1. During the winter of 1844, being in the northern part of Maine, I had much leisure for the sports of a new country. To none was I more passionately addicted than to skating. The sequestered lakes, frozen by intense cold, offer a wide plain to the lovers of this pastime. Often would I bind on my skates, and glide away up the glittering river, threading every mazy streamlet that flowed on to the parent ocean, and feeling every pulse beating with the joyous exercise. It was during one of these excursions that an adventure befell me that I can rarely think upon, even now, without a certain thrill of astonishment.

2. I had left a friend's house one evening, just before dusk, with the intention of skating a short distance up the noble Kennebec, which, under its icy crust, flowed directly before the door. The air was clear, calm, and bracing. The new moon silvered the lofty pines, and the stars twinkled with rare brilliancy from their dark-blue depths. In the stillness, the solitude and magnificence of the scene, there was an effect almost preternatural upon the mind. I had gone up the river nearly two miles, when, coming to a little stream which emptied into a larger, I turned in to explore its course. Fir and hemlock trees of a century's growth met overhead, and formed an evergreen archway, radiant with frostwork.

3. All was dark within; but I was young and fearless, and, as I peered into the unbroken forest, I laughed in very joyousness. My wild hurrah rang through the woods, and I stood listening to the echo that reverberated again and again, until all was hushed. Occasionally from some tall oak a night-bird would flap its wings. I watched the owls as they fluttered by, and I held my breath to listen to their distant hooting.

4. All of a sudden, a sound arose which seemed to proceed from the very ice beneath my feet. It was loud and tremendous at first, and ended in a long yell. I was ap

palled. Coming on the ear amid such an unbroken solitude, it sounded like a blast from an infernal trumpet. Presently I heard the twigs on the shore snap as if from the tread of some animal. The blood rushed to my forehead with a bound that made my skin burn; but I found a strange relief that I had to contend with things of earthly and not spiritual mould. My energies returned. The moon shone through the opening by which I had entered the forest, and, considering this the best direction for escape, I shot towards it like an arrow.

5. The opening was hardly a hundred yards distant, and the swallow could not have skimmed over more swiftly; yet, as I turned my eyes to the shore, I could see two dark objects dashing through the underbrush at a pace nearly double that of my own. By their great speed, and the short yells which they gave, I knew at once that they were of the much-dreaded species known as the gray wolf. The untamable fierceness and untiring strength of this animal render it an object of dread to the benighted travelers. The bushes that skirted the shore now seemed to rush by me with the velocity of light, as I dashed on in my flight.

6. The outlet was nearly gained; one second more, and I would be comparatively safe; but my pursuers suddenly' appeared on the bank directly above me, which rose to the height of some ten feet. There was no time for thought; I bent my head and darted wildly forward. The wolves sprang, but, miscalculating my speed, sprang behind, while their intended prey glided out upon the river. Instinct turned me toward home. How my skates made the light icy mist spin from the glassy surface! The fierce howl of my pursuers again rang in my ears. I did not look back, I thought of the dear ones awaiting my return, and I put in play every faculty of mind and body for my escape. I was perfectly at home on the ice; and many were the days I had spent on my skates.

7. Every half-minute an alternate yelp from my pursuers told me they were close at my heels. Nearer and nearer they came; I could hear them pant. I strained every muscle in my frame to quicken my speed. Still I could hear close behind me the pattering of feet, when an involuntary motion on my part turned me out of my course. The wolves, unable to stop and as unable to turn, slipped and fell, sliding on far ahead, their tongues lolling out, their white teeth gleaming from their red mouths, their dark shaggy breasts freckled with foam; and, as they slid on, they howled with redoubled rage.

8. The thought occurred to me, that by thus turning aside whenever they came too near, I could avoid them; for, from the peculiar formation of their feet, they can not run on ice except in a straight line. I immediately acted on this plan. The wolves, having regained their feet, sprang directly towards me. The race was renewed for twenty yards up the stream; they were already close on my back, when I glided round and dashed past them. A fierce howl greeted my evolution, and the wolves slipped upon their haunches, and again slid onward, presenting a perfect picture of baffled, bloodthirsty rage.

9. Thus I gained, at each turning, nearly a hundred yards. This was repeated two or three times, the wolves getting more excited every moment, until, coming opposite the house, a couple of stag-hounds, aroused by the noise, bayed furiously from their kennels. Quickly taking the hint, the wolves stopped in their mad career, turned skulkingly, and fled. I watched them till their dusky forms disappeared over a neighboring hill. Then, taking off my skates, I wended my way to the house, grateful to God for my escape, and determined never to trust myself again, if I could help it, within the reach of a gray wolf.

Selected.

CXLVI. THE COTTON-PLANT AND THE COTTON-GIN.

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sta'-ple, the thread of wool, cotton, or flax; Faser.

an'-nu-al, yearly; jährlich.

tri-an'-gu-lar, three-cornered; dreieckig; dreikantig.
down, a fine, hairy substance; Flaum.

pro-gress'-ive-ly, by gradual steps; allmählich.
con-trast', to show different qualities; abstechen.
per-en'-ni-al, lasting from year to year; fortdauernd.

slov'-en-ly, disorderly; nachlässig.

mold'-y, musty; schimmelig.

grad'-u-ate, to receive an academical degree; eine akademische Würde

erhalten.

em'-i-nent, famous; hervorragend.

con'-tem-plate, to plan; to purpose; beabsichtigen.

tam'-bour, a frame for working embroidery; Stickrahmen.

vol-un-teer', to enter into any service of one's free will; freiwillig unternehmen.

se-clude', to shut up apart from others; abschließen.

de'-vi-ate, to differ; abweichen.

aug-ment', to enlarge in amount; vermehren.

1. Although cotton was not generally known among the nations of the earth until a much later period than the other substances used for clothing, such as flax, wool, etc., it is now raised in such abundance as to afford the cheapest material for this purpose. From its resemblance to sheep's wool, it was called by the ancients the "wool of trees"; and the term cotton-wool is still often employed. The Germans call it tree-wool.

2. The many varieties of the cotton-plant have been divided into herb-cotton, shrub-cotton, and tree-cotton, according to the mode of growth. Of these, the most useful is the herb-cotton, which is extensively cultivated in the southern parts of the United States, in India, China, and other warm countries.

3. The most esteemed variety of the herb-cotton is that known by the name of sea-island cotton, which is of long

staple, its fiber being much longer than that of any other description, and of a fine, silky texture. It is an annual plant, and derives its name from the circumstance of its being cultivated with great success in the low sandy islands which lie along the coast of South Carolina.

4. In the Southern States it grows to the height of from four to six feet. Its leaves are of a dark green color. The blossom expands into a pale yellow flower, which falling off, a pointed, triangular pod appears. This gradually increases to the size of a large hickory-nut, and becomes brown as the woolly fruit ripens. The expansion of the wool then causes the pod to burst, when there appears a ball of snowy white or yellowish down adhering to the seeds. The appearance of a cotton field while the pods are progressively opening is highly interesting, the fine, dark green of the leaf contrasting beautifully with the brilliant white of the cotton suspended from the pods, and floating to and fro at the bidding of the wind.

5. Shrub-cotton grows in most countries where the annual herb-cotton is found. In the West Indies, its duration is about two or three years; in India, Egypt, and some other places, it lasts from six to ten years. In the hottest countries it is perennial, and furnishes two crops a year. In cooler climates it is annual. In appearance it is much like a currant-bush. Tree-cotton grows in India, China, Egypt, and in the interior and on the western coast of Africa, and in some parts of America. It attains a height of from twelve to twenty feet.

6. Great care is bestowed, in the Southern States, upon the cultivation of the cotton-plant. The ground is thrown up by the plow into beds five or six feet apart; and in these the seed is sown, in March, April, or May, according to the season. When the plants are four or five inches high, the weakest are pulled up, and the remainder left to grow in single stalks fifteen or twenty inches apart.