Billy Whiskers' Travels

by Frances Trego Montgomery

  *CHAPTER VIII*

  *AN ENCOUNTER WITH THE TIGER*

  Billy felt his heart beat hard and fast, and for a moment his kneestrembled under him. He backed slowly up to the solid deck and the greatflaming eyes slowly crept up after him. Billy still backed away. Themen who had been chasing him were now very close, but one of them sawthe tiger's head coming up on the deck, and he yelled to the others, whoimmediately pressed back. As soon as he felt the firm deck floor underhim and could see the animal's head as well as his eyes, Billy felt hiscourage coming back to him. He knew that he had to stand and fight. Hefelt that he could never run fast enough to get away from this powerfulanimal, and that before he could even turn and start to run the tigerwould be upon him.

  Slowly Billy backed away with his sharp horns lowered, and slowly thetiger came out on the deck, crouched down until his body almost touchedthe boards, his tail, full of hard muscles, waving slowly like a red andyellow snake. The men were panic-stricken and scattered in alldirections, seeking places of safety wherever they could find them.Poor Hans Zug was the slowest of all. In his fright he stumbled overhis own feet and fell three times to his hands and knees in trying toget away, and then he tried to hide himself behind a slim iron rod thatran up from the deck to the bridge, for he was too much paralyzed withfear to pursue his hunt any further for some safe hiding-place.

  The tiger was not in a very big hurry about making his spring. He didnot like the looks of Billy's horns, although he knew that he was muchstronger and more powerful than the little white goat. Still they cameon, Billy backing away and the tiger creeping toward him until they werealmost where Hans Zug stood trembling so hard that his teeth chattered.Suddenly the tiger, with a swift spring, went up in the air, intendingto jump clear over Billy's long horns and land upon his back, but Billy,himself as watchful and as careful as the tiger had been, sprang asidejust as the tiger jumped, jerking his head sharply upward as the tigerwent over him. One of his horns caught in the tiger's under side andripped a big gash in him. Billy immediately sprang in the otherdirection, and the tiger, now fiercer than ever, wheeled quickly. Thistime his sharp claw caught Billy's shoulder as Billy jumped aside,tearing a big patch of Billy's hide loose. The pain staggered Billy andmade him feel faint, but he knew it would never do to give up. Theanimal men now came running up from the rear hold, where some of theother animals were being fed, and one of them had a pistol, but the twoanimals were jumping about so swiftly that he could not be sure ofshooting the tiger without shooting Billy, so he waited to see how thefight would turn out.

  Time after time the tiger tried to get hold of Billy, but the goat wastoo quick for him, though each time they met one or the other of themgot a mark. At last Billy felt that he was nearly whipped. The twoanimals were now facing each other for another spring. The tiger, too,was suffering from the last hook that Billy had given him but he wasfresher than the goat. Billy swayed on his feet. The light seemed toturn into darkness before his eyes and he felt as if he were sinkingdown, down on a soft bed, but he kept his head bent in the tiger'sdirection. He felt, rather than saw, the tiger spring once more, and inspite of his weakened condition he braced himself up and gave one moresharp, hard toss of his strong neck. His horn caught the tiger rightbehind the front shoulder blade and pressed deeply in. This time he hadfound a vital spot. The tiger rolled over on his side, and, after aquiver or two, lay still. He was dead, but Billy did not know it, forthe brave little goat had sunk to the floor with the tiger and lay asmotionless as his dead enemy. The animal men came running up first, theone with the revolver in front of the others. Holding his revolverpointed straight to where he knew it would reach the animal's heart, heapproached as slowly and cautiously as a cat creeping up to a mousehole, felt the tiger's side and pronounced him really dead. Two of themen dragged the tiger away and the others crowded around the poor goat.At first they thought that he too was dead, but when they examined himthey found that his heart was still beating slowly. One of them ran tobring water and another to get bandages.

  When Billy woke up his wounds had been nicely washed, ointment had beenapplied to them, and bandages were carefully bound over them. The menwere patting him gently and saying what a fine, brave goat he was andwhat a splendid fight he had made of it, and one big gruff voice, whichBilly found out afterwards belonged to the captain, said:

  "Well, this goat is not to be tied up any more. He shall have thefreedom of the ship."

  Billy moved his legs feebly and tried to get up, but not feeling quitestrong enough yet, he sank back and found that his head was lying onsomebody's knee. And now came the biggest surprise of all, for whenBilly looked up to see who it was, here it was Hans Zug who was holdinghim!

  "Ach, such a fine little goat, yet," Hans was saying, patting Billy'sneck gently, while the great tears rolled down his round cheeks. "Sucha brave little goat, yet. Thunder weather! He can butt me overboardonce again if he should to like it! Aindt it?"

  "WELL, OLD FELLOW, IF BROKEN BONES ARE ALL, WE CAN FIXTHOSE."]

  Billy was the hero of the ship. It did not take him long to get well,and on the third day he was trotting around the deck as unconcerned asif he had never had a fight in his life. His bandages were off and onlya little, red-edged scar on his shoulder remained to show how bravely hehad fought the tiger. Hans Zug never was through praising him, butnevertheless, every time he went to speak to Billy he came toward himfrom behind, for Billy still had a way of shaking his head at him thatmade Hans feel like climbing a ladder. On the first day that he couldgo around unbandaged, nobody seemed to be able to pat Billy enough, but,true to his name, Billy could not long stay out of mischief.

  Soon tiring of pacing the long decks, he went below in the cook's galleyand began to hunt for dainties. He had learned by this time that peoplewere very curious about things to eat. When they saw a goat helpinghimself, something was almost sure to happen to the goat and he couldnot understand it. You see, he could not know that everything belongedto somebody. All that he knew about it was that if you saw anything youwanted, and was lucky enough or strong enough or quick enough to get it,it was all right. Accordingly, he watched the cook, and when the cook'sback was turned Billy grabbed a fine, big bunch of celery and trottedoff with it. When he got in a dark corner he ate it and it was so finethat he wanted more. He went back into the cook's galley but could notsee any. Then he went into a little, dark room that opened into it andfound himself in a place full of the nicest things to eat he had everseen in one pile. There were carrots and radishes and peas and fine,crisp, tender lettuce and all sorts of green stuff which had beenbrought aboard for the captain's table. Billy ate until he could holdno more, and then he happened to think that his mother would like someof that nice celery, so he picked out an extra fine bunch and trottedoff with it. No one saw him and he made his way down into the holdwhere his mother was crowded in the pen with the other goats. He gaveher the celery and while she was eating it he told her all that hadhappened to him and how much the ship's crew thought of him, and howeven Hans Zug had become his friend.

  "My, that was fine!" said his mother as she finished the last of mecelery. "It is the nicest thing I have had to eat since we left home."

  "Ho!" said Billy. "That is nothing. We cabin passengers have some ofthe finest things in the world to eat. What you need now is a bunch oftender lettuce to finish off with, and I'll go get you some," and hehurried off, leaving his mother very proud of his rise in the world.

  Billy trotted boldly through the cook's galley, and the cook, who knewall about Billy's fight, tossed him some carrot tops as he passed.Billy was not at all hungry, but he ate the carrot tops just out ofpoliteness, then he went on into the store room and picked out a nicebig head of lettuce for his mother. He was just going out of the cook'sgalley with it when the cook turned round and saw him. Right away thecook forgot what a hero Billy was, and angry that Billy had taken someof his precious lettuce
, cried:

  "Hey! Drop that, you bobtailed thief!" and threw a skillet at Billy.It hit the goat in the side with a thump, but Billy never stopped. Heonly ran on until he had gained the hold where his mother was and hadgiven the nice, cool lettuce to her, when he turned round to hurry away.

  Threw a skillet at Billy.]

  "Wait a minute, Billy!" she called after him. "I want to talk to you."

  "I haven't got time," Billy called back over his shoulder. "I've got alittle business with the cook."

  When Billy got back into the cook's galley, the cook was over in acorner reaching up for some baking powder that he kept on a high shelf.He was stretched out just right for a good bump and Billy gave it tohim.

  "Great Scott!" cried the cook, and jumped up until his head bumped theshelf. He quickly turned around but Billy had backed off and now jumpedfor him again. This time the man put out his hands and caught Billy bythe horns firmly enough to keep the bump Billy gave him in front fromsmashing him. Billy, however, jerked away and backed off for anotherbump, and the man, jumping up, grabbed the shelf with the foolish notionof climbing up out of range. He could not have been in a better positionfor another bump behind, so Billy gave him that one and he dropped loosefrom the shelf, yelling for help with all his might. In dropping, heturned around, and this time Billy landed with all his weight right inthe middle of the man's appetite.

  By this time the cook had lost his head so that all he could do was tospread his arms and legs like an old-fashioned, jointed doll and yellfor help. Several men came running down the ladder and the foremost onewas Hans Zug with his whip. Hans had just been over to straighten out afight in the goats' pen, and when he saw one of his goats butting thecook, he never stopped to think that it was the same Billy he had beenpetting and praising, so he hauled off and gave Billy a mighty slashwith his sharp leather whip. Billy got through with the cook in ahurry!

  So Hans Zug, who had been following him around and patting him on theback and calling him nice goat and fine goat and brave goat, was readyto start in again, was he? Well, Billy would show him! Like a flash hewheeled and was after Hans.

  "Donnervetter!" cried Hans, and turned to run.

  The men who had followed him down the steps were in the way, however,and Hans ran square into them. A second later Billy ran into Hans withenough force to send him sprawling among the men, and four or five ofthem went to the floor grunting, with Hans on top. Before Billy couldback off for another stroke Hans turned quickly and was just in time tograb Billy by the fore legs. At the same moment the cook caught Billyby the hind legs, and these two carried him upstairs to the deck.

  "Over he goes," yelled the angry cook.

  "Sure!" said Hans. "He done it to me. Ein! swei! drei!"

  As Hans counted his one, two, three in German, they gave three mightyswings, and with the last one they let go.

  Splash! went Billy into the sea!