The Irish standard., 1889-07-13
A cATAMouNT's LEAP.
It Was to Death, But Through No Fault
of the Animals Agility.

of the Animals Agility.
ssI've seen it disputed in the papers that
wildcat or catamount, can make aleap OF
twenty-five feet" said a resident Of Sulli.
van County to New York Sun reporter.
land would like to mention what saw q
wildcat do once 1 was trout fishing Oh
one of the upper tributaries OF tie Beaver
kill, and had clambered down into deep
rayine TO get at u tempting pool at the foot
OF Il fall, where was sure my casts would
be rewarded by the killing CT some big
trout | was not mistaken as to that. /
had landed four trout, the smallest one
eighteen inches long, and sat down to srcst
the pool Both sides of the rayine were
perpendicular walls of rock, probably
twenty-five feet high. The summit of the
wall on the side of the creek opposite to ME
sLoped back gradually from it's edge for
several feet to a heavy growth of pine.
las L was sitting at the bottom of Tie
ravine happened to glance up to the top OF
the rocks opposite me. and saw a hen
brood come out of the pines and scratch aud
peck her way along the sloping open space.
hunting food for her young, which clus-
tered closely about her. The pheasant
came close TO the edge Of the precipice, ana
it seemed to ME chat she was placing her
brood in a most dangerous position, when
she turned as il to walk back with there TO
the pines. The instant she turned some
thing like shadow fitted across the top Of
the ravne, ana half second later ] saw an
enormous wildcat cliuging to the edge OF
the opposite wall by his fore feet, holding
the pheasant between his jaws. The wild
cat struggled for a moment to drag himself
from the edge Of the abyss to a sure foot
ing on the top Of the rocks, but has effort
was in vain, and he came crashing down
the face of the precipice, still holding the
luckless pheasant in his jaws. He fell
with splash in the water, and lay motion
less at the edge Of the pool.
II suppose that the animal had been
watching the pheasant from the bushes on
top Of the rocks oppositeWhere the bird had
appeared with her brood, and at his oppor
tunity had leaped across 10 seize her,
but had misjudged the distance and fallen
short, with the result SO fatal to him.
s'rhe whirl of the water brought the wild
cat around in short time to the side where
was standing, and as I was bending dow:
to examine him saw q man with gun
scrambling down the rocks. The man SION
reached my side, and then learned that lt
had shot the wildcat as the animal was fly
ing across the chasm upon his prey. Sur
enough, just at the base OF the animals
brain was the hole made by the rifle ball
The hunter had been following the wildca
for some time, and had lost tr. ok OF him
but came near the edge of the ravine
time to see hum make his lear and
followed him with the bullet. 1t way
that which had stopped the animal short il
the tremendous leap it had calculated on o
it would have cleared the space with satet.
and doubtless with ease. The wildcat wa
in reality almost in his death throe
when me- struck. the pheasant, which h
chung TO with the clutch of death, and still
held in his mouth when we dragged hin
ont of the water. W e measured the width
Of the chasm across which the wildcat had
made his death leap The measurement
WAS fnrtE-thren feet