A Perilous Voyage

I've had manya qucer voyage in my time, said Captiiin ,but the queerest I ever had was one that I made (somewhat unexpoctedly, as you will see)upon the Great Fish Biver in bouth África, on my way back lïom a huuting excursión. As I neared the bank, I saw that the river was in full Üood, more than twice its usual breadth, and running ike n niill-race. I knew at once tha I ghould lave a yery tough job to get across- for a flooded African nver U loioke, Ican lellyou. But I knew, a!so, that my wile won ld be tcrnbly anxiousif I .Udn't come back on tho rtiiv Iliad iixed- South África benig a place wliereagood many tlniigs may iai.pen to a man- aud so Idetermined Lo olíame it. , Justatthe water's edije I found an oíd Uushmau tbat I knew well, Whp had a boat of his owu, so I liailcd him atVeü, Kaloomi, wliat vrill you take to put me aeross ihe river?" "No "o flfty dollars tlns time, baas (mastor,) said the oíd lellow, In lus half Duich, half EíngUsh jargou. "Boat no gct'cioss lo-day ; water crrocill fwreat.; And uever a bit could I prsua e him, altliough 1 offured hira nioney euoujili to iimkeany orüiuary Budi 111:111 juni ij head iirst down aprecipice Money was good he said, but ït would be no use to him wlicu he was drowncd, and, in short, lie wouldu't budjjc. "Wcll, if yon won'l put me aoross, gaid I at last, "lend ino your boat, and ril iust do tlie job tor mysclf: I can't very well tafce my liorse wuh me, so ril pay for the boat vvhen I como back." Keep liorse for you, masler, quite williiig; bui'spose you try cross today you liever come back to ask lor Ho spoke so positively thnt,althongh Tin not Bosily frighUsuedi 1 ceruiinly did leel rathor uuuoinfortob. Hovvcver, when you've got to do a thing of tliat sort, tlie less you tlnuk ot ït llio better, so I jumpcd luto tUe boat aud shoved oll'. I had barely got clear of the shore wheu I i'ound tliat tlie old icllow was riïit, for the boat snot uown uie siraun likc aa arrow. I W in a moment tliat thero was 110 hope of paddhn" her across, and that, all I could do was just to keep her head straight. Uut I hadn't tlie clianee of doing even thttt very long, for iust tlien a big tree catne driving along, and hitüng my boat fuil ou ilie qtiarter, smashed her likoau egg-shell. I had just time to clutch the projecting rooi s and whisk myselfupon tlicin, and then tree and I went away down itreaiu logether, at I dou't kuow how many miles au liour. . , At first I was so rcjoiced at escapiii"-just whcn uil seeuied over witli me, that I didn't [hink ninoli of what was to come next, bul boforo long I trotsomeihing to ihink about witU a vciigeiuioe. .'Min tice, as l've saict, was a lanre one, and the Uranch end (the opposite one to whero i sai) was all one inass of green leavcs. Al) at once, just as I was shilling: niyself to a sale place anioug the roots, ihe leaves suddeuly shook and partea, and out popped tl:O gieat ycliow he:id and üevco eycs of an enoiinous lioiil 1 don't tliink 1 ever gut such a fright in niy lite. My gun had gone to tho bottóm along wah ihe Loal, and the only weapon 1 had lei't was a short hunmig knile, which against such a beistas that wou ld be no inore use ihan a bodkin. I fatrljr gave niyself up lor lost, niaUiiig sure that in auoilicr niomeut hu'd spring iorward and toar ino 10 bus. Uut whethcr ie was thst he liad alrcady goiged hinwelf witli jirey, or whelher (as 1 suspect) he was really frightened at finding himsolf iu sucli a sciape, lie sliuwcd no dÍBpositidn 10 attack me so long, at least, as 1 leinaiued still. The insiant 1 mde any movement, however, he wotild begin roaiing and lasliing hU tail, as ït ho were "oing lo fall on me at once, bo, to avoid provokiiüj liim, I was foreed to remain stock still, although sitting so lon in one position crainped mo dreadlully. Tliere wo sat, Mr. Lion and 1, staring at cach other witli all our nnght - a very pictuiesque groupe, no doubt if Ihere had boen anybody tliere to sco it. Down, down the stieani we wentj the banksscemiiig torace past us as if we were going by train, while all around, broken tiniber, wagon wlieels, trees, bushes aml the carcasses ot drowned horses andcatile weutwhirling past us upon the thick brown water All at once I noticed that the lion sccnied to be getüng strangely restless, and turning his great hcad irom side to side in a neivous kind of wiy, as u he saw or baard soowtliiug th:it lie fli.ln't. likp. At flrst 1 couldn't inc wliat onearili was tho matter with hini, but preaently I caught a sound wliich seaied me niuch worse tlian ït liaa done Hu; Hou; Far 1 the distance, I could hear a dull, boomiiig roar, wliich 1 had lieard too often not torecognize at once ; we were neariug a watei-fall ! ' _. I had seen the grc.it rails of 1' ïsn River more than once, and the bare thought of bciug oarried over these tremöudous precinice made my veiy bloud run cold. Yet being devourod hv a lion would hardly be inuch of au iinprovemeiit, and as I hadn t tae ghost of a oh-mce of being able to swirn asliorc, ihere roally scemed to be no otlier altcruative. Faster and laster we went- loiuler and louder und louder,grew the roar of the catarnct; the Hun secmed to have gi ven himself up for lost, and crouched down among Uie lea ves, only uttei-inga low luoaiung whiue now and tlien. I was fairly at my wii's end what to do, when all of a sudden I oaujfht glit of soinethiug tliat gave me a gleani of liope. A little way iiliead of us the river narro wed uddenly, and a rocky headland thrust itself out a good way into the streain. Ün one of the lowest points of lt giew a tliick chimp of trees, wliose boughs overhung the water; aud it struck me that, if we only passed near cnoiigh, 1 might manage to catch hold of one of the branches aud swing myself up on to the rock. No said thaii done ; 1 startcil up, hardly canng whether tlie lio atlnckcd me or not, and planted myselfñrinly upon one of the biggest roots, wheie 1 could take a good spring when tlie time carne; 1 kuuvv tliai that, would be my last chance, for by tliis time wo were so the prccipice that I conld see quite plainly, a Utlle way ahead, tlie vapor that hovered over the jfreat waterfalL Even at the best it was a desyeiate venture, and I cantelLyou tUat 1 feit my lieart beginniug to th.uHvi) Lkc a. wcdse mér as we caino closer and cloacr to the pohit, and 1 thought of what would happen if 1 luinseu rny leap. Just as we neai-ed it, it happcncd by gpccial mercy of God that our tree siruck against Romelhing and turned fairly urosswise to the current, the end wilh the Hun on it swinging out hito inid streain, while niy end was driven cluse to the rock ou which the cltiinp of trees giew. Nuw or nevcr ! I made one spring (1 don't Ihiuk 1 ever mndusuuli anotuei- befare or sílice) and just clutched the lowcst bough ; and as I dragged niyselfon to il, 1 heard the last ruar of Üiedooincd lion iniiigliiig wilh tlie thuuder of the wateriall, as he vanished into ihc cloud of mist thatoverliung the precipice. As tor me, it was la!e enough that nilit bctore 1 got lióme, ana l lounu my puor wiie in a fine frijjht about nic;sol tliouglit it justas well, ou the wliole, io keep my adventure to myselt, and it wasn't lili neurly a year lattT tiiat siie hemd a woid about uiy suange lelluw-voyager.