218 
NEWS AT THE VILLAGE. 
thought we had let ©ur imaginations run 
away with us.” 
“ So should not I,” said Sidney. “ It was 
quite too plain for that; and the sound was 
unlike any thing I ever heard.” 
“ What was that ?” asked one of the men, 
turning round. 
“ We were talking about hearing the pan¬ 
ther,” replied David; “and Sidney was say¬ 
ing he never heard any thing like it.” 
“No, I should think not,” said the man. 
“I guess you were a little scared, weren’t 
you? No shame to yoi\ if you were,” 
he added, good-naturedly. “ You needn’t 
colour up so.” 
“ They didn’t act as if they were very much 
scared,” said Erastus Waterman, who was 
sitting quietly' among the talkers with his 
dogs at his feet. “ It was no joke having a 
parcel of little young ones in the neighbour¬ 
hood of such a beast; and if the boys had 
been very much frightened they wouldn’t 
have kept it to themselves and never have 
told any one but the minister.” 
“Didn’t they?” asked the man who had 
spoken before, and whose name was Dean. 
“ Not a word,” replied Mr. Barton. “ My 
