once, she seemed to
comprehend the fatal truth; and, throwing back her head, commenced
uttering the most piteous cries, at the same time running in circles
around the body.

I stood wavering between two minds. My first impulse had been to reload,
and kill the doe; but her plaintive voice entered my heart, disarming me
of all hostile intentions. Had I dreamed of witnessing this painful
spectacle, I should not have left the trail. But the mischief was now
done. "I have worse than killed her," thought I, "it will be better to
despatch her at once."

Actuated by these principles of common, but to her fatal, humanity, I
rested the butt of my rifle, and reloaded. With a faltering hand, I
again leveled the piece and fired:

My nerves were steady enough to do the work. When the smoke floated
aside, I could see the little creature bleeding upon the grass--her
head resting upon the body of her murdered mate.

I shouldered my rifle, and was about to move forward, when, to my
astonishment, I found that I was caught by the feet. I was held firmly
as if my legs had been held in a vice.

I made an effort to extricate myself; another, more violent, and equally
unsuccessful, and, with a third, I lost my balance, and fell back upon
the water. Half suffocated, I regained my upright position, but only to
find that I was held as fast as ever. Again I struggled to free my
limbs. I could neither move them backward nor forward--to the right nor
the left; and I became sensible that I was gradually going down. Then
the fearful truth flashed upon me--I was sinking in a quicksand! A
feeling of horror came over me. I renewed my efforts with the energy of
desperation. I leaned to one side, then to the other, almost wrenching
my knees from their sockets. My feet remained as fast as ever. I could
not move them an inch.

The soft, clingy sand already overtopped my horse-skin boots, wedging
them around my ankles, so that I was unable to draw them off; and I
could feel that I was still sinking slowly but surely, as though some
subterraneous monster was leisurely dragging me down. This very thought
caused me a fresh thrill of horror, and I called aloud for help. To
whom? There was no one within miles of me--no living thing. Yes! the
neigh of my horse answered me from the hill, mocking me in my despair.

I bent forward as well as my constrained position would permit; and,
with frenzied fingers commenced tearing up the sand. I could barely
reach th