The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1876-10-05


Yesterday was a most exciting day In the Zoolog-
ical Garden, Something In the state Of the at.
mosphere, perhaps affected the animals In very
different ways, rendering some playful and 9TH
ers fierce The monkeys were nervous, and more
comical pantOmimes than they euacted were new
| er put on the stage by human beings There were
Clown and PantaloOn-Clown doing the mischief
and Pantaloon taking the blows for it-and there
was Harlequin, and we were about to say Colum
bine. Clown and Pantaloon led of, however In
| a very human style. But the wildcats-how their
eyes shot spears of fire, and how their ferocious
growls, as they sprang at the bars sent chilly un
dulatons through the nervous systems Of every
beholderl And the hyena, the robber of human
graves, impersonatlon Of tameless tireless, insa-
table ferocity, paced bis prison floor with more
decided tread, and rubbed his bald forehead more
hercey against his strong prison bars. The ele'
phRnt was mad, aud threw stones at everybody.
But the lions, and especially the lioness were
risky beyond measure gambOling and playing
like XII tens, while in the next cage to them the
Pumas were in formidable rage, making the
hills echo with their hoarse growls that reverbe-
rated on the nerves of man aud beast, In sympa-
tiny with the lions, or as a satire on human folly,
the biggest kangaroo comically initiated the now
obsolete Greclan bend whenever company OF
ladies stopped opposite his inclosuFe. The little
kangaroos are too young TO remember that re-
markable style of back-action bmanual. bipedal
lOcOmOtiOn.
TRAGEDY IN THE BEARPITs.
Yes tragedy in the bearpits. A fearful, terri
Bile lifegrasp was in progress while the monkeys
played at pantOmime and the kangaroos at COM
edy and the beaver hid in his hole In the west
ern pit great, savage old cinnamon bear was in
company with FIVE small black bears all about
the same age--two.thirds grown-twenty months
old. Uncle John Robinson presented this big
bear TO the Garden, and he says 1t Is cinnamon
bear one of the most ferocous species next to the
grizzly. When with the show he was troublesome,
and 1t was always found necessary to keep him
chained in his cage. Be II said to big Cinnamon's
credit that he has lived in the Garden for year
with the five little bears on terms of intimacy and
good fellowship. But the little ones were grown
almost into full sized bears rivals of old CHINA
mon-as we shall call him. 1t is supposed that
visitors threw food into the pit and that the little
ones being nimbler than old Cinnamon, got more
than he did, and this excited his jealousy. BE
this so or otherwise, at five o'clock yesterday af
ternoOn old Cinnamon mounted the most active
of the little bears, and then commenced fight
such as human eyes seldom look upon.
THE COMBAT.
Two of the four other bears climbed the snag Of
a tree set up in the pit, third clambered up the
iron gate, and the fourth paced around the pit In
a tremor of terror. The noise ofthe conflict drew
a crowd to the scene, many of whom were ladies
The latter frequently turned away from the scene
bat drawn by some overpowerng force, returned
to it again. CiInamons style of fighting was II
seize his adversary by the throat, just back of the
ear and quartering under the jaw, close upon hin
like steel-trap and hold him down. shaking oc
casOnally with short shakes, but always bearing
down and holding fast The little one, which wa
only half or two,thrds the weight Of his assassin
shrieked most human.like. At first his cries wer
appalling, like the words Take care take care 7
but they soon faded into a succession of hoarse
gurgng sounds, half sigh and half shrek. A
first the keeper, Mr. John Nordheim, as brave a
an old tiger. hunter tried the effect Of punching
with pole to make bruin quit his hold, but /
was no CO. He next threw lot Of fresh fish il
right under his nose, but the bait did not take
then water was thrown on him-a big stream
from hose This made him let go. The little
acerated blacky got up and made circles aroun(
the cage, shreking and crying at terrible rate
perched in the tree shook like blown leaves as
fearing their turn would come next. The littl
one though, that had stood on the floor locker
on all the while, crouched in a corner, half in de
fiance and half in fear. Of Cinnamon ate hi
fish and then returned to his mutton, the littl
bear The little fellow jumped into the pool ant
old Cinnamon pounced on him to drown him, a
the spectators feared Again the hose was ap
| n mi
He tugged little blacky out of the pool and com
menced chewing him up.
ONE MAN IN WITH SIX BEARS.
At this moment John NOrdheim bolted righ
into the den, armed with a onghandled, heavy
spade. "Oh, don't go in,' shouted men ant
shrieked women but he had passed the porta
and walked right face to face with death, Thud
thud thud-thre. thuds of the shovel on Bruin'
head released little Olscky, but turned Cinnamon
on brave John Nordheim, who had nothing but
spade and John Nordheim's muscle and brair
with which to make the fight. Thud, thud-
down went Cinnamon, and up he got again an(
staggered close to little blacky and opened tht
fight again. Thud, thud, thud, thud-thick ant
heavy fell the blows on old CinnamOn's skull
The old beast loosened his hold and ran into the
dungeon next the pit unlock that gate,
shouted Nordheim to Mr.. Tenner, "and 1 will
lock him up for good now" Mr.. Tenner obeyed
and Nordheim shut the door,
COURAGE REVIVED.
Once the door was securely shut, 1t was anus
ing to see the four frightened, but unhurt bears
leave their posts and strut up to that door, then
stride around the cage after the style of Nose as
much as to say: Wont somebody please knock
q q chip of my shoulder" Around, and around
they marched. returning to the door, smelling it.
feeling it cautiously and rearing up against it. as
If to make sure that all was safe then struttiug
of, Falstaff like, when the danger was gone. The
little towards If they had made common cause
old Cinnamon would have been "chawed" up in.
stead of little blacky. The white polar bears are
clannish. Let an enemy invade the peace OF
. their precinct and they make common cause
against him. and good if he gets off with life and
limb, Our respect for the cinnamon bear that
takes boy bear to wallop and for the black bear
that will desert brother in distress is much di.
minished. Little blacky is badly hurt. and we
fear will die. He holds his head 10 one side, and
appears to be in great distress. To-day he will
feel sorer than ever. His constitutional tough
ness is altogether In his favor. The sympathy of
the spectators was altogether with the little bear
that Is the Enquirer reporter verify believe the
ladies' especially, could have seen old Cinnamon
shot dead while he was feeling with his murder.
GUS fangs for little blackys vital cords. The En-.
qirirer reporter, with his usual good luck was an
eyewitness of the scene from the first to the last
and tells what he saw just as he saw it, The
keeper calls OLD Cinnamon black bear, but Un.
Gle John Robinson says he is Cinnamon bear,
one of the most ferocious of bear kind, and Uncle
John ought to know, for old Cinnamon was
present from Uncle JOHN Cincinnati Enquirer,
Sept. q. |Tl ...'.. ....aI.. '..-