The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1891-08-13
FREEING a WILDCAT.
B. 11an Who Has Lost IN Looxs, ous Gained
In Wisdom.

11nn Who Has Lost IN Looxs, but Gained
IN Wisdom.
John Ocrtng, young Ohio farmc1,
who recontly came TO Texas ond set
tied tn Angelina county, was pretty
good Ninrod before he come, but he
knows moro nbout hunting Wildcats
than no did, says LuflSin CTox.) cor
respondent of tho st. Louis Globe Dem
ocrat- Ono day no and one of his
nclghbors, Arson Brown, were at work
on foncc ut tho back Of his fields
when they heard tho dogs running
something In the bottom not far away,
and 1t wns MOTTO nS before the cxcitod
bay OF the hounds announced thot they
had their gano ''treed" With tho
spirit OF born buntcrs both men
dropped their work ond went over
to sec what it was They found
tho hounds lcaping and barking
aloind sinnll swcctgum ubout twenty
feet high oild crouchod among the
branches near tho top WIS large wild
cat, looking about as vicious US O wild
cat can Neither of them had @ gun,
nnd it was long distance to the house.
Brown proposed to GO for O gun, but
Dcring objected
y / y
It'll tic my knife to polo and climb
the treo ind punch him out nnd let tho
dogs oatoh him"
In vain Brown warned aod protested
Dcring laughed ut him for being ofrpid
o4n poor littlo wildcat that lie could
MONACO with one hand" SO the pro-
grnmmo WIS carried out-tl,at is par
tinlly. The knife, good, long-bladed
one, was tied firmly to pole about FIVE
feet long, a-,d Dcring slipped off his
shoes nnd started up the treo, telling
Drown to ''stond from under, Us tho
wildcat might fall on YOU" AS ho
climbed he noticed that tho cat was
wutching his motions With great dis
favor and was snarlinS and showing it's
teeth as no came neGrep. He was not
pfroid, however, lie climbed still
higher, and bringing hts pole into posi-
ton gave the animal stab that
brought the blood. It also brought
something else that was not on tho
programme Tho cot was expected to
jump or fall from tho tree and be in
stantly torn in pieces by the dogs In
stead it cnno down the tree like fash,
using Dcrilig Us kind OF ladder to
come down on and scratching him In
hundred plaoee at onoe; and when it
was about four feet below him It
stopped and looked up, os though It
were inquiring If no vpontcd nnythinsz
tnoro.
Now no was tn o fiHi Up t1oo, with
wildcat, nnd very bad tempered
one, too, between him and the ground
Brown shouted at him to keep still, but
the baytng Of tho dogs ond the growl-
ing Of the cat drowned the sound of his
voice Dcring turned his pole, bring
ing the knife downward, and made
nnothcr frantic effort to dislodJo the
vicious animal. Again the result was
not according to the programme. Tho
cat ran swiftly up tho tree, running
over Dcrilg again and sinking its terri
bic claws wherever it touched In an
instant 1t wns back in its old plaoe at
the top Of tho tree
Doring had had enough. lie threw
his pole OFF at one side nnd started
earthward with oil possible haste, but
tho cat, thinking he was about to at
tacls It again, possibly, sprung Mt him.
and landed square on his shoulders.
The effect was Immediate. Dcring lost
his hold, md they went crashing down
through the branches together. and
were Immediately turned into wild
choos Of cot and dogs and man rolling
nnd tuInbling over the ground in the
most indescribable confusion Brown
had the pole and knife. ind was run
ming around tho sccnc of combat trying
70 kill or disable the cat, but could do
nothing without hurting Dering. FL
nally Browns Juno, o very valuable
dog, finished tho fight ond killed tho
cat, but not until It had killed Hector,
Juno's mate, md severely wounded
two others rs for Dering, no crawled
out of the melee with o suit OF clothes
in ribbons. and bleeding from head to
foot but mono of his wounds werc very
serious lie says, himself. that he ant
as pretty as he was before, but he Is "a
hong sight smarter"