Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1891-05-26
A GIRLS FIGHT WITH A PANTHER.
The Enraged Wild Cat Thrown Down a
Precipice by Her Fair Antagonist.

Hrec1pice Dy Her fa1r Antagonist.
The story was brought to Pueblo, Col,
by messenger from up in the mountains
of a thrilling adventure which befell Nora,
the daughter of one of the settlements
leading members She is a devoted orni-
biologist, and had captured an eaglet from
a nest in the top of a tall oak, back of
Quarry peak, a long ledge crowned ridge,
distant half n mile from her home. On her
return from the trip to the eyrie she deter
mined to cross the crest of the ridge and
descend the crags instead of making cir
cult, as she had done in the ascending.
The ledge does not average more than forty
feet in height, but was so steep as to be
most impossible.
She had discovered two places, however,
where she could make the descent, and
started down the perilous route. There
was one place in the descent where she
must drop from the edge of one rock 4 the
top of another six feet below. STR. ping
the eaglet to her shoulders, she made her
way skillfully and safely, and had just
dropped from the overhanging ledge of one
''step" in the stairway to the landing be-
meath when a plaintive, half human cry
reached her ears, seeming to come from the
base of the crag beneath. A great branch
ing oak, with limbs shadowing the Jagged
rocks and almost touching them, had
grown up from below. She peeped eau
tiously over the precipice down through
the foliage, not daring to make the slight
est noise md almost fearing to breathe
She could see nothing The prolonged
moaning caterwaul was that of young
panther. The fair hunter had no weapon
with her except a small knife and a pocket
| revolver-a mere toy-and with panthers
she quickly decided that the knife was
| equally as good a defense as the revolver
| She cast her eyes wisrfully into the limbs
| above and then down over the precipice to-
ward the jagged rocks below.
While benCing over thus the shadows of
some flying thing seemed to pass over her;
| there was an ominous rattle of loosened
stones above and a rustling shock among
| the upper branches of the tree. Then on
| the instant another shrill scream, which
| now seemed to come up triumphantly
| from the foot of the ledge, and was an
| swered by snarling cry from the tree top.
| The girl knew just what had happened,
and crouched quite limp and faint from
! fright upon the shelf of the rock.
| For few moments she dared not look
| upward. Then another snarl and ripping of
the bark drew her eyes irresistibly. At the
! sight which met her gaze she shrank and
| covered closer TO the ledge from which she
! had just before dropped. The old panther
was there, the mother of the young one at
| the base of the ledge. Swaying TO and fro.
she chung to branch and glared fiercely
on the intruder, her white fangs cleaning
as the red lips quivered above them. The
long, 1.-the, brown body lay along the limb
as the creature prepared for a downward
leap.
| For some moments the beast kept her
| threatening attitude. At length, awed or
| puzzled by the steady eyes of the girl, she
turned as if to go up the ledge. But just
| then the yearning cry of the young one
came up from below, and with a sprir 9
the mother leaped to the stony platform
beside the girl.
With an involuntary cry of horror the
| mountaineer's daughter kicked with her
| heavy shoes full into the panther's face
with such force as to push her over the
! edge. But even then, whirling about the
| animal caught her dress and drew the girl
| after it. As she slid off Nora caught hold
| of the branch of the tree with one hand.
The other hand, with the knife in it, struck
out for the assailant. and by good fortune
hit the creatures eye. Whether the socket
was pierced and the brain stabbed, or
whether, blinded with pain. the fall was
awkwardly made and broke the animals
back, could not be told, but, bowling with
anger, she loosed her hold and fell down
the lodges and lay fifty feet below, dead.
The panther : carcass was brought in the
next day by her father.-Cor. St. Louis
GlObe-Democrat.