The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 369: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

THE MYSTERIES OF THE COURT sinister light—seemed to be looking up at the man held an immense tiger at a little distance. There | was a tree near. Forgotten all in a moment was the possibility that a boa constrictor might be coiled amongst its branches; and for bis life did the Burker rush to that tree. If in cool deli- berate moments he had attempted to climb up the teunk, his progress would have doubtless been laboured and slow: but now it was with the veri- table agility of a monkey that with arms and legs deftly moving, the aim was accomplished. The tiger bounded to the foot of the tree just as the Burker succeeded in grasping the lowest branches; and the animel gave anvther terrific how! as it found that its intended victim had escaped. High up towards the Burker the tiger leaped: the frightened man drew himecif as it were into the narrowest possible compass: at the same moment there was a rustling amonget the leaves of the ‘|. branches projecting from the opposite side of the ‘ ‘tree—and down was flung the hideous length of an immense snake, its ovoile being wound about the . tiger’s body with lightning rapidity. So horrified was the Burker at this spectacle, that his hands relaxed their bold upon the branches; and he nearly fell,—when he clutched them convulsively again. As a man looks down with consternation and with a cold creeping feel- ing of the flesh into the depth of a tremendous gulf—déo looked down the Burker from amidst the foliage of the tree, at the scene that was taking place below. The cvils of the immense snake hed been flung around the tiger just at the very mo- ment it was springing upward in tbe hope of reaching the Burker ; and thus the reptile’s deadly folds bad circled the fere-legs of the animal, pinioning them as it were to ite neck. Lhe tiger fell down ; and by means of his hind legs, as well as with the convulsing lithences and elasticity of ite body, it plunged, and writhed, and made the most desperate efforts to escape from ite fearful enemy. But all in vain! Phe boa coustrictor had ite tail coiled tight round the branch from which it had thrown iteelf; and not more securely is a ship kept at anchor by its cable, than that tiger was held fast by the supple length of the snake. : At first terrific howls and cries of anguish burst from the tiger’s mouth: but these soon ceased; for the constricting folds circled its neck as well as all the fore-part of ite body; and those folds wore tightened with all their terrific power, until the captured brute was compelled to desist from ite howlings by the sense of strangulation. The snake seemed to have done enough for the pre- sent: or else, with a hideous malignity, it pur- posed. to play with its victim ere completely despatohing it: or elee perhaps, conscious how completely the tiger lay in its power, it wished to ascertain to what extent the brute’s effurte might go to release iteelf from the binding coils. At all events the snake remained quiet, when the tiger, exhausted by its ineffectual endeavours to escape from the folds, lay motionless as if dead. The Burker had desperately clutched the branches in order to retain himself in the tree; and looking down, he observed all that we have been describing. He cuuld see the head of the teptile lying fat upon the tiger’s back, close by the side of ite own last slimy fuld; and the eyee— emall—shining like diamonds, but with a dread in the tree. Cold and horrible was the shadder which swept through the Burker's form, as he wondered within himself why the sake had not attacked him in preference to the tiger? He knew not that the instinct of the reptile taazht it to prefer that which was its natura] and known enemy, rather than aseail a form which it was but little acoustomed to behold in the jungle,—a human form the like of which perhaps the reptile had never seen before. Indeed, if the Barker had been better instructed in the habits of that species of snake, he would have known that he might now in all safety descend from the tree and continue hie way: for that the reptile and the tiger would never separate uatil one should have become the victim of the other. But all this the Burker knew not; and consequently he dared not think of ef- fecting his escape. Indeed, he fancied that if he were to descend from the tree, the serpent might suddenly loosen its bold upon the tiger to fling ite deadly coils around himeelf—and that thus he should become exposed to the attack of both the snake and the wild beast. Bat to be doomed to remain in that tree, and witness the spectacle that was passing anderneath, was an idea eo horrible that the man’s brain reeled —« species of vertigo ecized upon him—and again wes he about to fall from the tree, when he was startled by a sudden howl of mingied rage and anguish that burst from the mouth of the tiger. Ob, with what tenacity did the Burker again clutch the branches of that tree !—how fearful was the shuddering that swept throagh his entire frame! —how exoruciating was the sense of his hideous position ! . It was but one howl which the tiger thus sent forth at that moment: for the coils which the snake had probably loosened in malignant sport for au instant, were suddenly drawn tight again. The brute was half strangled once more: bat it made the mightiest and most desperate efforts to release iteelf from the deadly coils. It lashed the gtaee and ground with its tail—and therewith like- wise it dealt terrific blows at the enake iteclf— It tried to tear the reptile with ite hinder claws: it convulsed—it writhed—it rolled itself aboat: its agony was horrible. Then the snake tightened its coils, just sufficiently to overpower ite victim with- out actually extinguishing its life; and there wes another dread interval of silence. Tight round the branch of a tree remained the tail of the enake; its long supple body hang down like an immense rope, gradually becoming thicker and thicker until it attained the dimensions of the Burker’s thigt; and then each successive coil be- came less and less in circumference, to the thia tapering neck on which the comparatively small head was fixed. During this second interval of silence—this period of suspended death-struggies on the part of the tiger—the reptile’s eyes again appeared to be looking up towards the Burker with a gleaming, vibrating light. He endeavoured to avert his own gase; but he found it irresistibly bent down again apon those small derk brown reptile orbe that were twinkling as diamonds. in,- all of a sudden, was there « des eff.rt made by the tiger to release itecif. With all the power of ite hind lege, and of ite furin which was weil nigh as supple as that of the snake lebo@ok (CO