midst of whom was
the Kohen, as desperate and as fearless as any.

All this had taken place in a very short space of time, and I had
scarce been able to comprehend the full meaning of it all. As for
Almah, she stood pale and trembling, with a face of horror. At last
it seemed to me that every man of them would be destroyed, and that
they were all throwing their lives away to no purpose whatever. Above
all, my heart was wrung for the Kohen, who was there in the midst of
his people, lifting his frail and puny arm against the monster. I
could endure inaction no longer. I had brought my arms with me, as
usual; and now, as the monster raised his head, I took aim at his
eye and fired. The report rang out in thunder. Almah gave a shriek,
and amid the smoke I saw the long, snake-like neck of the monster
sweeping about madly among the men. In the water his vast tail was
lashing the surface of the sea, and churning it into foam. Here I
once more took aim immediately under the fore-fin, where there was
no scaly covering. Once more I fired. This time it was with fatal
effect; and after one or two convulsive movements the monster, with
a low, deep bellow, let his head fall and gasped out his life.

I hurried forward. There lay the frightful head, with its long
neck and shaggy mane, while all around was a hideous spectacle.
The destruction of life had been awful. Nineteen were dead, and
twenty-eight were wounded, writhing in every gradation of agony, some
horribly mangled. The rest stood staring at me in astonishment, not
understanding those peals of thunder that had laid the monster low.
There was no terror or awe, however--nothing more than surprise;
and the Kohen, whose clothes were torn into shreds and covered with
blood, looked at me in bewilderment. I said to him, out of my small
stock of words, that the wounded ought at once to be cared for. At
this he turned away and made some remarks to his men.

I now stood ready to lend my own services, if needful. I expected
to take a part in the tender attentions which were the due of these
gallant souls, who had exhibited such matchless valor; these men who
thought nothing of life, but flung it away at the command of their
chief without dreaming of flight or of hesitation. Thus I stood
looking on in an expectant attitude, when there came a moment in
which I was simply petrified with horror; for the Kohen drew his
knife, stooped over the wounded man nearest him, and then stabbed him