I thought how
often the Indian hunter had concealed himself behind these very
trees--how often his arrow had pierced the deer by this very stream, and
his wild halloo had here rung for his victory. And then, turning from
fancy to reality, I watched a couple of white owls, that sat in their
hooded state, with ruffled pantalettes and long ear-tabs, debating in
silent conclave the affairs of their frozen realm, and was wondering if
they, "for all their feathers, were a-cold," when suddenly a sound
arose--it seemed to me to come from beneath the ice; it sounded low and
tremulous at first, until it ended in one wild yell. I was appalled.
Never before had such a noise met my ears. I thought it more than
mortal--so fierce, and amidst such an unbroken solitude, it seemed as
though a fiend had blown a blast from an infernal trumpet. Presently I
heard the twigs on shore snap, as though from the tread of some brute
animal, and the blood rushed back to my forehead with a bound that made
my skin burn, and I felt relieved that I had to contend with things
earthly, and not of spiritual nature--my energies returned, and I looked
around me for some means of escape.
Pages:
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199
200
201
202
203
204