Winter and the Ghastly Creature : A Chilling Tale about a Horrid Monster.

On a very particular winter night, in this same month and year ( November 1845), an event occurred which I will here briefly relate.

It is needless to say that my mind was then at its lowest ebb, being for many weeks past at work upon what I conceived to be a brilliant idea; but which now appears, even to myself, as one of those half-formed phantasms which are more properly called ideas than they are thoughts.

As I have said before, it would appear that there existed within me some faculty or power of imagination — a faculty which could not rest satisfied with any simple presentation of facts; which craved the development of some mysterious essence about them, which had been hidden from my eyes till their utterance or experience revealed it to me.

Upon this night, however, I believe that what was latent in my brain reached a climax of triumph; and that the whole inspiration of my genius burst forth into a complete and perfect form. The result, I fear, may prove disagreeable to many readers, who doubtless prefer to be amused rather than terrified. But let them give ear to what follows, then decide whether they do so voluntarily or involuntarily.

I was sitting alone in my chamber, where a fire burned brightly on the hearth. In a large and high-backed chair near the window sat I, with my face sunk in my hands and my elbows resting upon the arms of the chair, and thus, without stirring or speaking, for many hours, I watched the dying embers of the fire cast long shadows along the floor beneath my feet.

My eyelids were heavy, and I felt that sleep must soon overtake me; but just as the shadows began to grow longer, and when I fancied that the light of the blaze was extinguished beyond recall, a sound like that of a distant bird's song came floating through my chamber, mingling its music with the stillness of the night air. This was followed immediately by another sound, and I saw that the fire had yet a small flame burning low down in its midst.

_{Stéphane Juban}

Soon after, the flames again became visible to my eyes, and the glow of the fire was scarcely perceptible. The noise of the singing ceased abruptly; but the silence was soon succeeded by a rustle of leaves upon the branches of an elm tree, which grew close beside my window.

For some minutes I listened intently to the rustling of these branches; but the sounds which had issued from them did not return. Then, turning toward the fire, I found that the glow had all died away. I rose slowly from my seat, and walked across the room, with extended hand, until I stood by the open window. Before me, in the moonlight, I beheld a very singular sight.

With the exception of the trees upon both sides of the road, there appeared no object whatever upon the wide expanse of lawn which lay between my house and the highway. And yet this lawn, in appearance, presented a most unusual aspect.

There was every evidence of life about the grass, and it seemed to move in the wind; but the entire extent of the ground showed a vast quantity of footprints, such as those of large animals. They were quite distinct and numerous, and had evidently been made in the space of a few hours at least, for the damp earth was still moist about them. These footprints were of two kinds, and differed in size and design, although they might be classed together in general.

One kind was of gigantic dimensions, extending far into the distance, while the other consisted only of a single long stride. From the number of these latter, and also from the fact that a great many of them were encircled with a pale, yellowish line, formed from the impressions of the sole of a boot, I concluded that these prints belonged to men.

_Tolu

Among the first of the footprints I beheld, however, were prints I dreadfully discerned to be something less of human and more of animalistic – the foot of a beast perhaps whose appearance I shall not even attempt to describe. In this respect, indeed, these footprints resembled those which I had already observed in the wood behind the farmhouse.

But the strangest part of all was that, although there were several prints, each of the human kind, upon the ground, yet the largest portion of them, in proportion to their number, appeared to belong to one individual. No two of the prints were alike; neither were there any signs of three or four different persons. The majority of the tracks were of single individuals, but many of them included those of two or three, and occasionally one of four. Still there was a certain uniformity about the whole, which gave me reason to infer that they had been made by the feet of a single creature. The strangeness of this circumstance induced me to examine closely into the nature of the marks upon the ground.

Soon, I discovered that the tread of the feet was much broader than would be required for the passage of the body, and that the heels bore no mark. The soles of the feet were entirely smooth and hard, and the toes, although they were marked with the faintest impression of nails, possessed no claws whatsoever. The heel of the foot was narrow, and the ball of it larger than the heel itself.

In the center of the foot, just below the ankle, I perceived a small circle, enclosed by a sharp curve, which I thought at first represented the perforation of a ring. The footprint thus indicated might almost have been called a shoe; but it was too small and the shape of the sole too rounded to be anything like the genuine article.

After searching carefully for some time, I at length, concluded that the markings upon the ground were produced by the passage of some animal which happened to be pass across my chambers in this cold winter night. And so, at once I proceeded to retire once more into my chambers. However, it was upon myself turning back so, that I heard a very strange and unsettling sound. It was one not of nocturnal sounding – one not much like the sound of the winter wind or a cricket – but a dreadful sound that chilled me to the very core.

Tis was the growling of an animal - Yes! a large and ferocious animal - a beast — which, as I beheld, approached the window of my chamber. It was an enormous quadruped, whose head was nearly as tall as my entire body; and from the extraordinary height of its shoulders, and the extreme length of its limbs, I judged that it could hardly approach nearer than a hundred paces to the spot where I stood. Its eyes shone through the darkness like fire, and its mouth was wide open, and its teeth glistened and gleamed in the moonlight.

_Neil

I knew that the brute was approaching the window, and that I should certainly be seized with terror and captured if I remained in this position. With a sudden bound, I leaped from the window, and landed with a crash among the branches of an elm tree which grew close by.
Here I lay for some time, unable to think of any thing but the frightful monster who was pursuing me. In utter fear and complete anguish , I began praying – praying fitfully to that God above so that he may save me from the wrath of the beast.

Diligently and fearfully, I prayed to be saved, even if it were to be just for this night alone.
Presently, my prayers were heeded and at last, the fierce panting of the savage beast ceased; and then, suddenly, a loud, furious bellow, accompanied by a thunderous thud, broke out upon the silent air. I dared not stir — for it was evident that the monster had fallen heavily upon the ground.

Without a second thought more as to what might've distressed the beast, I carefully and silently retreated back into my chambers and locked and secured every nuke and cranny of the old building. There, I shedded tears of relief and pondered once more, upon who or what might've disposed of that horrid monster – who or what had just saved my life?...