At the close of the long afternoon, Dolly Goodwin, a girl of about sixteen, had gone out to do the milking. The cows had not been turned to pasture that day, but had been kept in an inclosure near the barn, shut in by a stone wall eight feet high.
Her mother had objected to Dolly's doing this. "Father will be at home soon," she said, "and there will be time enough then."
But Dolly, who was a busy little body, insisted. "If you are afraid for me, I will take my gun. You won't have to worry then. The cows really ought to be milked, for it's almost dark. Besides, Brindle and Loo like me."
The girl took down a small, pretty musket from its place over the deer antlers; it was her own, purchased the year before from her own savings.
The yard seemed a safe, cozy place, and Dolly felt like smiling at her mother's fears as she sat down on a stool and began milking one of the gentle, mild-eyed animals that were complacently chewing their cuds. She had one of the pails about filled, when there was a sudden disturbance among the horned inmates of the inclosure.
Dolly rose to her feet and gazed around, grasping her musket in both hands. We can see how she looked—a thin slip of a girl, with bare feet and ankles, a gown of linsey-woolsey, her gingham bonnet thrown back from her curls, and hanging to her neck by its fastened strings. The red in her cheeks and the flash in her eye made her look very charming.
Her quick eye soon caught a glance of a lithe, cat-like animal creeping stealthily along the high stone wall. Its glaring eyes, the long undulating tail, and the tawny-colored hide told well enough the character of the intruder. She knew it was a panther.
Dolly's heart rose into her throat, and for a moment, as she said afterward, she thought she should run as poor Brindle had done. But she was a pioneer girl, strong and healthy, and her nerves were soon under control. She raised her weapon to her shoulder, and levelled it full at the tawny breast of the crouching panther.
Her aim was taken instantly. She saw the greenish eyes glitter, and the long tail lash the wall excitedly. The next moment the savage beast sprang toward her. At the same moment her finger pressed the trigger.