Custer chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, Black Hills, D.T. [S.D.]) 1880-1890, 1889-09-07
NOVEL SCRIMMAGE
"A Terrific Fight Between a Bear
and Three Billy Goats.
r. Kaleidoscope Twill of Horns, Hair
and Wool Mingled i'm One Mis-
ceIlaneous Bunch-Fatal
Termination.

q fight of any kind-the bloodier
the better. But it fell to the
sot of old Bill Withers, an old hunter,
and Sam Smiley, one of his neighbors,
30 vary the monotony recently with
S%omething entirely unique. Last winter
Withers captured a full grown black
bear in trap. He penned the animal
In d strong log structure and kept it in
good condition, but it was so fierce that
be never could do anything with it, and
he was about TO kill it, when n day
pot long ago old Smiley came along.
Smiley was the proud owner Of a trio
pr the meanest and crossest billy goats
that aver chewed a tomatoe can or broke
mp a country school. He had often
tried to give them away, but nobody
would have them although half the
people in the district had threatened to
4hoet them on sight. This was the con
}ition of things when Smiley rode up
30 Withers house, where, as a matter OF
course. it being generally idle time, the
conversation turned upon the subject of
something in the way of sport. Sud-
5enly a bright thought struck Smiley.
"Say, Bill" said he, 'Ill tell you
what III do; I'll bet my saddle horse
agin your roam mare that / have three
year old billy goats which kin lick that
bar %o'yourn."
s'Great thunder!" said Bill, "Ill take
thet bet. / know yer derned goats kant
keep the flies off'n him; but it'll be fun
fur the boys. When shill the fife cum
oG?"
ssLess see," said Smiley, RETROSPECT
tively, it'll take maybe a week to
ketch them goats and build a big pen to
lite in and git the news to the nabors.
fThis is Tuesday; say next Thursday
week. How'll that suit?"
1t was agreed that Thursday Of the
following week should be the time, and
Ahe place was fixed at a spot on Withers'
Farm, as it was supposed there would be
2nore trouble in getting the bear than
tthe goats TO the ground. During the
week Smiley and Withers had notified
1he neighbors, who set to with a will to
assist. The goats were trapped-the
sonly safe way to get the pugnacious
fb~rutes-and a big rail pen, about
tsegenty feet in diameter and ten feet
high, was built. The outcome of 1t all
Was described by a native to a CORE
Dpondent of the New York World.
: When the morning of the day set
opened the whole country was on the
bpot to the number of several hundred,
Including a dozen or so of women and
&wice as many half-grown boys. The
g0ats-tremendous fellows, with terrible
thorns and exaggerated tempers-were
brought to the ground tied by the feet
hand hauled in a wagon. They were
Gifted out and put in a small pen adjoin-
Hng h fighting arena, when their LASH
ings were cut loose and their captors
took hastily to the fence, out of harms
Feach. The animals were to be left in
Nheir pen until after dinner, by which
Ttime it was believed that their o~ircula-
tion would be fully restored and their
%stiffening limbs again return to their
natural elasticity. The bear was left in
sehe pen, and, as he had been given moth
hng to eat since the day before, he vas
IN a ferocious humor. Old Withers and
The crowd collected in the yard in front
tof the house and lay in the shade, talk-
Ang and joking and eating their lunch,
(which the washed down with an coca
sio..al touch of the contents of slspi-
?cious looking jugs.
About / o'clock preparations were
made for the fight. a long i,ole, twenty
fleet in length, with a slipnuose of chain
I'm its center, was bro ught out. The
moose was let down between the cracks
Ein the bears pen, where, after consider
able trouble, it was at last caught about
his neck. The roof of the pen and one
'end were then torn out and four strong
men at each end of the pole dragged and
pulled the bear to the opening in the
pit, whore he was firmly fastened to a
chain about thirty feet long, which in
turn was fastened to a stake in the
center of the arena, after which the
moose was slackened and pulled over the
bears head. Everything now being
ready the bars separating the pen were
let down.
The bear was in a terrible rage and
fore about the pen trying in vain to
ybreak his chain and get at the noun
Aaineers. The goats were also in an ex-
aggerated state of mind and in a fit con-
hition to fight at the drop of a hat. AS
Eoon as the bars were down the goats
trotted through into the main pen, but
upon catching sight of the bear they
hesitated, whistled and stamped their
fleet, while the hair on their backs rose
stiff and straight. Meanwhile the bear
had got sight of his enemies, and, as he
was hungry, he made straight for them
tthe full length of his chain. This open
tchallenge for a fight was not to be ig-
lnored. One old fellow, the patriarch Of
tthe gang, lowered his head and made a
hound, and before the bear knew what
twas coming a bombshell of horns, legs
land feet struck him such a terrific blow
hin the stomach that he keeled over and
DAY fiat on his back. The other goats
twere not far behind their leader when
hhey let him nave it, one hitting him on
the rump and the other in the side.
These hard raps stirred up the bears
already sour temper, and he quickly got
ION his feet just as one Of the goats made
Ia second rush at him. just as the billy
got within reach bruin let fly a paw and
sent the goat rolling and tumbling
Twenty feet away, but he wasn't quick
enough to avoid the next one, which
gave him a jam between the ribs that
made him snarl and whine. The third
one let him have a cracker in the side,
but did't get away in time to avoid a
elbow from the left duke of the bear,
(which sent him tumbling after No. /.
Iy tlSs time No. / had regained his
49, 49, iii .-t.l-.J I1..l~ h. o-.s.