The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-01-04

as won for him reputation even here in
Texas.
SJme time in the small hours the hounds
scented trail at a little waterhole, aud
started OF at lively gait. We followed
them for an hour or more gradually getting
on to rougher and rougher ground, AID
finally dashed into the GU skirts Of a cedar
brake, at the head Of a side draw. The
oogs were barking furiously and had evi-
IDENTIFY freed a cat or other "varmint y
Great excitement prevailed. chihuahua,
with snort all out Of proportion to his
size, rushed to the lead, though l would
have cheerfully remained in the back
ground little Suddenly, while we were
making our way into tine dsus brake,
with some confusion. and much scrambling
and laundering over loose stones, 1 heard a
scuffie a. an exclamation little back of
me, and just as l turned to look large,
tawny object came flying through the air
and lit on Chihuahua's neck. ! shut my
eyes tight, raised the little six-shooter
with which l had been provided and fired
at 1t on the instant, not rejecting that
should probably kill my pony, and not hurt
the thing. My shot was greeted with a
shout of Laughter, and l opened my eyes to
see Albert Fox's big light hat roll to the
ground beside me. chihuahua was
unhurt, but the end was not yet. In the
midst of the yells aud laughter Charley
Van Brunt's vicious beast shot past me,
Tucked savagely, and left his rider and the
chase to follow his own evil devices. Char
ley went up like a rocket, turned over and
came down exact ly on the top of his i'm
mense steeple.crowned sombrero, with his
ridiculous little legs sticking up in the air,
then he fell over and lay still.
We were all Mortified; there was a gen.
eral cutlery; everybody hurried up; Albert
Fox threw himself off his horse and bent
bn- IL r
shots. burst OF ciamor from the dogs, and
big cat sp ang suddenly between his feet
and went out of sight like a streak. The
hounds came tearing after. and the other
wing OF our party yelling ''Shoot-shoot
himr'
"Oh, blow the cat" said Albert Here's
Charley with his neck broke.n
They loosened his collar, dashed some
water from one of the cantsens over his
face and got little brandy down his
throat. He opened his eyes presently,
looked at the scared faces around him, then
off at the east, where it was beginning to
grow light, and said. with feeble POPULARITY,
FLAP y New Year."
+ He had only gotten a bad bump. The
sombrero sottened the blow and saved mis-
| skull. A horse was brought from the
A x E rancho half a mile away, and we
started home rather glumly, with ut any
cat, ours having escaped into a rocky fast
ness from which he could not be dislodged
As we were crossing pasture in mourn
| ful silence, and in the cold gray of early
! morning, we heard a COW believing We
hemently, and presently saw her running
toward US, around the foot of little hill,
followed by her calf, and stopping eve y
moment to charge at a waveriug In the
grass behind her offspring.
by George, that's panther! Come on,
let's round him up, right here on the prai-
| RE" shouted some one.
We spread out and rode ward the three
animals. Before | could realize how it was
done, the COW aud calf were galloping off
| across the pasture, and we were all around
the panther in an Irregular ring. He was a
large one, of the kind commonly called the
| Mexican lion, and as he "scrooched" there
on the open plain he was the most terrible
picture of venomous rage imaginable. His
/ great tail bea the grass backward and forth
! his red and green and golden eyes glared
with savage fury and turned their opales-
| cent fires from side to side, while his lips
were dra N back in an extremely unpleas-
ant grin, revealing fangs that fairly M de
me shake in my shoes and kept the dogs at
a discreet distance.
But one young dog with more zeal than
understanding. puppy with a pedigree,
| too, and one that had cost his owner a neat
| price, rushed i'll to the attack The e eat
paw with a frightful armament of claws
was raised, but before it could come down
bullet from "a Winchester in the hands OF
the puppy's owner crashed through the
panther's brain. The creature plunged
forward. causing sudden scattering in
that part of the circle, rolled over and died
with sort of muttered snarl and a con-
| temptuonS grin on his face, as though he
despised our cowardly uufairness in being
so many to one, and using firearms on a
fellow that had only teeth and claws.
When he was very dead, indeed, we
skinned him, and carried the hide home in
triumph. Our New Years hunt was re-
deemed from failure.
ALICE MACGowAN.