The Portland daily press., 1892-07-12
FOUGHT TO The DEATH.
Terrible Conflict Between Mountain
= Lion and Cinnamon Bear.

Terrible Conflict Between a Mountain
- Lion and Cinnamon Bear.
Sometime ago two brothers, old pros
pectors and hunters, who have been in
the hills for years and have seen many
strenge and startling sights, report
having seen one of the most thrilling and
desperate fight they have ever witnessed.
They were camping in canyon that
comes into the main San Antonio can
yon from the west, about one and one
half miles below the miners camp.
They had been out during the day pros
pecting on the south side Of Badly, and
had started for camp near shutdown,
when they killed deer, which delayed
them till dark. They hung the deer in
a tree rather than pack it to camp over
the rocks in the dark, the place where
they left the deer being only short dis
lance from camp in the west fork of the
canyon.
They had hardly rolled themselves in
their blankets when they heard an I'M
earthly roar and scream, quickly fol-
lowed by other roars and screams, as
though whole menagerie of wild beasts
had been turned loose It took them but
few moments to determine the cause of
the disturbance. So, dressing quickly
and taking their rifles, they started to see
the fun. By crossing the canyon in
which they were camped they got to a
point from which they could command a
view of quite q piece of the western
canyon.
When they gained the top of the point
they saw just below them, not 100 yards
away, what had caused the noise. They
could see the tree where they had hung
their deer, and just beneath the tree
they saw the deer and two other animals,
a moster California lion and an immense
cinnamon bear. They had smelled out
the deer and had come for a feast, each
little expecting the othery but there they
were, fighting over the carcass to see
which was to be master of the situa-
ton.
Their roaring and screaming awoke a
thousand echoes in the canyon, which
made the fight more dreadful still. It
was fight to the death. Struggling
and rolling, biting and clawing, scratch
ing eand screaming, did the monsters
fight only breaking away from one
another long enough, seemingly, to re-
gain their breath and strength, when at
1t they would 60 again with roar and
scream. Thus they fought for over an
hour, when. torn, bleeding and COM
pletely exhausted, evidently dying, they
rolled apart, only to lie and snarl at
each other, unable from their terrible
exertions to do more. But there were
near worse enemies to them than they
were t o each other.
Finally the two brothers knowing
there was nothing to fear from the two
exhausted champions, levelled their
rifles, and after Eve shots had been fired
the two mighty brutes had ceased their
struggles, having gained what each had
tried to do for the other, for the two
fighters of Old Badly lay dead. There
lay California lion that measured 8
feet inches from tip of nose to tip of
tail, king of his race. The bear, q
cinnamon, was monster of the species.
As near as they could estimate he would
have weighed 1000 pounds. Each was
mass Of cuts and wounds. The lion
had one foreleg crushed and mangled,
as though from a bite, and the bear was
suit from muzz!e to tail by the knife-like
claws of his more active opponent. ssssI