Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1895-05-18
WILD BEAST WHIMS.
FIERCE ANIMALS OF THE FOREST WHO
HAVE PREJUDICES.

Wolves, Panthers and Bears Sensitive
About Fur Overcoats-An Aged Sullivan
County Hunter Tells Some Experiences
Illustrating This Queer Fact.
"a bear or panther can't stand the
sight of a wolfskin or q coonskin over
coat" said an aged hunter of Sullivan
county, land both also dislike the looks
Of an overcoat made of buffalo skin
They become enraged when they SEQ
hunter striding through the woods with
fur coat on. They will start for him
the instant they get sight of him, and
unless he stops them with rifle ball or
a charge of buckshot they will invaria-
bly, tackle him. A wolf or even a pack
of them will always turn tail and run
away from hunter that wears wolf
skin coat, but they will chase man
who wears n coat of any other kind of
fur and will attack him II they get
chance In the winters early in the for
ties hunted panthors, wolves and bears,
killing deer once in awhile for
change When the weather was bitter
cold, l wore coonskin overcoat until
panther ruined it, and here is what is
left of it.
Il killed an even dozen of panthers
and a score of wolves while wearing
that coat. 1t was in January, 1914,
that | had to stop wearing it. One very
cold morning l put on my snowshoes
and started for the head of Kitchens
creek to hunt panthers and wolves The
snow was three feet deep in the woods,
and the wolves and panthers were
Strengthening the deer at a frightful rate.
In a spruce ravine to the right of the
creek l saw movement i'll an ever
green tree and raised my rifle for what
thought might be panther.
II hadn't been standing minute
when heard twig snap back of me,
and before could turn half way round
something struck my back and drove me
forward on my hands and knees. OF
course | instantly realized that a panther
had landed on my back. 1t stuck its
claws into my shoulders and began to
kick with it's hind feet, snarling and
tearing at the coonskin with its teeth.
l knew in second that the only thing
for me to do was to throw myself back
ward, and this l did at once, burying
the panther in the SLOW beneath me-
The panther then started to scream, but
the snow and my weight kept it from
making much noise. 1t continued to
claw great rents in the coonskin coat
until | ta hha6 II fbroo {,,%
side, when it stopped kicking and began
to gasp. l knew that the point of the
knife had touched vital spot, so lay
still till the panther stretched out dead
Then | got up and pulled the beast out
of the snow by the tail. I'd hardly
dropped it on the surface than there was
another movement in the evergreen tree.
"This time spied pair of eyes ON
limb about Is feet above the snow
and blazed away at them A panther
tumbled out, began to pitch and dive in
the snow, soon turning up its toes. Then
pulled off the overcoat and discovered
that the panther had ruined it. The
claws hadn't touched my flesh, though,
for wore three thicknesses of deerskin
and two of wool under the overcoat. On
that trip of three days | got five pam
theirs and four wolves
1.-The same winter surprised pack
of wolves that had cornered three deer
in a pen up in the Mehoopany country
had OH wolfskin coat, and the wolves
legged it out of the pen the moment they
got sight Of me. pulled off the coat
and put 1t behind tree, and the wolves,
when they stopped to look back, acted
as If they had been scared by false
alarm. When they saw that the over
coat wasn't in sight, they didn't care
any more for me than for sapling.
They Immediately returned to the deer
pen as bold as you please, and shot tho
whole five as fast as | could load and
fire.
Zone winter Joel Wright, who used
to hunt and trap all the way from the
loyalsock to the Mehoopany, rolled up
his coonskin overcoat and placed it on
log in the woods till he could 90 over
knoll and look at one of his traps
When he got to the top of the knoll on
his way back, he heard bear below
ing down in the hollow, as il it was
tIlaliGuBluB auOIutr DtAF W llSub WIFI
him. In minute Joel caught sight Of
the noisy bear. but couldn't make out
where the other one was. The challen-
ger was slouching toward the log Oh
which the coonskin overcoat lay in a
bunch, and Joel made up his mind that
the bear had got scent of the coat and
was about TO tackle it.
Joel had better fur coat at home,
and he didn't care much what the bear
did with the one on the log. Anyhow
he was going to watch the BEAR and, if
be got the better of the coat, all right
tie could see that the fellow was angry
before he got within ten rods Of the log.
Rushing up to the log, the bear seized
the overcoat in his paws and began to
squeeze and shake it as If 1t was o thing
of life that he held an old grudge against.
Joel tramped down the knoll then to sec
all the fun at short range, and pretty
soon the bear gave the coat dreadful
hug. let out o yell, fell over backward
and went to sprawling and rolling in
the snow. joel knew what the trouble
was, but he didn't say word. The
beard had his own way, and he was rs
dead as a flint when Joel got to him.
Joels hunting knife was in pocket of