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became, but on he careered, blind and headlong. The fire has struck him with a roaring surge! His hair flames crisply, and the flesh of his body seems to be burning! The frantic and panting horse attempts to shy, but no, the fierceness of the agony has turned that rider's arm and will to iron! It cannot shy-the poor horse! On! on! scorching through the stifling blaze! A few bounds more and the terrific surges are past! The fresh air has met him! He tore the envelope from his face and leaped from the staggering horse upon the charred hot ground. The blanket is torn away from its mouth and the animal begins to revive quickly, though it shivers and can scarcely stand for the mortal terror! He is safe! He has accomplished an unparalleled feat! He hears faintly above the crackling and roar of the retiring flames a howl of triumph from his pursuers, who imagine they have driven him into the fire, and that he is burnt, horse and all. He makes a feeble attempt to answer them defiantly, but can scarcely hear his own voice. Stunned and gasping to recover the use of their almost stifled lungs, he and his horse stand, side by side, upon that blackened plain without moving a step for more than an hour. But the perils of the day were by no means passed. Before him, as far as the eye could reach, there was only one charred, levelled, smouldering waste, which had to be crossed before he conld reach water, for which, both himself and horse were now almost perishing. He started on at last, taking his course at random, for one seemed to his bewildered sense about as good as another. He did not ride at first, but mercifully led his poor horse, until the heat of the ground and the still smouldering stubs of grass became insufferable to his feet, and then he turned to mount. He now, for the first time, looked at the animal carefully, and to his horror, saw that every hair upon its body was gone, and nothing but the bare skin left, and that was so badly scorched in places, that it came off to the slightest touch. This was dreadful enough, but-water! water! water! he must have that, or they would both die. He sprang into the saddle and urged the wretched creature along with the last energies of his sinking life. In an hour he had begun to grow dizzy, and the blackened earth swam round and round, and tossed him to and fro! Now a strange noise was about him, and as the lifting waves of the earth would almost seem to leap up into his face, he would catch glimpses of huge wolves careering on them, who would turn up their fiery eyes to his, and howl at him with red hot open mouths and lolling tongues! Suddenly his horse rushed down a steep bank, and there was a great splashing Water! Blessed God, water! He tumbled from his saddle into the cold delicious fluid. In an instant his senses had returned, and he saw himself surrounded by thirty or forty prairie wolves, some of whom were swimming in the water after him, while the others sat upon the bank of the small lake, as he now discovered it to be, and howled fiercely at him. He struck those which were nearest with his gun barrel and beat them off, while he had time to draw his heavy knife. One of them had seized his passive horse, who, while it was endeavoring to pull him down, stood still and drank-the long eager draughts. He split the wolf's head with his knife, and soon sent the rest back out of the water, yelling with their wounds. But those upon the bank only howled the louder, and they were answered near at hand and from afar by hundreds of others, who were swiftly gathering in at the well-known call to a banquet. He now remembered that these wearied and infernal brutes always collect in large numbers, to follow in the wake of a great prairie fire and tear the carcasses of those animals that are killed, or band together, to chase and drag down those that come through alive, but scorched, blinded and staggering, as was

his poor horse. They became very savage, with blood, impunity and numbers, and very few creatures which have escaped from the hungry flames can escape from their yet more ravenous jaws. The creature, at other times, is utterly contemptible for its cowardice, but he shuddered when he called to mind the dreadful stories he had heard of their deadly fierceness at such times as this. "My God!" he moaned aloud-" wasn't it bad enough for me to pass that hell of flames back yonder? and have I only escaped that to meet a fate a thousand times more hideous?" He looked at his horse; the animal was now, too, refreshed, and began to be conscious of the new danger as it gazed around with staring eyeballs upon the eager and swiftly gathering crowd that howled along the shore. He snorted in affright, and lifted his head with a wildly mournful neigh, that seemed to poor Dan the most piteous sound that ever rung upon his ear before. There was some comfort though, the horse had life enough left in him to make one more run for safety. He mounted, and after having fired his rifle, with deliberate aim, into the thickest of them, charged right through at full speed. They leaped at his feet and attempted to seize his horse's legs, but the animal was too mortally frightened for them to impede his way for an instant. Through he trampled, and away across the prairie he flies, snorting with terror, and moving with as great speed as if perfectly fresh, and away, too, in pursuit, swept the yelling herd of wolves. They were more than a hundred now, and seemed increasing in numbers at every jump, for as Dan glanced his frightened eyes around, he would see them straitened out with speed and their mouths wide open, coming to join the terrible route from every direction over the prairie. He looks behind him-they were close upon his heels-the great part of them, particularly those in front, and who seemed most fierce and ravenous, were scorched nearly naked, and with the white foam flying, their long red tongues, their fiery glaring eyes, they presented the most hideous picture of unearthly terror that ever mortal lived to be chased by before, unless by the horrible phantasmagoria of madness! He fired his pistols back at them, but it made no difference, they only yelled the louder, and came on the more fiercely, while five joined their long train for each one that he had killed. If his horse should fall or give out, they would both be torn to fragments in an instant! This appalling conviction caused him to give all of eye and nerve that were left him in the mortal fright to steadying and guiding his horse, for the only hope now lay in him. He soon perceived, however, that he was leaving the pack far behind, for there is little comparison between the speed of a horse and that of the prairie wolf.

He now began to feel something of hope, and as the frantic speed of his horse placed yet a greater distance between them, the unimaginable dread seemed to be lifting from his life. Now he could not hear their yells, and could barely distinguish far in the rear, the long snake-like train yet moving on through in the relentless chase over the undulations of the bare plain. He sees timber ahead, and shouts in an ecstacy of joyful relief, for then he himself at least is safe! He can climb a tree-and in the delight of that thought, he has no time for thinking that his poor horse cannot climb trees!

The horse sees, and is inspirited too-for to all creatures on the prairies there seems to be a vague feeling of safety in the sight of woods! But, alas! poor horse! They have reached the timber, but scarcely a hundred rods have been passed over, when the poor horse gives out, and after a few ineffectual efforts still to obey the urging spur, can only lean against the trunk of a tree, and pant and groan with exhaustion. Dan ascends the

tree, tying the lariat of his horse to one of the lower limbs. He then loaded his arms in the forlorn hope of defending his horse if they came up. All was still as death, but the loud panting of the poor horse. He ascended higher to look out for the approach of the wolves, for he had a faint hope that they had given up the chase. But alas! his heart sinks again! There they come, the long yellowish looking train, and several large white wolves have joined them now. He knows well the tameless and pitiless ferocity of these red-eyed monsters, and feels that his true, his noble horse, must go! Now he can hear their cry! They are in the woods. The poor horse shivers-looks back, and utters that wild and wailing neigh, as they rush upon him in a body. Dan fires down among them, but what avail is it? In a twinkling, his faithful horse is down, and has been torn to atoms! The halter of the lariat hangs empty beside the tree. Now they lie panting around the foot of the tree, with their fiery eyes turned wistfully up at him -for the horse had been only a mouthful a piece. Whenever he makes

a movement, they rise with eager yells, and leap up towards him as if to meet his fall. Dan says, that in the utter and dreadfully hopeless desperation of his position now, a grotesque sort of humor possessed him of a sudden, and he commenced deliberately firing down at the red glaring eyeballs of the white wolves, and would roar with laughter, and fairly dance upon his ticklish perch with glee, when he saw the creatures tumble over with a shrill death-cry, and then the whole pack rush on it and tear it into shreds in an instant, with gnashing cries. He says he amused himself in this way for an hour, and made them tear to pieces, in this way, one after another, every white wolf that had joined the chase. This sport delighted him so much, that he became careless, and commenced falling. He only saved himself by dropping his gun, which they scized, and almost tore its stock to pieces before they discovered it was not eatable. I saw the dents of their teeth in the barrel afterwards. Darkness was coming on, and they seemed not in the least disposed to go, and he felt that he must tumble out from the faintness of hunger and fatigue, if he was compelled to spend another hour in that tree without food. He had become entirely reckless now, and loaded up his pistols, determined, if he must fall, to bring death with him for some more of them. Suddenly he heard a distant yelling on the prairie, like that which had sounded so dreadfully behind his flight. The wolves sprung to their feet in a body, and with pricked ears, listened. He looked out towards the prairie, and could faintly discover a large buffalo bull plunging along over the plain, surrounded by a great herd of wolves, who were tearing him at every jump. He could even hear the low bellowing of the creature's agony-another victim! and his thirsty guardians started to join the chase. One after one they went, while those who staid behind would turn their heads to look back wilfully at him, and whine and lick their dry chaps. When the chase come in sight though, off they started in a body with savage yells. He fired his pistols after them in. farewell, and killed one of the hindmost dead, while the other, with a broken shoulder, kept on yelling with the pack. He knew he would be safe now if he could get a fire kindled before they returned, if they did so at all. Before they were out of sight, he had reached the ground, and with trembling eagerness proceeded to light a fire with the help of his tinder-box, which every ranger carries. He soon had a great fire blazing, and then cutting a piece from the last wolf he had killed, proceeded to roast it for food. When he had eaten, he felt so much refreshed that he could now proceed to make provision for the night's rest. He gathered a great deal of dried

wood and built a large fire in a circle about the spot he had selected to sleep upon. The wolves came back in about an hour after he had finished his arrangements for the night; but he now felt perfectly secure, for though he could see their hungry eyes shining all round the outside of the circle, and they kept up a continued howling all night long, he laid himself down and slept soundly until morning. When he waked up, the wolves were all gone but one or two, craunching at the bones of yesterday's feast. He shot one of them with his pistol, and made a breakfast off of it. He picked up the gun, and found that though very much torn, it could still be used. He now took his course, and started to foot it into the settlements. After a week of almost incredible suffering, he got in safe, and saw nothing more of the wolves or of his comrades, who are thought to have been carried off prisoners, and afterwards murdered by the Indians on their attempting to escape. Dan was sick of a fever for several weeks at Corpus Christi after he got in, and raved incessantly about wolves!

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SOME CHARACTERISTICS OF THE GERMANS AND THEIR LITERATURE.

Or the three great nations distinguished for their attainments in literature and all the arts of civilized life, England, France and Germany, the latter is still comparatively unknown and without influence among us. English literature we look upon as in some sort our own. The rich treasures of her past are our common inheritance. We share in the pride of her great names-her Shakspeares, Bacons and Newtons; her Miltons, Chaucers and Spensers; for their own most rich and peculiar language is our mother tongue. Owing to the absence of an international copyright, all the more important works of even her great living writers are often more widely circulated here than in their own country. The French classics are, the greater part of them, easily accessible to American readers, whilst the popular productions of the day are usually translated and republished as fast as they appear. Moreover, the language itself is so easy, that any one desirous of becoming acquainted with French literature has only to commence with some interesting volume, and, with small aid from grammar and dictionary, read on, and he finds himself master of the idiom almost ere he is aware of it. Add to this, that our intercourse with England and France is so direct and frequent, that London or Paris, is more easily reached or heard from than some parts of our own country; and we cannot fail to perceive that these nations are, and have long been, exercising a great, an untold influence upon the formation of the national mind and character. We by no means complain of this, but would suggest that our education will not be complete until we have attended the third of the three great European schools-until we have added to our own native and acquired wealth also the rich treasures of the Teutonic mind. Every great and highly culti vated nation both possesses and embodies important truths and principles, which it is neither safe nor politic in a younger to overlook and neglect. It is not wise nor prudent to shut our eyes to any light which it has pleased heaven to reveal.

From various causes, as already intimated, our knowledge of the Germans, and. by consequence, their influence over us, has been very limited. They have been too long regarded as a people of strange speech and hard language; ridiculed for want of tact and taste by the witty and frivolous Frenchman; discarded as mystical and extravagant dreamers by the positive and practical Englishman. But they have haply maintained amid all detractions, the character of close students, of learned scholars, and of faithful and honest men.

But however clouds and obscuring mists may have hitherto overhung and enveloped this long unnoted country, they seem at length destined to be completely and forever dispelled. Genius, whose mission is to enlighten and bless-literature, the nobly expressed thought of earnest and inspired men-views and researches in religion and philosophy the most profound and far-reaching, forbid that we should longer remain ignorant of the genuine labors and achievements of our sturdy brethren of the North. The great names which, at the close of the last, and beginning of the present century, adorned in that country the honored

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