Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1875-09-27
A MAN OF NERVE.

As test of nerve, the recent expert
ence Of wayfarer travelling through
wood road near Olympias, Washington
Territory, was as remarkable as any on
record. The man was a speculator,
looking out wild land, and he trudged
through the forest, following the almost
unused path formed by an old road made
by pioneers in the wilderness. His
mind was devoted to one subject-the
critical examination of the kind of trees
upon the land about him, and of the
character of the soil, and he failed to
notice for sometime the ''pit-a-pat'' on
The dead leaves beside him. He at first
seafeely looked down when he felt some
thing rubbing against his legs and heard
a slight purring sound, but when he did
look his heart came up to his mouth aud
a cold sweat started as though he was
suspended by weak rope over Niagara.
! Pressing itself softly against his legs,
twining about him as he walked, moving
its infezible body swiftly, but with nev-
er sound, turning up fierce eyes with
something almost like terrible laugh
at him was a huge cougar No chicken
was this man in the woods, but his ac-
count of the manner in which his hat
was raised by his hair is not to be con-
sidered apocryphal at all. Sleek and
supple and muscular the beast glided
about, and at intervals would come closer
again. and press its body against the
legs of the man, the light touch making
goosefesh of every inch of his form. 1t
was a terrible experience, that interview
with the cougar in the forest prlmeval,
and it is well for the man that his nerves
we're of the kind to do honor to
frontier adventurer. Steadily pur-
suing his course with steps that
would falter occasionally, he kept on,
and with him the beast continued its
treacherous gambols. At times it would
/ glide few steps in front, and roll over
in the road, and wait for the man to
come up, and then it would circle around
him until the impulse, almost too strong
to be resisted, would come upon him to
spring upon the brute, opposing fists to
fangs, and ending the intolerable sus-
pension at any risk The movements of
the terrible animal were but as the
playing of cat with mouse, and the
man knew it. The moment came at
length, when the strain could be borne
no longer, and the man kicked desper-
ately at the beast as it passed him. In
a moment it bounced in front and crouch
ed for spring, growing hoarsely and
showing its teeth. The man stopped and
shouted hopelessly for aid. while the
cougar did not spring at once, but ap-
peared waiting to crafty its humor a
little longer. The shout, fortunately,
was not In vain.
There were hunters and dogs in the
immediate vicinity, as rare fortune would
have it, and the hounds dashed sudden
ly from the covert as the cougar, seeing
them leaped for tree. A few minutes
later the beast fell victim to the bull
lets, and the man with whom ithad TAX
en- stroll was telling his story and try
ing to restore the natural condition of
his nerves by internal application from
small flask. 1t was one of the epi-
sodes which turn mems hair gray, one
which would, doubtless, have brought
death to the man with less nerve than
the hero of the affair-Dascaginac
Monitor.