| OCR Text |
Show I B BaM H H fe Ku 1 W H H H H Copyright, 1008, By .Tosoph B. Bowles. !"Tib and T had mapped out n little tamper over Europe, I wagering a SroaJway supper I could take him to some spot on the continent ho was not. familiar with. It allowed to make xho exnfiriDiont, I reckon I would havo lost, is I'd picked out a. cosy corner in Bulgaria, which . I subsequently learned he had onco summeveil in. But when wo 'reached Bombay wo worn mot by ordors from the mainspring asking that wo undertake a little African tour, .something with leopards in it. This was old work for Tib and mo, and although al-though all our plans for dodging the guide Look in Europe were smashed, lie displayed no disappointment as he pre; pared for tho sail across the Sea of Arabia to the hunelied-up shoulder of Africa, where wc shifted to a southbound south-bound boat. "Once arrived, Tib promptly obtained ob-tained permission to net au3'thing on four lege in the Congo State, wo paying a handsome premium on all victims Hhfppod. He also took out licenses in Tgnnda protectorate and for the East Africa protectorate. Yon'd suppose Wc Jumped Enthusiastically Up and kJ Dow" Mi Wi . thoso stamping grounds would suffice i to fill all the menageries under canvas, 'j 5 ,' yet Tib began to lose all interest in jm ; '.' them when wo drew near to tho Uganda 7m border and ho heard of Lake Bango pfl oountry, which is encompassed by the gk l , big Magli marsh. That region is under IB ' no protectorate, and although the in 9 ' imbitautH were said to be replete with B ; disagreeable sontiments toward slraug- 9; o's. the old chap was crazy to visit it. Tlio fact it was forbidden ground to BM '. j1 the blond race onlj' conjured up in his 2 mind all sorts of eccentric quadrupedal H r ' possibilities; and when our head man shivered in tho brazen sunlight and S : '" said Feeney Scraws existed solely to ; kidnap fno'lish transients, and added jM ' f- that fugitives from that realm had rc- ml lated fearsome nursery talcs about fl 1 man-eating white leopards, I knew the ffiw.dic.c were' juggled for our going to the rW(T- Bango. W ' "An anxious inquiry on my part jfll ; drew forth the information that Mr. S ' Scraws was probably the mout accom- jfl plished assassin in all Africa, lie was 9 ;. so caiel ho ought to havo been a den- ; 5 tist. He was a native chief, the head 9 : man chattered, a professor of unpleas-So? unpleas-So? : ant practices. The white traders gave m'- him his name, it being a travesty on n, some Arabian appellative. He was .w ; further described as one of those amia hl individuals who just dote on m , slaughtering folks. And he -was the 3fl ; fay ' we were taking chances of not loth ; meeting. Why, say, I reckon the dust ,3 r on his conscience was seven inches thick. I told Tib it was bad enough Jgjjr' to got chummy with various disagree- ol: able forms of death in just trying to 3 catch wild life for a show, without skiv- 3 ing our mnrgin down another degree m i by inviting the acquaintance of that .sS ' highbinder. But he simplj' laughedand 6 I reminded mo of the innumerable timos S I had not been killed, and kept on his .-3 ' way. "But when we reached the Uganda .M border almost all our porters threw JR! down their4tyacks and demonstrated SV they possessed about as much sand aa an invalid meadow lark. Jt did no v2 I iiood to twit them of the deficit, how-.1 how-.1 ever, and although Tib's reproaches jlj );. ttciq about as sweet as a wormwood if )' factory, the' remained firm, stifled their & prido and insisted the' would havo JM nothing to do with Feeney Scraws and jntjf his children. They would wait on the tju vr border until they had read our obit-yos obit-yos i uary notice, but cross the Hue they ; would not. Several oight-borc rillcs as bribes finally resulted in a handful of ?v VJulu boj's sticking by us, but wo left g ; Most of the baggage behind with the "Thus with a very slim entourage we ' ; drew near Mr. Scraws s boma, as the native village is culled, and began hunt-I hunt-I ; ' ing the fever-laden marsh for white 1 1 leopards. "?fow that T. am out of that busi- , ne.cs, J '11 explain that much of our Buir- i i. cuhs in trapping the untamed people of Ji tho tanglewood was due to a powerful ! i C ammonia pistol, much like those used ' today bv cyclists in hesitating ugly i dogs. Tib hud improved the article1 as ordinarily made until it would slioot 'l , fifteon charges of tho strongest kind of fc f , dope, and our employer often utilized B jf it in quieting caged animals in place- of W;9' the crude liot iron. One slug of that iP ! stuff, as prepared by Tib, would send n ! t he average striped "cat or lion off to m l , shunbcrland for several minutes, and fl' the patient on awaking wns usually Wjj vory docile. Tib always claimed he l j could construct a repeating rifle that 3; jfr would carry enough of the nectar to jjlj t 'ay low any male elephant that ever rtt x waveil tusks. njl F "Well, we made tlie cast shore of 1 5H Lake Bango, undisturbed, and as tho afl f hunting v.-as as thin as an almshouse H j stnw, wo picked up some native boats nijj a - ami crossed to tho west side. The sin- ''fal is J0r asPc'-,,; f eountry chilled mc,, A1 f Sn osI,it0 tIl terrible heat; i-Jso," fvw & a.vho, it was a touch of the marsh fever. Anywaj-, when my bo, in his m I maint patois, tried to tell mo how I luei! Scraws was reputed to pick up fle!l i !uuc,11 Voc'cct' money by selling his guests pj-j i t( rirn Bay's people up north, my nerve ! vanished and I. begged Tib to turn i about. iM i 'I1.0 studied the approaching shore a , steadily for a few minutes and then ob- m ! -rvo(l: 'Too late, my child. I think M host awaits us; the troes are alive, jp! ' retreat now would mean a swarm of them upon us, for thoy have v. Cow fl I 1,iu'lr ferries on tho beach, I note. Brace ml up uud try to iui'usc a little self-re- spect into our simplci followers, as I fear the.y have forgotten their ancestral prido and will do us scant credit.' "And all the whilo we wore slowly drawing ahead, the blacks paddling mcchauicall", their eyes rolling abnormally ab-normally as they sought to pinrco -with fascinated gaze the threatening; rank foliage, now very near. And jnist as I hud finished a survivo-or-perifih ha-i ha-i rangue, a cloud of Feeney 's magpies burst into view and oven wadea ont up to their shoulders to meet, na, bo warm was their cordiality. Tib had lighted a quinine o.igarotto and stood in the bow- of our boat, eoomingly unaware un-aware of one six-foot midget shrieking shriek-ing iu his ear and flourishing an ax about, his rotund form. I tried to bo a good undorstudyj and the galley-slaves galley-slaves wero so thoroughly frightened they sat like cigar-store Indians. As tho boat grated on tho rocks Tib jumped ashore, thrust his hands into nis pockets, and gazed about for the head pirate. " 'There he is, Billy tho man with the face like an inflamed nightmare. Jovial, whole-souled-looking chap, eh?' and he nodded his head carelessly toward him wo both knew to be Chief Feeney Scraws. "His face was heavy and oblong, and every species of eussodnesB that had ever attracted attention had carved its initials betwean his low forehead and sharp chin. His ereaac of a mouth was smiling, but his eyes blazed with a pure green luster. They made mo think of emeralds. We afterward after-ward learned that in nationality he was a polyglot, containing tho -worst of all races; and every drop of blood in his miserable carcass sat up nights tr3'ing to devise somo bit of deviltry that would cause the other corpuscles to blush -with envy. "As I was studying our host, Tib flicked tho ash from his anti-fever cheroot and sauntered up to him and stock out his hand as if ho expected to hear tho chief say: '"Welcoruo home!' Instead of that Feeney grabbed tho palm of friendship in one lack claw and with a hoot of rago held tho old chap fast, whilo with his other talon he lifted a short a:c. " 'Don't make a. move, Billy,' warned Tib in a low voice, as with his freo hand he reached in his pocket and produced pro-duced his last cigarette and lighted it. "Tho moral effect of this little act j swept the chief off his feet for tho I moment, sir. He lowered his weapon I with a grunt of chagrin, or wondor, and released my patron. It was lucky thus, as I was unarmed, all our guus. except our ammonia pistols, being be-ing in the boat. And I reckon if I had shot Fcono3', Tib and I soon would havo overtaken him in tho spirit land; for ihc mob was unusually un-usually demonstrative. " 'Keep near me and walk slow.' cautioned Tib. 'Any show of fear means the emergency ward.' Then he mopped his brow and. motioned for tho chief to lead us to some shade. It was coolly done, and some lono corpuscle of our host's tainted blood began to admire tho old fellow's nerve, as was ovinced by the swift gleam of his green eyes. It was fleoting, but wo oth caught it,' and Tib murmured over his resolute shoulder: 'We've got him puzzled a bit. Wouldn't he make an elegant wild boy I I'd almost prefer pre-fer him in a cage to a. white leopard.' "I remarked I would prefer him at the bottom of the Bango, well surrounded sur-rounded by his subjects, and then tho assombly turned and began making away from tho lake. Wo walked beside be-side tho chief, although he scowled and motioned for us to fall in behind. Tib pretended not. to understand the hint and we kept our places in tho chorus. When we came to a. boggy spot and had to jump it. Tib never hesitated hesi-tated to rest his plump hand on Fcenoy's shoulder for support. And the chief's rage at this familiarity was intense to witness, sir. Ho simply stopped and dashed his ax into a t.Tee and let out a series of yells you could have heard in Uganda. ' 'I'll chasten this proud snirit,' grinned Tib. 'Arry millinery displaj-of displaj-of white feathers will mean an immediate imme-diate clinic. Tread on his heels a bit.' "This command sceemd to mo to lend itself to funeral environments, but I obeyed, and would havo been brained jnstantcr if Tib had not stepped in between and in tho traders' trad-ers' lingo called a halt. Although tho chief stayed his hatchet arm ho .lumped enthusiastically up and down "several times in an ecstasy of pique and knocked one of his bodyguard senseless sense-less with tho flat of his ax. The fellow fel-low would have received the edge, only tho blade caught in an overhanging creeper. Tib smiled in approbation, and to further bIiow his approval gave the prostrate warrior a hearty kick. "But Mr. Scraws did not possess a reputation for being thoughtfully and exquisitely cruel for nothing, and after a short session of storm signals his merry face was distorted into a smilo and he clapped us both on tho shoulder amiably and indulged in spasmodic duckings. " 'iou'vo dono the trick,' 1. ro-marked ro-marked admiringly. But the face Tib turned on mo was puckered with ap-prehension. ap-prehension. " 'I fear you are in error, my child,' he protested. 'When Brother" Feeney laughs way down in his stomach there's something stirring for the spectators. Wc had him dubious at first; now ho has decided just whnt he's going to do and it tickled Jiim. And. I guess, what agitates his risibles wouldn't lake an-prizc an-prizc in a, Vermont parlor entertainment.' entertain-ment.' "And Scraws's fearful good nature continued ris wc left tho wood and came out into a little clearing where the odoriferous village was nnking. Once in the opening, ho patted my arm affectionately, and then dropped to the sward and writhed iu merriment. " 'Maybe h'o isn't so black as he's tanned. j I whispered hopefully. " 'Kindly observe how his followers receive his evidences of good humor,' suggested Tib. ''And hang mo, sir. if Forney's men weren't all of a shake! Tho squaws, too, who ran up to moot us, no sooner saw their master enjoying his little joke than thoy began tearing their hair and scuttling for cover. Feoney, choking chok-ing with mirth, called a warrior to approach. ap-proach. This man rolled his eyes iu despair and gave a tree a farewell raj) with his head before oboying. His legs wabbled a6 he dragged himself forward and kneeled. His boss tapped him coyly on tho pato with tho axe-hnndlo. It seemed to mo the chief ruffled the address longer than was necessary and was loath to desist. But with a sigh lie finally lowered his comforter and the sweat rolled from tho crouching figure's limbR. " 'Why, look at tho black imp'vS eyes!' nuumured Tib. ' "And Fooney's eyes were blood, fed. " '"Not what you'd call amiability,' I suggested, with a ahudder. - "''Certainly not the innocent jollity of childhood,' groaned Tib. "At this point tho chief gave the warrior some command, and as if reprieved re-prieved from death, the subject sprang to his feet and motioned us to follow him. Tho chief, still decorated with his hideous smile, nodded for us to obey, and as wo were led to a hut In the middle of tho glado he kept us company and bowed us within with much mock humility. " 'Too intonsely polite,' snorted Tib, onco we were alone and the opening open-ing filled up by tho backs of two giaut guards. Then ho added, thoughtfully, 'But my ancostors weren't Green mountain moun-tain boj's just for notoriety's sake, and he'd hn'e a run for his monoy if I had a gun.' " 'They aro busy about something,' I remarked, as th'o sound of falling timbors and the guttural cries of the men beat against tho hide sides of our prison. " 'I guess it is something elaborate,' admitted Tib, trying to peer through tho opening; whereat the guards pushed him back. "It's needless to say our little cosy corner was gotting warm with the doorway door-way closed. But the warriors, sitting back to us, not knowing bnt what they'd get a knife or a kick in the neck at any minute, demonstrated how dear to their hearts wero Fcenoy's orders, and wc got no fresh air. There they wero when the sun vanished and tho tropical night rushed in. Then torches were lighted outside and the bovy of villagers still kept at; work, while above the clamor we occasionally heard the hearty laughter of tho chief and knew tho point of his joke had lost none of its savor. Evidently he was preparing a four-pago comic supplement in five colors; and the very knowledge that ho was outdoing himself kept slumber on the side lines. "And as if I didn't have onough to fret over, Tib began to go light-headed from a taste of tho swamp rever, and talk rapidly in a hectic flnsh kind of a voice. 'Wo don't know what it is. but you can anticipate it is very complete com-plete and finished as to detail,' he mumbled, mum-bled, an the sound of the laborers grew scant in the coming gray of the morning. morn-ing. Thon 'Good-by, Alv Sweot,' he began be-gan to babblo in his cfcar. seven-story tenor as our guards silently roso and loffc us. " 'I say, old chap, don't,' I begged. 'It's almost sacrilegious.' " 'You silly ."fade,' ho quizzed, the red spots on his plump, checks now glowing as if stamped with a stencil. 'Great Scott!' next; he muttered, while T eat with despairing head ensconced in my hands. 'I guess, my child, I've a touch of the fever. Hum! and now I've got 'em. Walk in. ladies and gentlemen, gen-tlemen, walk in. One hour iu the big I animal tent beforo the first apt in the triplo sawdust arona. This is Gooseberry, Goose-berry, tho man-eating lion. See him ' ""'Oh, quit,' I cried. 'Can't you sec you're going daff3' with swamp sug- Ssstions?' For my little seance with e oven heat and shivers of the disease dis-ease had left me peevish. " 'Just as you say, my child,' he replied re-plied humbly. 'Ma3"bo oid Tib is crosseyed cross-eyed mentally, but hang nic if ho doesn't look like a lion.- A figment of the ' "And, great Scott, sir! I turned, and if there wasn't the bulky, befringed head of a big male NLco in the narrow j aperture of the tent! " 'Tib!' I Bhrleked. 'It's real!' ' "And at that my patron pealed forth j one resonant roar that caused tho mnss- ive beast to snarl and spring back. 'Where's the keeper?' he cried, again i going a bit flighty. 'Tho idea of let- ! ting him out to scare women and I I forgot. It's real.' Then ho put to rout j his imagination for a moment and swayed to the opening and scowled as ho fixed his attention on the present. 'We stand about as much of :i chance as an old-fashioned safe in the hands of a gang of yeggmen,' ho mumbled. "The timid peep I stolo over his shoulder, reiuforccd by the rising sun, j revealed for the first time what those captains of industry had been doing. During the night they had inclosed us and our villa in a palisade of young trees and slabs of bark; while at the ! other end of the corral the tawny form ' of our recent visitor walked nervously I back and forth with slow, gliding step, j Our host had prepared a little .Roman j holiday, and it was the anticipation of i this treat that incited him to chortle so 1 merrily on yester eve. "'We're the newer, better break-, fast food.' explained Tib, as he trird ! to wipo the nightmare from his eyes. I Then he gazed on mo cunningly and dc- inandcd: 'Don't plaj- It; too strong on i tho old man, Billy. T feel doped; but 1 is that or is it not ' ' " 'It is,' I gasped. 'For my sake come out of it. It's real.' " 'Enough to scare a scarlatina gorm i into being sterilized!' ho lisped. 'And, j oh, for tho touch of a Maxim gun aud tho sound' "'We've only our pocketknives,' I reminded, going so limber I had to clutch his hysterical shoulder x for support. sup-port. "My grasp seemed to jolt him toward reason a bit; for after looking look-ing at mo inquiringly he appreciated tho situation and said, more soberly: 'Wo must show 'cm tho early martyrs weren't the only hard' people, Billy. Pocketknives only. and by Lake Champlain! We're "both doddering idiots! Hurrah!' "Of course, if ho was going to shy awny from sanity in that way, it didn't make much difference what happened, hap-pened, and it sont tho tainted blood to my own belfry, and 1 sobbed: 'All right, old lion. Come and cat us. Why be poor and hungry when you? 'Shut up!' ho roared. 'Wo have the ammonia guns. Quick! Soo if they are loaded!' Then, moro slowly, 'If that beo would keep out of my head I'd teach 'em that tho spirit of Spartacus still loafs about iu old New England.' "'Please be sane,' 1 bogged, my head going cool again. 'A lion is all I can stand. My gun's loaded.' And uiy heart gave a mighty thump as I yanked it forth and found its bulb filled to the limit with Tib's ex-special brand of dope. "As he produced his pistol tho fever returned, and he pntted the barrel waggishly, wag-gishly, and then mumbled, 'L only hope tho hou that eats mo won't evn'r fight or have any quarrels-with your lion.' " 'There. 'b only one,', I Tomoustrated, slapping his shoulder, , " 'Very well! ' tho old olmp assonted, apologetically, 'if hu. comes onu at a timo ho cuu never .'get through " the door.' , , "It was a mighty tough combination, combina-tion, you'll admit, sir the Hon and Tib's erratic delirium. m It was moro I rouble than an unmarried man ought ; to inherit. 'Only one, remember I 'begged. ." 'Just as you say, Billy. 'but I.' can -suc two,' ho insisted, mildly. 'One's coming toward us; t'other ain't. Which shall wo shoot at 7" "And bless you, sir. there were two Hons. I thought at first I'd caught his hallucination and half expected, to soo n pink giraffo crawling up my shirt sleeve. But it was real. The audience, to enliven tho scene, had lot loose another tease in tho pon. " 'One at a time and a hugo surprise for each,' cheered Tib, swerving on his pins a bit. "But oven this shadowy chance was eliminated, for as ho spoke our hut vanished. The rascals had fastened a lino to tho top and had yanked tho meager shelter over tho barrier. t Thero we were in tho open, with a fringe of black faces mocking us ovor tho fence. "Tib stood with his mouth ajar in astonishment. Then he drow mo aside reproachfully, and whispered. '.Don't try to humor me. Tell me tho truth. Did that really happen, or was it a delusion?' de-lusion?' " 'All roal!' I howled, clutching his arm. He Lost Interest In Things. " 'I always like to know,' he explained, ex-plained, gravely. Then he cried: 'In tho name of tlio Continental Congress don '(, shoot too quick! ' "For the big. eight-foot maJe, accompanied accom-panied b" a four-foot tail, was creeping creep-ing toward us on his belly, while his pal stood and watched the proceedings proceed-ings with morbid curiosity, and as calmly as if it wero a mail-order business. busi-ness. ' ' 4 We soparated about ten feet and crouched read' to spring aside, and as tho ammonia repealers wero held in tho palm of tho hand, Feeney. shod-! shod-! ding tears of unrestrained joy, had. no iutimatiou wc possessed the masked bat tcries. " ' Uc sano, ' T again implored, 'but Tib, kneeling with both hands steadying steady-ing his gun, cast mo a whimsical smile aud fluttered his heal as if amused. A.nd the red spots on his cheeks didn't look good a bit. "Tlio king of tho wild wood, probably proba-bly empty of stomach and hungry ouough to cat a. whole tribo of white men, now began knitting his claws and agitating his tail tor a record-breaking record-breaking jump. Ho put his head closo to the ground when giving his class cry, and this caused it to rumble and reverberate intensely. " 'Take him!' cried Tib, and with a uumb heart I squirted a charge of the soothing syrup and noted it ruffle his breast. "And although it did not hit him fair, it pestered him and weakened him, and ho struck between us and whirled undecidedly in a circle. Then Tib staggered forward and idiotically made a grab for his highness with his loft hand, while with his right he tried to send home a settlor. " 'Oh, wiji gah!' bellowed, the populace, popu-lace, never having seen a lion so misused mis-used beforo. "And their eight-footer, seemingly oblivious of Tib, began humping himself him-self iu a narrow circle, with mo at the center. If Tib let go and fell I know the beast would mako tho circuit cir-cuit and bo upou him before he could get out of the way. For his every jump possessed all of tho hilarious energy of a fast freight train. "'Oh wagh! ' yelled the spoctators, as tho dizz3r pair sped by the second quarter, with the favorite about to break. " 'Ilang on and sprint faster, ' I on-' couraged, dancing wildly in my hysteria. hys-teria. " 'D'3re think I'm trving to throw this race?' retorted Tib, iu jerks, over his shoulder, as his heels cuffed only the elevations and his fat form snapped playfully into a horizontal horizon-tal position. "Then from down tho lists camo a roar that re-echoed even abovo tho hooting of the mob, and I turned to soo t.ho other cat, a female, smaller and maueloss, bounding up tho ajslc. This nerved me to jump outo tho race j track and send two Bhots full into tho 'mouth of Tib's steed, and as the mis-j mis-j chief-maker rolled over and sighed j sleepily in' old patron was Hung at. my feet. ' "Number two didn't pauso to in-j in-j dulgo in any funny stunts. Disregarding Disregard-ing all frills and fancy crouches, ,aho gave ono moro bellow, and with her four legs flung wide.- and tho sun's rays turniug her 3'cllowish flanks to old gold, sprang for Tib. The old chap, j although panting heavily, calmly 1 plunked her twice in inid-air and. had a third proscription ready 'wjhen sho landed. Aud aii tho sleep germs began I to work, the spectators were ' simply j swept off their feet, sin to see thoir ( ill-advised lady man-kijler trip a ino.r-! ino.r-! ris on her hind legs, spar at tlio atraos-1 atraos-1 phura and then come down, with a i crash.. "My head was swimming dizzily, I but. .1 ' gave a cheer, of defiance, and, I standing with one foot on the pros-I pros-I tratc monarch, viewed with pardonable pardon-able pride the paralyzed assemblage, whilo V)b copied 1113' pono on No. 1. ! "'Thibet! habet!' oried Tib. grab-"hing grab-"hing tne by the hand and leading 1110. '.gracefully 'forwnrd in front of Fcenoy's Fce-noy's onera box as if I. wero tho leading lead-ing lady sand wo both bowed oasi', with a bright sparkle in our fickle, fever-lighted, oyes, and Tib bowed oven more deopl3' with all his old-timo old-timo curtain grace, as Feeney, iu pure resoutment, tried to bito hiti ax. "Theu tho galleries began to choor, realizing wc were the best, pages over torn from a materia mcdica. T reckon at that moment wo completely filled in, (the foregrfound, middle distanco and background of all their joss dreams, and if it hadn't boon iot Mr. Scraws. A ' thoy'd have made us a present of all Africa, You sec, we'd done it so quiet. No noise, no rudeness, just an inclination on our part, and thoir biggest champions wero put to bed. Wo wero little tin gods in their eyes, and their yelping now took on more of awo th'an venom. But Feeney didn't appreciate our growing popu-Jarit3' popu-Jarit3' and foamed at tho mouth. Then he barked an ordor. "Wo wero still scraping a modcBt hoof in mild deprecation of tho encoro when the squaws began bobbing thoir heads violently and I was inquisitive enough to shyly turn aud look over in' shoulder. "'Attention!' I cried, and Tib wheeled just in timo to see our host's orders had resulted in anothor rudo cage being unloaded through an' opening open-ing in the paling, and two more beasts entered. "These started toward us on a canter, can-ter, and to my horror I observed Tib was frittering away the precious seconds sec-onds in gallantiy Kissing hs moiBt digits to a bevy of frenzied valentines, valen-tines, presumabl' the wives of the chief. " 'For my sakot' I had just time to invoko, when tho lion in the lead turned at an acute angle and got vary closo beforo I could pull tho trigger. I overshot. But Tib, ignoring his au-uoyer au-uoyer and after foolishly chanting some lines about 'Lions to right pf 'em, lions to left of 'em,' pivoted aud raked my villain by a neat snap-shot. And the next thing I know I was sailing sail-ing high enough through spaco to peep over tho top of tho inclosurc. It seems I was just one jump too slow in dodging, and the brute managed to collect the back of 103' shirt iu passing. "My roturn to earth jolted tho breath from my lungs, and 1 had to recline re-cline and watch Tib face his fato alone. I knew he must Lave ducked when enfilading my footpad, aud b' tho way tho survivor was performing I realized his accond shot had not boon wasted. Tho snuff-colored' dream vaguely brushed his ample paws against his muzzle aud gave one the impression of being intoxicated. Yot true to. his original design, he gravoly sauntered toward Tib fend made a clumsy leap. But two quick shots full in tho yellow eyoa announced his exit, and after I'd gained my feet wc both sank down wearily on his muscular flank. ""Well, sir, I reckon Central Africa never saw such a porfectly astounded set of natives as in Feono' Scraws and his little ones. There wero four of their king pins quiescent and wo lolling lazily back on tho bipgost. Wo had. laid them to rest as easily aa a laughter-loving chauffeur rnns down a crippled beggar with a sixty-horao power smoke-wagon. Naturally it madti tho crowd nervous, and the yowls they let out would havo frightened a pumping pump-ing station into hysterics. " 'Will tho lions show fight whon they revive?' I panted. " 'Will Feene' ring in actors until we've used up all the dopoi'.Tib asked, thoughtfnlby, in return, mechanically mechan-ically giving our cushion anothor desuetude de-suetude drop. 'This angle-killer won't last forever,' ho added, moodily. Thou the swamp-light stolo into his oyes again, and I knew somo quaint conceit con-ceit was addling his brain. " 'All down, Feeney,' he cried, cheerily, cheer-ily, dancing toward the paling. 'Set 'em up in the other alley.' "I pulled him back and tried to quiofc him, wnilc the aborigines yelped as if afraid of the round, laughing man who hushed lions to sleep. ' The black hands no longer wore shaken at us in derision, but instead were pointed in hesitation, and b.y the gesticulations ges-ticulations and rolling eyes' I knew the people were petitioning the chief to hold up his thumb. " 'I'd l-'ke a nice, cool drink from old Champlain,' rambled. Tib. playing carelessly with his lion's whiskers. 'Old Vermont! Recall thos linos remember, I remember the house where I was born I can't, but I could if there had been lions in it.' " 'He's about to play anothor card,' I warned, giving the nearest lion another an-other shot. " 'We've four lions now,' rumintit"d Tib proudly. 4Sa.y, Billy, did you ever try to do a sum' in lions? Now, in adding three columns of lions, when 3011 have two to carry -' " 'They are opening the barrier again,' I groaned, giving my patron up as a hopoless slave to purple pipe dreams. I "Tib reeled to his feet and tore opcu his shirt and peered under a shakv hand down the line, " 'More lions,' he said, simply. " 'White leopardsl Two of "'em!' I corrected. "'Hurrah!' he shouted, and I believed be-lieved him thoroughl' craz.y again, r'Thcy looked lpopards to me, ' he cried, ' but I thought 1 must be fuzzj' again. So I said lions. But white leopards!' "And ho waltzed me around ioy-full ioy-full ' Wc must have 'em. Isn't this luck?1 " Awfulby good luck,' I despaired, for. I know a leopard was as formidable hh a lion or tiger and harder to dodge. l And the brunettes along the fence evident- wero now determined to stick to" their gods through one more whirl, and, forgetting their recent fears, began be-gan to snout exultantly. It sounded like a Russian college yell, and Tib tossed back a little, icircus talk and dragged mo in between two sleeping pups near-, near-, est the 'center of the arena. "The big cats, white with dark polka-dots, about five feet in length and ' with abnormally long tails, now saw us, and after a few preliminary snarls began be-gan circling the palisades. " desirous of -flouncing upon us from behind, true to their feline idea of propriety, f wanted want-ed t,o get my back against the stockade, but Tib, with less strabismus in his j intolloct, restrained ine. We'd seen enough of leopards to realize these j beauties,' had teeon kept in a cage ami j wore used to men, and we believed the.y I had been starved for just some such purpose as this, Yet it was evident ! thc' weren't anxious to come too near our" breastworks. Then an old lady, j probably with, a local reputation as a 1 witch-doctor, rose behind her boss and ilung hor skinny arms aloft and be- j stowed a few imprecations upon us. Tho cats began to get bold. Tho crowd behoved be-hoved it was duo to tho spoil east by the lady. Anywn3 as we wero like a hot hand-out to a famished orphan on Christmas eve, tho evil braco were game ! to try and not us. "The audience wont wild when the I twin spotted ones left the barriers aud dragged themselves toward -us, inch bv -I inch, us if the proceedings wore vofv secret. It was liko betting moi"e3' ou tho home nine when tho umwro is.'voui friend and live:i in your village. "And to add to the festivities, the lions began to wriggle and act uueas3'. . Wc realized real-ized thoy wero about to awak'uii. "A yah, jali!' shrieked tho Romans. Ro-mans. " 'Give '0111 iiuothei- nullifier.' I cried in Tib's oar, indicating tho quartette of sleepers. " '.Except this biggest one,' he telephoned tele-phoned back. 'I nuiy need him awnke.' "And friend Foenoy, bolioving it was the last act-,. throw back his head and laughed in, low gurgles. His bloodcurdling blood-curdling jollity seemed to jerk tho head tabby into radical action, and a streak of white 'marked her spring ' " 'Missed!' I yelled. "'Rotten!' cried Tib, as ho also scored a zero, and the target lighted on our uneasy parapet. "Then tho breastworks came to life. "And sa3, sir, if the dope had quieted quiet-ed old Nero so far as wc were concerned, con-cerned, it didn't preclude his having a little argument with puss. . Screeching and roaring, they rollod over and over, while the other cat looked on in amazement. amaze-ment. " 'Nail her!' directed Tib. "And, pingl T did, at a distanco of twenty feet. She whacked her paws' against her nose in vain, for tho aroma would not down, and while thus engaged en-gaged Tib ran in and gave her hor conge. Th'en wc turned- to watch the duel, just, in time to sec the cartwheel of beasts strike the barriers fuirly opposite oppo-site the chief's lookout. "Thoro waa a crash, and the whirling, whirl-ing, furry forms bounded out into the audience. "As the orchestra circle emptied in flight, Feeuey, indigo with rago, raised his axe to hurl at me, who was nearest. But Tib did a littlo rainbow stunt with his gun, and as the gentle shower fell on Fecucy's nose he lost interest in things, ditto his balance, and toppled over and down on to the lighting animals. ani-mals. Tho leopard promptly resented his intrusion with a tap of her paw, and tho lion also found timo to bestow a heart3r cuff. "As tho two rolled awa3' in tho for- Rfl est wo enjoyed a good scrutiny of th- II now quiet ruler. Tt didn't need a medico-legal export to diagnose he had mS cast, his last vote. HT " 'Somehow I like liim best this BE way,' murmured Tib pensivel.y. Hp3 "By this time tho natives had all HP lied, evidently satisfied.' wc were farics Kj with evil intentions. mmmE "One old hag. oven in her fright, WmK could not resist tho temptation to turn mm?. in her course and hur a nervous spenr Hn at her prostrate master. mtl "This simple act of courtesv cheered H me wondorfull.y, as I didn't believe tho Kif gang would feel much hurt because KM Scraws had made his csit. We were 'BfJ not taking any chances, however, by mW)a loitering. Wo found our boys snugly .WEV yoked together rcad.y for a slave jaunt, Hfc' north, and with thoir aid managed li Ht' Qliug tho still insensible puss." on a polo. B' We left tho lions, and with only tho mm) cat to show for our pains wo reerossod. Buy tho Bango and picked up our reserve WtM force. mmVtl "Since then I sec the Bango district. Hfv has passed under the control of the Bk Uganda protectorate. Hp "So I reckon our little acl in tho mWi arena was productive of some good out- Hp side of furnishing this country an op- mwi 7ortuuity to inspect at popular pric tho only prizo wnitp Jeopard in cap tivity. - mfSk |
