Knoxville journal. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1874-1986, 1876-02-03
The Champion Hunter OF the Penn
sylvania Woods.

Old Phin Teeple, OF Preston township,
| was In town for the first time In years a
few DAYS ago Phin is crowding seventy
Ave wears pretty closely, and is probably
| the oldest active hunter in the State.
since he was eleven years old he has car
ried rifle, and lived, as it were, in the
woods. He looks like a man OF forty,
and within a month brought down with
| his rife hawk on the wing at hundred
yards.
| Phin-everybody calls him Phin-
| hunted In Northwestern Pennsylvania
| when IL was all wilderness, where nine
out of ten Of the villages in this section
are now located. He says he has hung
IN many deer where the courthouse in
his place now stands. He has kept a
record of every deer and bear he has
| killed since 1920. From 1911 to that time
| he did not keep account but he thinks he
must have shot at least hundred deer
and ten or twelve bears. The total num-
her Of deer killed since 1920, including
thirteen the past season, Is 3,01S. He has
| ;lled 439 bears, and thinks he shot, in
1s35. the last gray wolf ever known in
| thi 4 section, although he can remember
hen they were quite plenty. When he
was fifteen years old he shot q panther.
| He h ad been sent from where his people
| lived up TO hill-clearing" after the
COWS. Il was early in the fall. and he
| took his rife with him, as he always did.
| He got the cows and started them home
down the mountain road, and thought he
would take cut across through the
woods in the hope Of jumping up a
deer. As he was passing cautiously
along, he heard something in the brush,
| and looking that way saw large panther
coming toward him, clearing the scrub
| oak at every bound, and evidently mean
ing business.
The young hunter knew that II would
be useless 10 try TO escape from the ami
NAL, so he jumped quickly behind pine
tree. From one side he peered around
AT the panther, which had cleared the
space between them to abouttwenty yards.
| There he had stopped and was crouching
down, lashing his tail, and glazing in
hungry expectations. Young Phin showed
| his rifle out from behind the tree, ran his
| eve along the barrel, and covered vital
spot on the panther. The report Of the
ride was followed by a blood-curdling
yell from the animal, which bounded sew
eral feet in the air and fell back TO the
| ground dead. Phin tried to carry his
game home, but il was too heavy. He re-
| lated his adventure when he arrived at the
| house, and two men went out with him
| and brought the carcass in. Since then
he has killed three panthers, the last one
! in 1925. Besides the game enumerated,
he has killed and trapped innumerable
foxes, mink, otter and other small deer'
enough, he says, to bring him large
fortune if he had the skins TO sell now.
The old hunter loves TO relate the adj
ventures he has had in the forest during
his long life therein. He says that the
reason the number Of bear he has killed
is so small il because he never made 1t a
point to hurt them much. The bears he
killed were mostly those he came across
accidentally In the woods; and many OF
them he wac Obliged TO kill for self.pro-
lection. He has had numerous hand-to-
hand contests with bears, even wounding
one near It's den, when 1t turned on him
and was joined by its mate, huge she
bear, with two cubs. He killed them all
with his knife and hunting axe, but re-
ceived wounds, the scars of which he car
ries yet. He says he would rather
tackle" half dozen bears than one
wounded buck brought TO bay.
Old Phin tells great many stories of
his adventures in the woods, and loves 10
dwell on the many scrapes he has been in
during his long life as hunter. He tells
about being freed once by wounded and
revengeful buck, and says II was about
the most exciting adventure he ever had.
1t was on the borders of Wayne and Pike
Counties, in the year 1921, about three
miles from the village of Hawley. He
was hunting on what is called the Pau.
pack Ridge. There were three in the
party, one being the late Hon. Paul B.
Preston. Phin stood on runaway near
the Wallenpaupack Greek, and all atonce
an immense buck came tearing down
from the mountain and plunged into the
stream. The hunter sent rifle ball after
him, and put IL behind his re-shouider.
The buck went down, but was up again
In u second, and turned to take the back
track. Phin met him on the bank, and,
drawing his hunting knife, attacked him.
The buck used its horns and feet To such
advantage that the hunter was compelled
to flee TO save his life. The deer was evil
IDENTIFY determined 10 have nothing less
than complete victory, and pursued.
PLin "shinned 1t" up the nearest tree
and took position on the limb out Of the
reach of the Infatuated beast. He sup
DDStu, vi NphisCs hiot thc pesn "cosa
finally succumb 10 the shot he had given
or make Off into the woods. IL did
neither, but after walking round the tree
several times lay down on the ground be.
meath 1t, as much as to say he had plenty
OF time and would wait for the hunter TO
come down Phin had lefl his gun on
the bank of the stream. II was bitter
cold and night WAS coming on. To
add TO the unpleasantness Of his
position It was not likely that his com.
panions would come that way, rs they
were 10 meet nj place about a mile up
the creek He knew from experience that
a wounded buck brought TO bay was the
worst thing in the world to fight, and he
did not care 70 get out of the tree TO test
the qualities of the one In question. The
deer was alert, and ut every move OF the
freed hunter WAS on It's feet and In an in
slant ready for what might come Phin
shouted for his companions until he was
hoarse. Night came on, and every min
ute Ii grew colder. He remained In the
tree, watched by the deer, from five
O'Clock In the afternoon till ten ut night
The moon was shining, and it was as light
ms day. To keep his blood in circulation
he climbed from his perch to the top OF
the tree and back from time to time, feat
that was attended with no little difficulty
and danger. About ten O'Clock he heard