There might be mistakes ludicrous and otherwise in the case of others, but when he saw the animal in the lane before him, as revealed by the rays of the moon, there was no error.
It was the identical lion that had escaped from the menagerie the day previous, and the beast must have noted1 the presence of the terrified lad, who stopped such a short distance from him.
Master Fred was so transfixed that he did not stir for a few seconds, and then it seemed to him that the best thing he could do was to turn about and run, and yell with might and main, just as he did some weeks before when he stepped into a yellow-jackets' nest.
It is hard to understand how the yelling helps a boy when caught in such a dilemma3, but we know from experience that it is easier to screech4 at the top of one's voice, as you strike at the insects that settle about your head, than it is to concentrate all your powers in the single act of running.
Almost unconsciously, Fred began stepping backward, keeping his gaze fixed2 upon the lion as he did so. If[Pg 98] the latter was aware of the stratagem5, which is sometimes used with advantage by the African hunter, he did not immediately seek to thwart6 it, but continued facing him, and occasionally swaying his tail, accompanied by low, thunderous growls8.
The boys of the school had learned a great deal of natural history within the last day or two, and Fred had read about the king of beasts. He knew that a lion could crouch9 on his belly10, and, with one prodigious11 bound, pass over the intervening space.
The lad was afraid the one before him meant to act according to the instincts of his nature, and he retreated more rapidly, until all at once he whirled about and ran for dear life, directly toward the highway.
He did not shout, though, if he had seen any other person, he would have called for help; but, when he reached the road, he cast a glance over his shoulder, expecting to feel the horrible claws at the same instant.
The lion was invisible. Fred could scarcely believe his eyes; but such was the fact.
"I don't understand him," was the conclusion of the boy, who kept moving further away, scarcely daring to believe in his own escape even for a few brief minutes.
Fred had been too thoroughly12 scared to wish to meet the lion again, but he wanted to get back to the house that the Misses Perkinpine could be told of the new danger which threatened them.
"I think they'll be more likely to believe me than night before last," said the lad to himself.
[Pg 99]
It was easy enough to reach the house by a long detour14, but the half belief that the lion was lurking15 in the vicinity made the effort anything but assuring.
However, Fred Sheldon thought it his duty to let his good friends know the new peril16 to which they were subject, in the event of venturing out of doors.
So slow and stealthy was his next approach to the building that nearly an hour passed before he found himself in the small yard surrounding the house; but, when once there, he hastened to the front door and gave such a resounding17 knock with the old-fashioned brass18 knocker that it could have been heard a long distance away, on the still summer night.
It seemed a good while to Fred before the bolt was withdrawn19, and Aunt Annie appeared in her cap and spectacles.
"Oh, it's you, Fred, is it?" she exclaimed with pleasure, when she recognized the young man who was so welcome at all times. "You are so late that we had given you up, and were going to retire."
"I started early enough, but it seems to me as if every sort of awful thing is after us," replied Fred, as he hastily followed the lady into the dining-room, where the sisters began preparing the meal for which the visitor, like all urchins20 of his age, was ready at any time.
"What's the matter now, Freddy?" asked Aunt Lizzie.
"Why, you had a tramp after you night before last, and now you've got a big, roaring lion."
[Pg 100]
"A what?" asked the two in amazement21, for they had not heard a syllable22 of the exciting incident of the day before.
"Why, there's a lion that broke out of the menagerie yesterday, and they haven't been able to catch him yet."
"Land sakes alive!" gasped23 Aunt Annie, sinking into a chair and raising her hands, "what is the world coming to?"
Aunt Lizzie sat down more deliberately24, but her pale face and amazed look showed she was no less agitated25.
Fred helped himself to some more of the luscious26 shortcake and golden butter and preserves, and feeling the importance of his position told the story with which our readers are familiar, though it must be confessed the lad exaggerated somewhat, as perhaps was slightly excusable under the circumstances.
Still it was not right for him to describe the lion as of the size of an ordinary elephant, unless he referred to the baby elephant, which had never been seen in this country at that time.
Nor should he have pictured his run down the lane, with the beast behind him all the way, snapping at his head, while Fred only saved himself by his dexterity27 in dodging28 him.
There was scarcely any excuse for such hyperbole, though the narrative29 was implicitly30 believed by the ladies, who felt they were in greater danger than if a score of burglarious tramps were planning to rob them.
"They've offered one hundred dollars to any one who catches the lion without hurting him," added Fred, as[Pg 101] well as he could speak with his mouth filled with spongy gingerbread.
"A hundred dollars!" exclaimed Aunt Lizzie; "why, he'll kill anybody who goes near him. If I were a man I wouldn't try to capture him for a million dollars."
"I'm going to try to catch him," said Fred, in his off-hand fashion, as though it was a small matter, and then, swallowing enough of the sweet food to allow him to speak more plainly, he added:
"Lions ain't of much account when you get used to 'em; I'm beginning to feel as though I'm going to make that hundred dollars."
But the good ladies could not accept this statement as an earnest one, and they chided their youthful visitor for talking so at random31. Fred thought it best not to insist, and finished his meal without any further declarations of what he intended to do.
"They've left two persons behind to look after the lion," he said; "one is named Kincade and the other is Bud Heyland, you know him—the son of Michael, your hired man."
"Yes; he called here to-day."
"He did. What for?"
"Oh, nothing in particular; he said he heard we had had our silverware stolen, and he wanted to tell us how sorry he felt and to ask whether we had any suspicion of who took it."
"He did, eh?" said Fred, half to himself, with a belief that he understood the real cause of that call.
"I think Bud is getting to be a much better boy[Pg 102] than he used to be," added Aunt Annie; "he was real sorry for us, and talked real nice. He said he expected to be at home for two or three days, though he didn't tell us what for, and he would drop in to see us."
Master Sheldon made no answer to this, but he "had his thoughts," and he kept them to himself.
The hour was quite advanced, for the days were long, so that the fastenings of the house were looked to with great care, and Fred went to the same room he had occupied two nights before, the one immediately preceding having been spent at home, as he partly expected the return of his mother.
After saying his prayers and extinguishing the light, he walked to the rear window and looked out on the solemn scene.
Everything was still, but he had stood thus only for a minute or two, when in the quiet, he detected a peculiar32 sound, which puzzled him at first; but as he listened, he learned that it came from the smoke-house, a small structure near the wood-house.
Like the residence, it was built of old-fashioned Holland brick, and was as strong as a modern prison cell.
"Somebody is in there stealing meat," was the conclusion of Fred; "I wonder who it can be."
He listened a moment longer, and then heard the same kind of growl7 he had noticed the day before when standing33 in front of the lion's cage.
In a twinkling Fred Sheldon hurried softly down[Pg 103] stairs, cautiously opened the kitchen door, and looked out and listened.
Yes, he was in there; he could hear him growling35 and crunching36 bones, and evidently enjoying the greatest feast of his life.
"Now, if he don't hear me coming, I'll have him sure," Fred said to himself, as he began stealing toward the door through which the lion had passed.
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1
noted
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| adj.著名的，知名的 | |
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fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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3
dilemma
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| n.困境，进退两难的局面 | |
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4
screech
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| n./v.尖叫；(发出)刺耳的声音 | |
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5
stratagem
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| n.诡计，计谋 | |
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6
thwart
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| v.阻挠，妨碍，反对；adj.横(断的) | |
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7
growl
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| v.（狗等）嗥叫，（炮等）轰鸣；n.嗥叫，轰鸣 | |
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8
growls
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| v.（动物）发狺狺声， （雷）作隆隆声( growl的第三人称单数 )；低声咆哮着说 | |
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9
crouch
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| v.蹲伏，蜷缩，低头弯腰；n.蹲伏 | |
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10
belly
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| n.肚子，腹部；(像肚子一样)鼓起的部分，膛 | |
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11
prodigious
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| adj.惊人的，奇妙的；异常的；巨大的；庞大的 | |
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12
thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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13
tempt
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| vt.引诱，勾引，吸引，引起…的兴趣 | |
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14
detour
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| n.绕行的路，迂回路；v.迂回，绕道 | |
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15
lurking
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| 潜在 | |
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16
peril
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| n.(严重的)危险；危险的事物 | |
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17
resounding
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| adj. 响亮的 | |
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18
brass
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| n.黄铜；黄铜器，铜管乐器 | |
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19
withdrawn
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| vt.收回；使退出；vi.撤退，退出 | |
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20
urchins
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| n.顽童( urchin的名词复数 )；淘气鬼；猬；海胆 | |
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21
amazement
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| n.惊奇，惊讶 | |
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22
syllable
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| n.音节；vt.分音节 | |
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23
gasped
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| v.喘气( gasp的过去式和过去分词 )；喘息；倒抽气；很想要 | |
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24
deliberately
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| adv.审慎地；蓄意地；故意地 | |
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25
agitated
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| adj.被鼓动的，不安的 | |
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26
luscious
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| adj.美味的；芬芳的；肉感的，引与性欲的 | |
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27
dexterity
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| n.(手的)灵巧，灵活 | |
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28
dodging
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| n.避开，闪过，音调改变v.闪躲( dodge的现在分词 )；回避 | |
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29
narrative
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| n.叙述，故事；adj.叙事的，故事体的 | |
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implicitly
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| adv. 含蓄地, 暗中地, 毫不保留地 | |
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31
random
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| adj.随机的；任意的；n.偶然的(或随便的)行动 | |
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32
peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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33
standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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34
helping
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| n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的 | |
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35
growling
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| n.吠声, 咆哮声 v.怒吠, 咆哮, 吼 | |
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36
crunching
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| v.嘎吱嘎吱地咬嚼( crunch的现在分词 )；嘎吱作响；（快速大量地）处理信息；数字捣弄 | |
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