A TROUBLESOME VISITOR.
There is no reason to discredit the truth of the accounts given by
hunters in the west of wild beasts of prodigious activity, strength and
ferocity, and that, belonging to no distinct class of animals, are a
mixture of the fiercest. Trappers and explorers in the wild regions of
the Rocky Mountains, sometimes meet a beast to which they have given the
expressive name of "Indian devil," whose power and daring are such that
a party of veteran hunters have been known to withdraw from a section
frequented by him, simply to avoid a fight. While the stories about them
may be exaggerated at times, there is no doubt that such animals exist,
and there is good reason to hold them in dread.
The beast that Fred Linden and Terry Clark saw in the path before them
resembled a panther more than any animal they could call to mind. It
might have been described as a cross between a tiger and panther, had
that been possible. Fred had heard his father speak of those creatures
that were detested and feared, and he was sure that they were going to
have trouble with this one. How fortunate that each boy held a loaded
gun in his grasp!
The action of the hybrid was as peculiar as his appearance. He seemed to
have been trotting quietly along the trail with his nose down, as though
following the scent, when he became aware that his game had stopped, and
were surveying him with some interest. The beast also came to an abrupt
halt and threw up his head, as though he was equally curious to learn
something about the party of the first part.
Standing thus, with his nose quite high in the air, it struck both boys
that he showed a resemblance to a wolf as well as a panther. He was
larger than either, and there could be no doubt that he was amazingly
muscular, active and courageous.
Thus stood the opposing parties, as they may be called, for a full
minute. Each looked steadily at the other, the space between them being
no more than fifty yards. Had it been less, both boys would have fired
at him, but they were afraid that such wounds as they could inflict
would only rouse his fury. One of the most marked peculiarities of the
"Indian devil" is his toughness, some of the stories in this respect
being almost incredible.
All at once the beast seemed to be overcome with disgust for the two
youngsters. He whisked squarely about and trotted away, showing a bushy
fox-like tail that almost swept the ground.
"I call that an insoolt!" exclaimed Terence Clark, bringing his gun to
his shoulder, taking quick aim and letting fly, before his companion
could object. He insisted that he had hit the animal, but it is likely
he was mistaken, for it gave no sign of being touched, trotting with the
same even step until it passed from sight around a bend in the path.
"I hit him hard," insisted Terry, who proceeded to reload his piece;
"there's no doubt of the same."
"If you had done so, he would have given some evidence of it, but there
was not the slightest."
"Ye know that such creatures are tough," coolly remarked Terry; "and the
bullet has glanced off his side as from a rock."
"If I could believe that," said the other, "I would hide somewhere until
he went away, for it would be only a waste of powder and ball to shoot
at him."
"Hasn't he gone off? What are ye talking about?"
"Gone away? Yes; for awhile, but we are not done with that beast yet; we
shall have trouble with him."
"If we keep our guns loaded and our powder dry, we'll open on him, and
if we can't kill him we'll fill him with so much lead that he won't be
able to travel fast, and we'll bid him good-by and walk from him."
The boys waited a few minutes, thinking possibly that the strange
creature would show himself again, but he did not appear, and they
turned about and resumed their journey.
They were now on one of the best stretches of the trail. The ground was
even, there were no bowlders or rocks in the path to make walking
difficult, and the undergrowth, which in some places was quite an
obstruction, did not interfere. By the middle of the afternoon, Fred was
confident they were twenty miles at least on the road, and he said that
if they came upon an inviting place, they would go into camp for the
night. The package which each carried on his back was wrapped in a
blanket that could be used to lie upon by the fire, or in severe
weather, though they would have cared little had they owned nothing of
the kind.
Their good spirits continued, and they were walking at a leisurely pace,
when a rustling in the bushes on the left caused them to look in that
direction. There stood the strange beast, not fifty feet away, head
erect, and staring at them with the same inquiring look that he showed
some time before.
"I wonder how he likes a side view of us," said Terry, partly amused,
but somewhat frightened; "I think he is close enough for us to fetch him
this time."
Fred was inclined to give him a shot, but he felt some doubt, and while
he was considering the question, the beast whisked about and vanished
like a flash.
"He is a strange animal," said Fred, lowering his gun, which he was in
the act of raising; "and I am more satisfied now than ever that we shall
have trouble with him. The first time that we gain a fair shot, that is,
like we had just now, let's tumble him over. He may be as daring and
tough as the hunters say, but there isn't any animal tough enough to
withstand a couple of well-aimed bullets."
"I agree wid ye--that is, after one was fired. That shot of mine was
well aimed and struck, but it takes somethin' more to bring him down, as
a colored friend of mine once said when a house tumbled over on his
head."
"You saw how spry a creature he is, and if he should happen to drop down
upon us from the branch of a tree, those sharp claws of his would play
the mischief with us."
Since there was no place in sight that suited for camping, Terry
reloaded, and they kept on. After the fright they had received, you may
be sure they maintained a close watch of the wood in every direction. As
yet they had seen no game from which to procure food, but they wanted
to go into camp near a spring or stream of water. The latter is
generally looked upon as one of the indispensables by a party of
campers, and it was not likely that the youths would have to travel far
before finding what they wanted.
The sun had not yet dropped below the horizon when they struck the very
spot. There were the bubbling brook, lined by mossy banks, the small
open space, the tall column-like trunks; and the heavy overhanging
boughs, which, late though it was in the season, would allow but few
drops of a shower to find their way through. The air was cool, but there
were no signs of a storm.
"There couldn't be a better place," said Fred, when he had noted all the
points; "here is every thing that a party can want, except it be supper,
which they ought to bring with them."
"And somebody has been here ahead of us," added Terry, kicking apart the
ashes at the base of a large tree; "there's where the fire was
kindled."
"No doubt it is where father and the rest of them spent the first night
after leaving home: that shows that we have made good progress, and, if
no accident happens, we shall arrive on time."
"There is no need of our hurryin', as I understood that a gintleman once
obsarved whin they were goin' to hang him; if we are two or three days
late in gettin' there, what's the odds?"
"None--though this fine weather can not last long, and when it is over,
I should like to be at the end of our journey, where we shall have good
shelter. I wonder what has become of the wild beast?"
"Be the powers! but there he comes!"
The words had hardly passed the lips of the startled Terry Clark, when
the strange animal was seen in the path in front of them, in precisely
the same position as when first noticed. He had evidently passed around
to the front, as though determined to study the boys from every point of
view. He seemed to have been standing for some minutes before discovered
by the boys, and was now observed approaching, as the Irish lad had
announced.
He did not gallop or trot, but walked slowly, just as though having made
up his mind to take a select meal off the youngsters, he was going to do
so with the deliberation of an epicure that extracts the fullest
enjoyment from his delicacies.
There was something unnerving in the sight of the frightful animal
approaching in this noiseless fashion, his jaws parted just enough to
show his long, white teeth, but giving utterance to no growl, or
threatening act, beyond the mere advance itself. His large, round eyes
had a phosphorescent glow, and the long, sinewy body and limbs were the
repository of a strength and activity that might well make a veteran
hunter timid about encountering him.
"By gracious!" said Fred Linden; "we're in for it now; he doesn't mean
to wait for us to attack him, but is coming for us."
"If I was called on to make a wager," said Terry, as cool as ever, "that
would be the view that I would take of the same."
"You fire first and I will follow; take good aim, and send your bullet
right between the eyes."
There was no time to spare, for the beast at that instant was within a
dozen yards. Terry Clark brought his rifle to his shoulder, sighted
quickly, and pulled the trigger.
That he struck the creature was proven by his snarling growl and slight
upward leap; but instead of stopping, he broke into a gallop and came
straight on.
Then Fred Linden aimed and fired, but he also failed to check the
advance of the animal.