FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   149   150   151   152   153   154   155   156   157   158   159   160   161   162   163   164   165   166   167   168   169   170   171   172   173  
174   175   176   177   178   179   180   181   182   183   184   185   186   187   188   189   190   191   192   193   194   195   196   197   198   >>   >|  
r the animal's nose was straight for the goat, and he concluded that either his having buried himself was a safeguard against being smelt, or that the tiger had a cold in its head. He thought for one moment of bursting up with a yell that would scare the monster out of his seven senses--if he had seven--but dismissed the thought as cowardly, for it would be sacrificing success to safety. He knew not what to do, and the cold perspiration consequent upon indecision at a supreme moment broke out all over him. Suddenly he thought of the revolver! Like lightning he seized it, pointed it straight up and fired. The bullet--a large army revolver one--entered the throat of the animal, pierced the root of the tongue, crashed through the palate obliquely, and entered the brain. The tiger threw one indescribable somersault and fell--fell so promptly that it blocked the mouth of the pit, all the covering earth of which had been blown away by the shot, and Verkimier could feel the hairy side of the creature, and hear the beating of its heart as it gasped its life away. But in his cramped position he could not push it aside. Well aware of the tenacity of life in tigers, he thought that if the creature revived it would certainly grasp him even in its dying agonies, for the weight of its body and its struggles were already crushing in the upper part of the hole. To put an end to its sufferings and his own danger, he pointed the revolver at its side and again fired. The crash in the confined hole was tremendous--so awful that the professor thought the weapon must have burst. The struggles of the, tiger became more violent than ever, and its weight more oppressive as the earth crumbled away. Again the cold perspiration broke out all over the man, and he became unconscious. It must not be supposed that the professor's friends were unwatchful. Although they had promised not to disturb him in his operations, they had held themselves in readiness with rifle, revolver, and spear, and the instant the first shot was heard, they ran down to the scene of action. Before reaching it the second shot quickened their pace as they ran down to the pond--a number of natives yelling and waving torches at their heels. "Here he is," cried Moses, who was first on the scene, "dead as mutton!" "What! the professor?" cried Nigel in alarm. "No; de tiger." "Where's Verkimier?" asked the hermit as he came up. "I dun know, massa," said Moses, lookin
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   149   150   151   152   153   154   155   156   157   158   159   160   161   162   163   164   165   166   167   168   169   170   171   172   173  
174   175   176   177   178   179   180   181   182   183   184   185   186   187   188   189   190   191   192   193   194   195   196   197   198   >>   >|  



Top keywords:

thought

 

revolver

 

professor

 

pointed

 

entered

 

creature

 

perspiration

 

struggles

 
weight
 

Verkimier


animal

 

moment

 
straight
 
friends
 

unwatchful

 

supposed

 

Although

 

unconscious

 

operations

 

readiness


disturb
 

promised

 

tremendous

 
weapon
 

confined

 

danger

 

safeguard

 

oppressive

 

crumbled

 

violent


buried

 

instant

 

mutton

 
lookin
 

hermit

 
reaching
 

quickened

 
Before
 
action
 

concluded


sufferings
 

torches

 
waving
 

yelling

 

number

 

natives

 

palate

 

obliquely

 
crashed
 

pierced