A second look showed it to be some sort of
quadruped, and the third--could he believe his eyes?--revealed the tiger
himself!
Yes, it was the terrible brute and no mistake. The boy rubbed his eyes and
looked again. Some unaccountable attraction seemed to have brought Tippo
Sahib back to the dwelling where he had met with so interesting an
experience that afternoon.
But all this being so, Tom Gordon might well ask himself what good the
presence of the animal promised to be to him. Hitherto, he and his friends
had counted themselves lucky in being able to keep out of his way when he
showed a desire to explore the interior of the house. How, then, could he
expect to get the hundred dollars offered for the capture of the brute?
Mingled with the eager wish of the lad to earn the munificent sum, was a
slight misgiving as to the meaning of this return of the tiger. Having
eluded the men sent after him, had he come back to revenge himself upon
those who had treated him so ill?
This discomforting thought was dissipated by the action of Tippo Sahib.
He did not move around as on his former visit, but seemed to be prowling
about the woodshed, as if in quest of something.
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