Connecticut western news., 1875-04-09
A LIONESS AT LARGE.
How 1t was Whipped Eby q DOnkey--Na1
 row Escape of a Party of Men.

How It was Whipped Eby DOnkey--Nar-
 row Escape of a Party of Men.
 Great excitement was caused in the Geological Garden near Cincinnati by an escape of lioness from her cage. We condense the following particulars from the journals of that city: tss.
 Just how the beast broke out of her cage is not known. A boy was leadinga donkey to it's crib near by, when he heard crash and the ioness was upon him. He ran screaming, and the ioness with one leap was upon the donkey's back, but he jumped and threw her off, and leaped out through the door. The honess was after tho donkey and upon him again, and they fought down hill toward the road. Again the donkey threw the ioness off. At the first attack she had bitten him badly on the right hind thigh, cutting through. As the ioness came up for the third attack, the donkey, which did not now show any disposition to get away, turn ed suddenly and let fly his hind hoofs against her right lower jaw, knocking her over, and evidently astonishing g her.
 In the next minute they came to- gether again, when the ioness struck the donkey an ugly blow with her heavy paw across the head, staggering him. The blow did not cut nor did it knock down. Again the donkey, which seemed now to understand the situa- tion completely, and to fight at his best, struck out with his hind feet, striking the ioness in the flank. Still strong, she jumped upon him again, and buried her teeth through the skin and into the flesh of his hind legs. This time the donkey shook her off and kicked her over, and then putting his teeth together in the back of her neck, lifted her two or three feet above the ground, shook her as g. dog shakes a rat, and then threw her down. There she lay exhausted and weak for few minutes. Then it was that the un- daunted donkey, still ready for fight, was taken away by assistant superin- tendent John Kearney and Mr. Roots, who ventured within five feet of the prostrate beast, to take hold of the brave donkey which, bleeding at several points, was led off to the stable door. In this fight the two animals had strug- gled over a distance of nearly three hundred feet, down hill and up.
 Having recovered wind the ioness, rejoicing in her liberty, gathered herself up, and commenced exercising, to show what she could do. Recognizing the necessity of having the beast either cap tured or killed before night set in,1 Mr. Kearney, the superintendent of the gar den, sent to Clifton for Patrick McAvoy, memberof the Cincinnati Shooting and Fishing Club, to kill the ioness. MT. McAvoy, although not a lion hunter, has had great experience among the grizzlies and partners of the Rocky mountains. He complied, and went to the gardens.
 A Mir. Stewart, who has been with a menagerie, came up behind the beast and addressed her as 'tKitty, in kind ly way. She evidently knew his voice, for she turned her head and pricked her ears, and her eyes glistened. But she was not to be caught by even an old friend and keeper.
 Stewart commenced pelting her with sticks and pebbles, thinking to drive her into the stable. But she turned onhim, and he was forced to retreat slowly, still facing her-backing. He then went down the hill with quite crowd of men, thinking she would follow. She did follow, but in way they hadn't bar gained for.~ ". .EFst~
 As the men retreated down the hill all seemed to understand that the ioness was about to make dash, and by com mon consent, without word, McAvoy was looked to to shoot at the right time. The ioness dragged herself forward through the mud to the brow of the lit tie hill and looked down upon the men who were backing slowly away. They did not dare to turn their backs upon her.
 Then gathering herself she made a tremendous flying leap down hill, at least twenty feet, and ill the next bound was upon them. At her second bound she jumped clear over McAvoy's head, knocking off his hat. :ts
 | This leap brought her upon two of the men named Nordheim and Hont. @ The | former, who had no chance to use his bayonet, was struck in the breast and knocked down. Hont was down. For two or three seconds there was a confu- sion of two men and the lioness, the men screaming and the beast roaring, upon the ground The men were both down and bleeding, having been seriously bit ten. As the ioness leaped over, him McAvoy, with his gun still at his shoul der, turned in his tracks. He was mar velously cool for 8 first experience in lion hunting. McAvoy fired barrel, and; the shot merely grazed the back oi the ioness. He must touch vital spot in the next second he must shoot under the mans arm, under the beasts shoul der into her heart. He was only ten feet away. Bang! The ioness was dead. shot through the heart.