Great Falls tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1885-1890, 1885-10-03
THE LION HUNT.

MOD. ol booh "nlcH Will De publl5net
from this Office the coming winter, and i.
written by an oid-time Montana hunter
and trapper.-ED.
1t was noon of night and the Sep
tember frosts bad scared the leaves ot
the cottonwood to golden brown; the
air was balmy and filled with perfume
of the ripe Der, les; the full moon jill
up Old Earth to an extent only known
in the northern country. The milky
way was one solid mass of glisten:ne
diamonds; the whole heavens seemed
to be alrayed in the robes of splendol
and brightness. A few large bats and
night hawks beat The ali with their
wings, and the rushing Of the waters
were the only sounds that broke the
aWfnl stiffness. The blazing orbs lit
up the scene, while the dark shadows
OF the mountain pines stood out like
sentinels Of a great army with their
shadows reaching far beyond the run
ming brook, whose waters came dash
ing and bubbling past boH]ders aud
roots and trees whose roofs had been
unea,thed by the angry waters as they
bounded seawara Great spots Of
white foam glided past like things Of
life, and were gone in the distance
The trout could be plainly seen Gid
ing in the brilliant moonlight.
[ was sitting here in The heart Of
the Sun Dance mountains, on large
rock, thinking Of o,ber moonlight
nights in the hills Of Ohio, where The
whipwoorwill broke he Stiffness OF
night, as l had wandered forth on
many occasions with my blue-eyed.
golden haired, darling of boyhood's
happy days, [ was living life over
again in this lovely mountain home,
when my attention was called TO FIVE
white tailed deer, as they came care
fully down a narrow, winding trail
beat deep in The soft ground. Slowly
they came shifting the air ard care
fully surveying every nook and bush,
with eyes standing out like great
beads, they scan every leaf or moving
object, their nostrils expanded like
those Of a race horse, the old buck in
advance, with his large antlers, left
the does and formed a circuitous
route to the waters edge about fifty
yards below me. They would take a
mouthful Of water, then raise their
heads and look all around. There
was apparently danger lurking close
by, for the moment they went to re-
treat, a powerful lion sailed from
projecting rock and lit oa the back
OF the largest doe. She gave one
pitiful blat and all was over The
lion had broken its back and three Of
its legs and crushed the poor things
neck-bone, and there he lay sucking
her blood, while her muscles were
jerking and Pickering as her life pass
ed slowly away.
He soon rose up and began to tear
the flesh from her breast, and crush
ing her ribs as though they were pipe
stems. [ had crept slowly Up until I
was within twenty yards Of the pow
erful brute, and was watching him in
the moonlight. At this moment there
came terrific roar not far below
where we were, that made the rocks
shake from centre to circumference
The lion picked up the deer and
started off in the direction was, and |
come directly under me and stopped.
| saw the outlines Of another power
ful lion coming up the creek. He was
coming like an eagle on the wing and
almost as noiseless, when with one
bound of the lion and deer he stop
ped and crouched for a spring, but
the other lion set up a growl so loud |
and fierce that he paused. There
they stood, with eyes like fre-balls,
and their large tushes cleaning like |
ivory, while their great tails ]ashed |
the air from one side to the other, all |
the time showing an increase Of cage.
This was kept up for some time. when |
they both bound in the air, and with |
roars that would raise the dead. |
clinched with teeth and claws, ihet
screams and cries resembling those os
two cats, only SO loud as to raise ihe
hat off my head. The long hair was
soon flying in the air like feathers.
They now walked around each other, |
bowling and snarling like hyenas, get
ting closer to the doe. Suddenly the
first lion caught the deer and started |
and the other caught it, and they tore
the doe in two, as cats would mouse.
and starting each way. grasped my
old Winchester closer and began to
get ready for action, as my time was
evidently short and some quick work
must be done. I braced my foot
against a solid rock below me and
drew on the first lions back, and fred.
He gave bound high in the air and