who were
all sound asleep, except the one watching at the other extremity of the
tent. This Indian observed to me, that the moon would rise in a couple
of hours, and that, if we were to throw a sufficient quantity of fuel on
the fire, we could also sleep without any fear. I replenished the fuel,
and, wrapping myself in my blanket, I soon fell asleep.

I awoke suddenly, thinking I had heard a rubbing of some body against
the canvass outside of the tent. My fire was totally extinguished, but,
the moon having risen, gave considerable light. The hour of danger had
passed. As I raised my head, I perceived that the fire at the other
opening of the tent was also nearly extinguished; I wrapt myself still
closer, as the night had become cool, and soon slept as soundly as
before.

Once more I was awakened, but this time there was no delusion of the
senses, for I felt a heavy pressure on my chest. I opened my eyes, and
could scarcely refrain from crying out, when I perceived that the weight
which had thus disturbed my sleep was nothing less than the hind paw of
a large puma. There he stood, his back turned to me, and seeming to
watch with great avidity a deer-shoulder suspended above his head. My
feelings at that moment were anything but pleasant; I felt my heart
beating high; the smallest nervous movement, which perhaps I could not
control, would divert the attention of the animal, whose claws would
then immediately enter my flesh.

I advanced my right hand towards the holster, under my head, to take one
of my pistols, but the holsters were buttoned up, and I could not undo
them, as this would require a slight motion of my body. At last I felt
the weight sliding down my ribs fill it left me; and I perceived, that
in order to take a better leap at the meat, the puma had moved on a
little to the left, but in so doing one of his fore paws rested upon the
chest of the _Padre_. I then obtained one of the pistols, and was just
in the act of cocking it under my blanket, when I heard a mingled shriek
and roar. Then succeeded a terrible scuffling. A blanket was for a
second rolled over me; the canvass of the tent was burst open a foot
above me; I heard a heavy fall down the chasm; the _Padre_ screamed
again; by accident I pulled the trigger and discharged my pistol, and
the Indians, not knowing what was the matter, gave a tremendous
war-whoop.

The scenes I have described in so many lines was performed in a few
seconds.