Eureka daily sentinel. [volume] (Eureka, Nev.) 1871-1887, 1876-12-14


Tile publication of the recent thrilling
adventure Of Doctor Bailey with 8
wounded deer on Bald mountain has
developed \ wonderful sinount OF talk
among the huniers Of the Base Range,
and when one hears some of them re
count their personal experiences that
incident in the life of the Doctor sinks
into utter insignificnnce. John Henry
King, the veteran painter and paper.
hanger, has been In his time. perhaps,
ono Of tho most celebrated hunters tina,
ever picked a flint in the Far West.
He joined the American Fur Com pany
in 1880, snd for ninety years his life
was spent in the wilds of tho Rocky
Mountains. During that protr.cted
period, ~ may we'll be imagined, he
ex perienced as many close calls ~ AIRY
man who has ever pressed North
American soil, not excepting even
Daniel Boone and the rest Of the r..
nowned hunters and Indian fighters
who figured in the early history of our
country. 1.-THE Life amt Adventures
of John Henry King" would make
and interesting and saleable book,
I ONt OCtuk q tIOuCo Atu VklhSSttIltIX
man, he Is greatly averse to giving to
the world the slightest inkling of his
personal exploits. 1t Is only at rare
intervals that he can be called ont.
The adventure OF Doctor Bailey the
other day served to make him detail
what he callsd.a trifling incident in his
career In the spring of 1855. We were
not present to take down his x
language. but get the substance of
! what lie said from Ned McSOrley and
Pete Canavan. IL WAS mainly a buf
talo story, though some elk and other
small game figured in it, as the reader
will discover further on. BY way of
conveying an idea of the vast number
of buffalo that rOained the plains in
those early days. Mr.. King diyressed To
detail u little incident that came under
his obsef vatiOn as he was coming up
the Missouri river in a small craft in
the summer of l747. 1t was at q time
when the buffalo were crossing from
south to north, AZ used to he their Gus
tom during the hot weather. They
moved in grand professions, max
ing the earth fairly quake be.
meath their accumulated weight.
One Of these immense herds VAS
encnuntered in the river. Nothing
could divert the beasts from their
course. The whole face of the earth
for miles MAS literally black with
them. To get vt once at the n,ib of
the statement, the steamer had to tie
up for four mortal days to allow them
TO pass. Mr.. King estimates that the
herd was nine miles wide and sixty
miles long, containing, ri q low esti-
mate, no less than 3O0, 900 animals.
We come now to the trining adven.
ture Of which he spoke. The scene
vas laid on the head waters of the
Yellowstone, about 400 miles from tho
spot where old Fort Hall WAS after
ward built. Mr.. King, at the head Of
sixty Crow warriors, had hcen out for
= little hunt. They had met with av-
erage stccess, having bagved a large
uunber Of grislies, buffalo, antelope.
and y lew mountain sheep. II WAS the
custom OF the party To hunt in small
squads. On the particular occasion
under notice, our hero had with HIM
but four of his Crows. The small
party were proceeding slowly in the
direction OF their camp, when a band
of elk, numbering possibly 200. all
of the huge variety. with antlers
averaging froin five to eight feet, was
esI,ied IN The distance. MIR. King. dis
mounting, look position and sont the
Indians "a make a drive fur him. In
due season the game came within reach
ui his trusty rifle. Bang! and down
came five, with the sixth badly wound.
| cd. The latter Is the one with which
We have now TO deal. 1t was a mon.
stsr mud as am asa wounded grizzly.
1 Before the hunter could reach his
horse, which in tho meantime had
taken fright, the elk was on him; and
then en>ued such a c~oufi;ct az Was
never before or since witnessed on the
plains. The great obstacle wss the ami
mails immense horns. He could have
been slain Instantly but for these. AS
It was, all efforts To get NJ his jugular
proved abor i've. Finally the elk. by
the interest accident, got the advantage
and with a toss he had tho hunter
lodged in his forest of horns. Just
here came the critical time. BY hook
ar crook the animals antlers had In
some way become 80 firmly entangled
in the buckskin clothes of the hunter
hat there WAS no such thing ss olsen
gaging them. The hunter was stretch
ed almost at full length along the main
growth. Roth legs and n arm were
pinioned ~ it were. The animal
paved and snorted for n time, but
finally getting alarmed at the situa
ton, he made off over mountain and
vale at a pace never equslsd. 1t was
= John Gtpin ride on AL extensive
scale for the next three days and
nights. The further the beast went
the more desperate he became, and
preciritous mountains, inaccessible
canyons and level plains were all the
sam- in his eyes. There was no
cessation Of hostilities for q
single moment, but on and on
no went through all of those
weary days and nights. On the even.
ing of the third day, however, when it
WA not possible for either to hold out
much longer, An Indian village was
encountered, when, ~ good luck
would have It, one OF the braves sailed
forth and put an arrow through the
elk, killing him on the spot. He was
about to level another at the impaled
hunter, when tho latter made his pres.
ence known, the hunter peing person
ally acquainted with every Indian
from Puget Sound to Santa Fe. Mr..
King found himself 400 miles from
G mp, but after refreshing himself n
nay or two, he was kindly conveyed to
his friends, and now relates this rem