The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1885-12-11

Hunting the Willy Beasts to obtain thu
Bounty Paid for Their Destruction.


Hunting the Willy Beasts to obtain the
Bounty Paid for Their Destruction.
Pocono (Pa.) Letter in New York Sun.
Under the new game law of Pennsylvania~a
large bounty Is authorized TO be paid for the
killing of wild cats aud foxes. These animals
have increased greatly within the past few years
In the backwoods of the State, but wolves have
entirely disappeared. The annual loss sustained
by farmers by the onslaught of catanounts and
foxes on steepfolds and poultry-yar.s has been
SO great that the placing of premium on the
death of these animals, by the re-enactment of
substantially the same law which protected the
farmers In the early days of the back woods :
settlements, but which was repealed as unneces-
sary years ago. became necessity and hunters
and trappers are now paying especial attention
to the killing of foxes and catamounts
The general impression that the catamount
or wildcat, is aggressive in its nature except
upon the small game and domestic animals
which it seeks for food is an entirely erroneous
one The catamount is so shy and quick in its
movements that one is rarely seen by hunters.
Coon hunters frequently encounter a wildcat
that has been freed by dogs, bat they may roam
the woods for weeks without seeing one on any
other occasion except by accident, or by Turing
the animal into ambush by batting for him.
But while habitually keeping itself out of the
way of human beings, and only approaching
their haunts when pressed by hunger, cata-
mount wounded and brought to bay is some
thing that the bravest hunter fears.
for then it will fight with a ferceness
surpassed only by its ferocious and blood thirsty
cousin, the panther. There cases record
even in this region where hunters have attacked
a wounded catamount and given their lives as a
forfeit for their rashness Few dogs care to try
conclusions with a catamount, and dog will
enter the second time into contest with one
Catamounts rarely attack larger wild game than
a rabbit but they will quickly thin out sheep
fold. They have been known to spring upon
deer when made savage and bold by hunger, and
they will Turk on the outskirts of lumber and
hunting camps watching an opportunity to carry
off such game or meat as is frequently left
posed in the absence of the campers. Catamouuts
will follow in the trail of hunters, and if deer is
killed and hung up during the day. they pounce
upon the carcass soon as the hunters are out
of sight. After making meal they will! drag
the remnants of the to some secluded
spot and bury it for some future feast. A car
cass of any kind placed in the woods will call to
the spot every catamount in the neighborhood.
This well known characteristic of the animal is
taken advantage of by trappers. vino set their
traps about the carcass. aud rarely fail in gath
erng one or more catamounts. One wildcat
trapper has captured thirteen very large ones
in this way during the past week. in the neigh.
borhood of the Hi gh Knob in Pike county.
The meeting OF two or more catamountS at the
dead body of an animal in the woods is always
the signal for frequent and fierce contests be-
tween them during the meal. While eating
they keep up constant snarling and growing.
and if one of them tears out morsel which
another covets the latter proceeds at once
to secure it for himself if he can. The cries OF
two battling wildcats are blood curdling, and
may be heard for mile or more. Breaking in
upon the stiffness of "a midnight in the wilder
ness these sounds are anything but conducive
to the repose of party that may be camping
within hearing distance of the fight especially
if the sounds of the combat are heard for the
first time.
The other day Ed Quick, the pioneer hunter
of the Knob region, was witness to
Hrrhf ytv1d
He was hiding behind tree, 'laying for wild
cats to come to the dead body of sheep he had
placed in the woods to draw them together The
animals both appeared on the scene at one time.
The hunter was not fifty feet away. The sparl-
ing and growing began at once over the carcass,
and suddenly one of the catamounts sprang upon
the other. The battle waged fercely from the
start and both animals seemed determined to
make it one to the death. The hunter watched
the fight for ten minutes and then ended it with
a rifle ball. At moment when both animals
were clinched closely together, Quick fired The
bullet entered the back of one catamount's head,
crashed through its brain, and coming out at its
nostril, buried itself in the other ones BRAIN
killing both animals at shot.
In the'old days of paying bountes for wildcat
scalps, the trspper produced his scalps before
justice of the peace, made affidavit that he had
captured the animals, and received a certificate
to that effect. He retained the scalps, and it is
told OF many an old trapper that one lot OF
scalps served to secure him bountieS from the
county every year for many years. or until one
use wore them out In the days of wolves no
hunter who had the interest of himself and his
fellows at heart would kill nanny wolf
which was shewolf with young. Their filters :
were always large. and they kept the stock Of
scalps repenished. A trapper who could tran 4
shewolf and her litter considered a lucky
man, for he raised the young ones and killed
them whenever he wanted to collect money on
scalps One ambitious and enterprising trapper,
whose descendants still trap and hunt in this
region. actually captured male and female
wolf. and kept them in captivity for years.
breeding wolves for the bounties their scalps
brought. But, nowadays, the law is different.
Any scalp on which bounty is paid is retained
by the county and destroyed. thus curtailing
rather lucrative backwoods industry