The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1889-07-11
THE JAGUARS OF CHIHUAHUA.
HUNTERS HAVE TERRIBLE FIGHT WITH
THREE OF THE GoLDEN-CoATED BRUTEs.

| San Francisco Examiner: Paul Gill
EFT, an old Indian trader and hunter of
the Yuma, ia at the American Exchange.
For fifty ears he has been conspicu-
ous figure in the Colorado and ella Riv-
er districts He has taken part in
| number of severe brushes with the Apa-
ches and other tribes, but in his old age,
owing to tue military forces on the from
tier, and the lessening of Indian difficult
les, he is now devoting more attention
to hunting. His eye is yet undimmed.
and though now nearly 10 years Of age
he is strong and stalwart. 1t would take
book to tell of ais varied experiences.
Moreover, he Is inclined not to talk much
of himself. However, he consented to
tell an Examiner representative of
strange experience he had with royal
Chihuahua tiger, as an animal of which
nothing is known SO far north as San
Francisco.
You must know" said he, "that these
tigers are the most beautiful animals i'll
America. They are robust, and seven
or eight feet long, a beautiful golden
color, and spotted like leopard. The
royal tiger of Bengal Is striped, aud
has no dots on him. Moreover his gen
eral color is dun and not gold, like the
tiger of the Actec races. A thorough
going ca. III all his movements, sly, and
light of tread, and with strength of
Hercules, man can not afford to fool
round too much when he meets cue out
under the Southern pinion trees.
1T was In September tb.: myself,
Tim Esterbrook, and Joha :, .:hlnson
were camped at our mines q he head
Of Dolores Canyon. A part # Mexi-
cans came III and reported that they had
found an old Spanish mine few miles
out. The Spanish mines were to q large
extent covered over, concealed at the time
OF the revolution, aud many OF them were
lost. 1t Was one of those lost mines that the
Mexicans said they had. We set off after
| it carrying our express rifles with US, for
we never III that section go out unarmed
| for fear of renegade Apaches, let alone
vicious wild animals. After an eighteen
| mile jaunt we came to the entrance of
| the mine. The earth covering had fallen
| in, and though wreck and ruin were ali
| around, there was a good sized aper-
| ture, and we had 10 difficulty in enter
ing it. We had advanced about fifty
yards in the long desolate tunnel, and If
| there is anything desolate in this world
| it is the dark, damp tunnel Of deserted
mine. We
| CARRIED PINE FACETS IN HAND
| to give us light, and were moving along
Ill stopping posture, as miners go, when
all of a sudden [ noticed great big tracks
| in the soft mud at the bottom. Good
teaven!' said | there are bears in here,
aud if we don't get out We are done for. ;
| We beat a hasty retreat, and reaching
open air again gathered dry bushes and
| sticks to smoke them out. We stacked
! them up pretty high in the mouth of the
| tunnel. and threw dirt on them to cause
! them to shoulder and throw the smoke
| backward.
"Ihen we sat down with our guns to
await the enemy. We had sat there fif
| teen or twenty minutes, aud We're tired
of holding our guns so long, aud began
| to talk about other things. Still nothing
came. We discussed a variety of sub
| jects; our attentions became entirely re
taxed, and L was in the midst of story
when boohl boob! great golden tiger
leaped over the fire and US with great
bound. In a twInkllng another with the
same boohl boob! and a bigger than the
other, leaped the barrier, colllded against
Estabrook, knocked him down, and went
flying beyond like a creased streak OF
lightning. Every last one of us forgot
his gun and went racing around trying
to fad trees to climb An old she tiger
aud two kittens, with piercing howIs,
| next followed, aud went clamberiug up
the hillside after the other two. BY this
time every one of us was either perched
fro oh :,
guns were lying scattered Oh the ground,
and, old hunters as We were, we we clear
ly beaten. Perched in our trees, after
our fright was over, We INDUCED in loud
shrleks and laughter. The situation was
too ludicrous. But We resolved to get
after these tigers, and we did it. We
got skilled Mexican trailer to go with
us, aud We tralled them across gulches,
through shrubs, and finally caught a
glimpse of one perched in a rocky cleft
Wilkinson brought him down by shot
in the heart. He was very fine one,
large and powerful, and with magnif-
cent skin.
''1uto The next canon we traced the
other tigers. They travelled almost 20
gether, going only fifteen or twenty feet
apart in places. The Mexican at last
corralled them in a softlime stone noun
tain, crumbiing in pieces like chalk, and
with holes i'll one side made by weather
and animals. 1t was their own retreat
This time, while we made preparations
to smoke them ont, we stationed our
selves one hundred yards away, spread far
apart 50 We could get good aim at their
bodies while they ran. The first came
bounding out like a shot out of gun,
but we were on the alert this time, and
THREE BULLETS PIERCED HIM,
and laid him low. Then the old one and
her young came along. We shot into
them. wourdiDg the big one, aud she
turned on US. Estabrook was caught and
his coat torn off. Turning to flee, the
tiger caught him by the left hand and
put her teeth through it and crushed it.
The kittens weighing about 100 pounds
apiece, would not ran and advanced to
aid in the fight. A rifle ball from one of
us crippled one and laid the other low,
and on we rushed, firing all the time, to
the aid of Estabrook. Some way we
missed the brute. We had to fire with
the greatest care to keep from hitting the
hunter, end it seems to me it was fully
five minutes before we planted the fatal
bali in her.
'Estabrook WIS SO badly manned by
the teeth of The tiger that he has never
recovered from it. His hands was so
torn that two of his fingers hung by
shreds of flesh, and his arm above the |
wrist was also lacerated. This was the |
closest call / ever had with any wild ami |
NAL. Bear and deer and other kinds of |
game OH the border 1 have killed. in large |
bat there S nothing on the |
frontier now that is SO vicious as this |
tiger. Estabrook is now at San Bernar-
dino laid up from bis tiger fight"