tained, after all the francs they had robbed from the purse, and the
gold piece the hunchback had picked up, but it was the smallest coin
mother had, and she told me afterwards she didn't grudge it, for our
lives had been spared us as well as the bulk of our money.

The _diligence_ rattled briskly along, and we reached the _Pomme d'Or_
to find that father's illness had taken a favourable turn during that
terrible night, and the only thing he needed now was care and good
nursing. When he was well again he reported our experiences to the
police, and we had good reason to believe that no credulous wayfarer
ever had to undergo the terrible ordeal that we did that night. The
house was ever after kept under strict police surveillance.

A NIGHT OF HORROR.

BY ALFRED H. MILES.

The jaguar, otherwise known as the American leopard, belongs to the
forests of South America, and has many points of difference from, as
well as some of similarity with, the leopard of Asia. Though ferocious
in his wild state, he is amenable to civilising influences and becomes
mild and tame in captivity. He is an excellent swimmer and an expert
climber, ascending to the tops of high branchless trees by fixing his
claws in the trunks. It is said that he can hunt in the trees almost as
well as he can upon the ground, and that hence he becomes a formidable
enemy to the monkeys. He is also a clever fisherman, his method being
that of dropping saliva on to the surface of the water, and upon the
approach of a fish, by a dexterous stroke of his paw knocking it out of
the water on to the bank.

But the jaguar by no means confines his attention to hunting monkeys and
defenceless fish. He will hunt big game, and when hungry will not
hesitate to attack man.

The strength of the jaguar is very great, and as he can climb, swim, and
leap a great distance, he seems to be almost equally formidable in three
elements. He is said to attack the alligator and to banquet with evident
relish off his victim. D'Azara says that on one occasion he found a
jaguar feasting upon a horse which it had killed. The jaguar fled at his
approach, whereupon he had the body of the horse dragged to within a
musket shot of a tree in which he purposed watching for the jaguar's
return. While temporarily absent he left a man to keep watch, and while
he was away the jaguar reappeared on the opposite side of a river which
was both deep and broad. Having crossed the river the animal ap