The Daily times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1886-1889, 1889-01-03
WOLVES AND HORSES.
ko9TAL COMBAT BETWEEN WILD
sTEEOs AND GRAY PROVIDERS.
Erperience Of Three Hunters In the Zinc
mt Mountain Range of Nevada -
Thrilling Fight 10 the DEAF beautiful
Specimens Of tho Equine Breed

Thrilling Fight TO the Deat -Beautiiul
Specimens Of tho Equine Breed
cone of the qucerest things about
Nevada. and one that has kept me won
dering." said Tom ID. Sellers. Of Carson,
10 AN Examiner reporter at the BALDWIN.
care those wild horses. / have lived m
Nevada twenty-six years. y good deal
Of that time have been in the Comstock
range. but when not there mining have
been Of in the hills Of Douglas, Nye,
Churchill and Lander counties.
1T is in these that many bands Of
wild horses roam at their pleasure. both
winter and summer In winter the wild
horses usually seek shelter in the Pine
nut range Of Douglas county.
This Pinonut range extends for sew
enty-fvc or a hundred miles out toward
Utah. and is covered with thick growth
of shrubike pines. which Determinations
nut and which give ample shelter, while
anordng the seclusion which the wild
bands seek The Indians used TO live ON
this nut. and they do yet 90 some extent.
but in the valleys below the pines, and
growing at intervals among them. Is q
very nutritious grass. II Is on this that
the wild horses live.
LARGE MUSTANGS
THE real mountain wild horse Is "a
mustang of large size. His shoulders
are untitled for the collar, not being so
heavy as those Of the American horse,
and he is mountain climber, scarcely
excclled by the wild goat.
every color, from bri ght bay 10 iron
gray. white and black. can be- found.
For steady running nothing of the equine
breed can equal him. The racers which
run ON our tracks would outwn him for
"a couple of miles, perhaps, but they nave
not the staying qualities OF the "ild
ones.
II am Just in from the Pincnut range.
went over there hunting deer in COM
rany with William McNcndree and John
fhurston. Of Phoebe We fell af0ul of "a
band of about twenty wild horses that
dashed into our camp and liked 90 have
made MS walk more than 100 miles. H.
was about ~ o'clock, AMI we had jus'
turned in
"Our camp fire was yet brightly
blazing. and j heard roar OF To- The
northwest like the tread of an advancing
army. We were ON the northwest side
of tle range. and there was steady in
cline night down % us for couple Of
miles. / gazcd ont into the dim light.
but could see nothing. as the fire into
which ! had previously been looking and
thinking blurred my eyes.
The roar continued and ! called 10
ThiHston and Nckcndrce lo get up, and
hat something was going to happen
One said il was storm brewing away
oif I'm the hills and the other thought II
was 40 earthquake.
"All three vi as pccrcl forth into Che
dar..ncss. Our four horses grew uneasy
and dashed around and pa.led at thar
laraf-.
"h minute wc saw the band emerge
from q tIe,ch of pines and come on to-
ward u.s. They were running at fear
ful rate: their noslrils werf dilated. and
their long names and tails flying M tie
wind. Their eyes flashed fire, and none
cf us could understand the reason Of
thcir fight ON they came. seemingly
seeking protection, and dashed right up
t0 rus.
1--WE saws wo were 90 BE- ground under
their heels unless wc did something. and
wc began tO shout and hall0O for all we
were worth.
"OW horses were meantime dashlng
and charging and it looked as if every
instant they would break away. We
gra5ped our guns and fired over the
heads Of the horses, for they were SD
pretty that we didn't want TO Kill them
FINALLY, Just at the last second of
time, when we thought we were % be-
borne down by the wild thrOng, they
turned and dashed down tho hill into tho
darkness.
BY this time we began t. hear weird
howls and noighing and stamping
Every once in a while we heard a
whack. as though something was hitting
something else with terrific force, com
bincd with louder bowls. The noise was
just behind the pur %, pInenut trees, a
quarter of q mile away. 10 continued
louder than ever and two of Us con-
cluded to push on ont and see That the
rumpus was.
Judge OF cur surprise when we see
three old stations surrounded by a pack
of big mountain vJivessand kicking and
biting for all they were worth. Three or
four OF the wolves had been sent 20
grass, their ribs broken ana disabled IN
other ways.
A FIERCE COMBAT.
Around the stations were the able
bodied wolves. swapping and growing
and showing their long white. vicious
teeth. Their eyes CLEANED wicEedly in
the darkness. The side Of one 81 the
horses was bitten and bleeding.
The horses stood almost head O. head
and planted terrific blows On the heads
and bodies of the wolves.
Every once in "a while a wolf de-
scribed a parabOla in the air. Il was q
scene long TO be remembered out there
in the keen, crisp night air Of the noun
tains the three wild horses were lighting
not only for their lives, bat for the bves
Of the younger and weaker members OF
the band. who were being defended from
the wolves who, hungry, had stolen IN
upon them.
I'VE fired on the wolves and for q
minute there was as interesting fusll-
lade as YOU could wish % See. We shot
right into thepack, 10 the right and left
Of the horses, and several of the big gray
wolves bit the dust. They did not give
up right off. though.
They still eyed and snapped violently
at the horses. and even when we had
disrupted the band by our firing and the
horses turned 70 run away some Of the
wolves followed them. a shot from
Thurston's gun, however, fixed Che old
lead wolf. aud another ball crippled the
next. and tho wild horses fled far away
TO Join the band which they had 50 galor-
0usly defended.
In q moment there was nothing hut
the distant rcsounding of hOofs, as the
horses fed far down the edge Of the little
stream In the distance. The wolves took
a back track to the trees far back on the
Pinenut range. and we saw no more Of
them that night, though You may be
sure that one or the other OF Us was
awake until broad daylight.-San Fran
cisco Examiner.
IA cropoVol oefve ono crfrroe1d 10 bc