The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1889-03-06

Lake Washington.
Col. Waring says there is no doubt
that all of the area included in his re-
port should be FIRST constructed. leav-
ing the application of the remainder
of the area for future consideration.
FIGHTING A WOUNDED BUcK.
A Hunters Narrow Escape from .
Broken-Legged Deer.
Harrisburg Letter in New York Sun.
II have had q good many novel and
exciting adventures in the woods, =
said William Demuth Of Jobs Bridge,
Sullivan county. "bnt the one I had
with a archaeological buck, couple oil
years ago. airnostin sight CT nay house,
was the iiyeliest of all. and gave me
the closest call.
1t happened about the middle Of
March The snow was deep ur
through the lumber regions that win
ter, but there had been a couple oil
weeks of warm weather and frequen:
rains. and in the open country the
sleighing was nearly all gone. There
were many deep drifts left along the
roads, and cold snap of a day or two
had frozen quite crust on them. /
was on INV way home, in a low bodied
sleigh. and wnen within mile OF the
Bridge, i saw standing at the side OF
the road, and not more than 10 feet
from it, in an open space in the woods,
one OF the biggest bucks i had ever
seen. He did not move away as I
approached, much to nay surprise.
Ny horse SHE'D to one side when be
saw the buck, and ran several Yards
past the deer before could stop him.
II turned round in my sleigh and
looked back. The buck still stood in
the same place. / noticed, then, that
he was very poor, and looked sick |
had heard that a lumber operator over
on the creek had several tame deer in
a small park, and made up my mind
that this must be one of his that had
got out of the enclosure. lie was q
nFe-prog buck, and ii in flesh would
have been as magnificent specimen
OF his kind as ever led chase. Feel
ing that it would be pity 10 leave
him perish there, tied my horse to a
tree at the roadside and walked back
TO see If 1 couldt drive the buck along
with me SO could herd and pick up
with my cattle, among which, in Sc
we're winters, | have often found wild
deer feeding.
.As neared the creek with this
merciful purpose he began to show
some sign that he recognized my
presence, and when | was within lC
feet of him his recognition became so
positive that | at once knew that,
whether he was tame deer or a wild
one, he did not intend to accept my
services in the spirit in which / had
intended TO offer them, and that the
chances were unless l returned to my
sleigh without delay my interference
would be resented by the buck in q
manner not at all to my advantage.
The hair on the deer's back had
bristled up as approached him. his
ears were laid back Hat along his head
and his eyes glared fierceiy. From a
gaunt, half-famished looking animal
indifferent 10 his surroundings or his
fate, he suddenly became fierce and
defiant, presenting "A front that plainly
showed pride of race and detern1ina-
ton OF purpose in adversely. | took q
step backward as the preliminary tao
tics in my retreat, and the buck i'm
mediateiy sprang forward to the at
tack
.On the opposite side OF the road a
large hemiock tree had been blown
down, leaving a stump six or seven
feet high. ! cleared the road az a
jump, almost, and lodged behind the
stump Peering around it., saw the
buck coming, and then discovered for
the first tine that his right hind leg
was broken, and that il dragged help
lessly behiiid him. Then the buck 5
logged fierceness was explained.
There is no tieeter or more dreaded
object to be met in the woods than II
wounded buck, as all hunters know.
No matter whether you have inflicted
the wound or whether someone else
has, the buck will attack the tirst that
appears. Consequently knew that |
Was in for lively time before | got
away from that broken-legged buck
with my life.
A deer can handle itself with three
sound legs almost as well a. it can
with four, provided the disabled one is
not the right fore leg. A deer can get
over the course with broken lett fore
leg nearly as rapidly as itcould before,
and broken hind leg retards its pro-
gress hardly any. But ii its right lore
leg be broken. that moment the deer
is as good as in the hunters hands.
In running and taking its great leaps
the deer always strikes the ground
with its right fore foot first, and then,
If the left fore leg is Injured, it eau be
so favored by the right one that the
speed OF the deer may be maintained
for many miles, but the left fore leg
cannot favor disabled right leg, and
when the latter Is broken the deer is
gone.
We'll, this wounded buck that
had put on its mettle by an act OF mis-
taken kindness gave me a most lively
chase round and round that stump
for i've minutes. l had no weapon.
not even apocket knife, but there was
an axe in the sleigh. How to reach
that, however. was the puzzle The
sleigh was fifty yards away, but be-
tween IL and where was lodging that
wounded buck around the stump
were a number OF trees, standing at
regular distances from each olher,
and no two Of them closer together
than ten feet They were all small
trees, too, the Rig timber having been
cut out along there. Ii was plain to
me that couldn't spend much more
time eirciing around that stump, for
broken-legged and emaciated as he
was. the buck gave evidence OF more
bottom and endurance than could. |
was fast getting winded. Nv only
chance was 70 make break from the
stump 20 the nearest tree, and so on
from tree 70 tree until | could reach
the sleigh and get my axe. With that
IN my hands | bad no doubt of a
speedy end OF the battle in my favor.
II made the break, bat when
Jumped behind the urst tree, which
vas not more than Is feet away, the
bucks antlrrs grszea INV back | had
expected tight work, but that il would
be as close for the eyes as that was
more than had calculated on. But
succeeded. IN cashiag from one tree TO
another, with the buck at my heel :
all the time. Until had only to get
10 the one where my horse was tied,
and that was only the width of the
roadway, my sleigh being.on the sida
OF the road had fiE=t seen the
buck OH.
II had felt that my uncomfortable
and peFilous experience would soon be
al an end, but | had not taken the
feelings and disposition of ms horses
into account. / made the dash across
the road and reached the tree safe,
bat as the deer spfanx into the roasi