The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-06-04
RODE DEER AND BEARS.
Something Of The Early Life Of a
COulty-bTed Californian.
Champion Of Bitterwater- Rough Boy
hood Training Of Ed Tully- Strapped
10 a Saddle He Learns How to Ride.
Adventures with n Crizzlv

From the san Francisco Examiner.
In San Benito county lives an active
robust, spirited production Of California
outdoor life in the person of Ed Tully.
His admirers tell great stories of his
prowess in the saddle, on the trail and
after game
Ed Tully halls from Bitterwater. He
pitched his camp there with his parents
when he was a mite of a boy, and when
bad Indians and worse half-breeds were
thick. But the Tullys never minded
them. They were there to cut out home
and TO fight for it when necessary.
/ 1t required something like 400
square miles of territory for the Tully
cattle, and such a range and such
a band kept the little Tullys hustling
about They We're strapped to horses,
| given lariats and turned loose to chase
! herds Of believing cattle. When they
were big enough to cling to a horse with
out using their hands a gun was added to
the lasso and they were expected to do
their share in standing off cattle
thieves. When the youngsters wanted
to ask the boys next door If they would
! join in the full hunt they had to ride
! thirty-seven miles to do it. That's the
| kind of kindergarten the Tully boys
| We're raised in.
At 10 years of age Ed Tully could give
! the Mexican and Indian Vaoueros on the
range any number of pointers on breaking
| brOncos and splicing broken lariats. At
! IA there WASH a wild horse on the ranch
| that Ed couldn't master. Anything he
! could get a grip on he could stick to- Not
a vaquerO, Indian or Mexican on the place
! could ride better or further than he. AS
| a marksman he carried off all the prizes
at the shooting matches.
There was nothing puny about the
! sports on the ranches of early California.
For instance, on Sundays to liven up the
mOnotOny of things about the corrals they
/ used to run in half dozen bulls and have
! several little set-tos among. them. When
| about twenty years old Ed Tully's favOrite
! pastime on such occasions was to go into
the corral a by himself and stand Off
! the brute charges Of one of the wild
animals by simple nimbleness and
! deXterity. He would elude- the horns
| of the vicious animals by
! quick bounds, leap on their backs
| faint scarfs in their faces,
and play all sorts of pranks on them, rely
! ing solely on his agility and strength Of
| wind TO avoid all their attempts to gore
and trample on him. He would keep this
up with impunity till the enraged animal
would lie downutterly out An am
| bilious Mexican, urged on by Jealous ad-
mirers, once tried to share this glory at a
! famous fete with young T'ully. After kill
ing the bull his friends carried him out of
the corral cripple for life.
Old settlers along the Bitterwater tell
some vivid tales Of young Tully's wild
| life on the range.
On one occasion he and his brother
Frank were riding through the hills
when they came across a big buck deer
asleep at the foot of an oak. Edpulled his
hunting knife and offered to bet his
brother that he could get the deer by the
use of it alone. Frank nodded acceptance
and Ed slipped from his horse the knife
| between his teeth. He crawled cautiously
toward the sleeping animal. 1t was slow
and laborious work. Frank stood with
! his horse nearly 200 yards away. Ed was
within four feet of his game and was
| reaching for his knife when the buck
started and jumped to his feet. Like a
| fash Ed was on his back, his feet dug
| into the animals sides and his hands
| clutching the horns. Away they went
1t was the maddest kind of race, down
| the mountain side, through chaparral,
! over brush, under sweeping limbs, bound
| ing over gullies and rolling down gorges,
| but Ed stuck to his mount. The fright
ened animal tried every trick to shake
! him off. Far behind came the hallooing
! Frank, galloping with the horses. For
two miles they ran the mad race and then
the exhausted buck tumbled headlong to
the ground, sprawing over some rocks in
such fashion that Ed came near having
| the life crushed oNt of him. A few min
| utes later Frank came daShing up expect
ing to find both Ed and the deer dead. He
| found his brother gasping and faint,
stretched over the deer. Ed had lust
used the knife on the animal and the blow
had taken all the stsength left in him.
All the wild rider had left of his clothing
was one boot. Every stitch had been
torn from him and his body was mass
of bruises and cuts.
1t was 24-mile ride to the adobe home
but Tully accomplished it. He was toe
elated over his success to feel his chilled
and aching limbs.
On another occasion Ed and younger
brother We're working their way on foot
up a narrow gorge when they ran plump
into big she grizzly making her way
down the pass. They didn't have much
of chance to turn back. The pass was
too narrow for that. besides the she bear
destroyed the chance by making a rush
for them. The boys had nothing but
their knives in the way of weapons; they
pulled them and jumped back to avoid
the rush of her ravenous majesty The
younger boy stumbled and fell. 1t was
rather fortunate he did, for a great paw
came SfnlClng down where he had stood
the claw caught the top of his head
tearing off hair and scalp the size of a
hand. The bear gave a roar of rage and
raised herself to come down with all hel
might. upon the fallen boy. AS she did sc
kEd leaped upon her back, driving his biz
knife time and again into her tough side
throat and breast. 1t takes a deal oil
blo0d-fetting before an old grizzly quits
fighting, and this one, though almost cut
to pieces, kept up her clawing and biting
until she almost killed both the bows
But her efforts grew weaker and weaker
The boys realized this and kept alter
natelY lodging and hacking at her. But
what sight they were when the fight
was over. Ed crawled nine miles before
he found assistance. After they had
patched up the younger lad the best they
could he was cripple for life, his left
leg having been broken in two places
The hair never grew again on the scalL
wound. AS for Ed, it was four months
before he got out of the sick room.
But those exciting days gradually
passed away, settlers came in and Tully's
big range was divided up into small farms
Ed married a Miss Orpha Davis, took one
of his fathers smaller ranches. and now
there are four more little Tullys on horse
back chasing the cattle over the foothills
But they do it in quite the modern fashion
after school hours and when they won't
. be late to dinner.