Plitt Cents to Tem *SPANS ClittneAt. CotP.ittir; midis Spruce St., New York, and they will be sent to you by oafs to ze cartons will be mailed fbr ell cents. 'rh ;elteneert are keit it ate that Rlpans '1`xbulee ars the wart ''Medi inar y+oaa leant.