me shocking form of death. Halsey brought down his whip,
striking the horse with all his might; it leaped forward, lifting the
chaise almost into the air; then it was rushing madly on, dragging the
wheels behind it with terrible velocity.
They had caught sight of the rush of the bull. They felt the animal's
heavy side just graze the back of the chaise, and they heard behind them
a bellow of rage that seemed to fill all the solitary place with
diabolical echoes.
The body of the chaise was bounding upon its leather bands, jolting
cruelly against the axle. Susannah cried out that she should be thrown
from her seat. The swift-falling darkness encompassed their path. Their
hope lay in the straightness of the road, and their chief fear was that
by some greater roughness of the way the chaise, which was now swaying
fearfully, might be overturned.
Gradually the sound of the bull's galloping became less distinct. The
chaise was still upright. The horse, beginning to falter in his pace,
took more kindly to the accustomed control of the rein. It was then
Susannah found that she had been clinging to Halsey for support, and
that he, by bracing himself with one arm to the side of the chaise and
holding her with the other, had prevented her from being thrown out.
In gathering her shawl about her she wrapped herself again in a certain
amount of her former reserve, but the excitement that she had been
through made her former silence impossible.
Halsey at first received her remarks in silence, then as he essayed to
answer, his voice grew low and faint, and a sudden suspicion of the
cause pierced through her mind.
In another moment he sank, leaning against her. Putting her hand beneath
his coat, she found to her dismay that the strain of holding her had
opened his wound; his clothes were again wet with blood.
The reins slipped from his hands. Susannah tied them loose to the front
of the chaise and, putting her arms round the fainting man, drew the
bandages tightly but with unskilful hands; she lessened the bleeding and
caused him such acute pain that he lifted his head and spoke.
"What shall I do?" she asked piteously. The blood, diverted from the
brain, had left it without healthy circulation, but she did not know yet
that this was affecting his mind.
"Friend," he whispered, "that was in truth no bull; it was the devil
himself."
"The devil?" she asked faintly.
"He almost succeeded in his cruel attempt to cause us
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