The Forrest City times., 1896-09-11

Old Puts Feat Repeated by Man Who
Had Lost Colt.

Old Puts Feat Repeated by a Man Who
Had Lost u Colt.
One of the many incidents of bravery
or foolhardiness occurring in Colorado
took place near Debeque, Mesa county,
in the spring of 1856. At that time the
Roam Creek Toll Road company owned
and was operating toll road through
the Hogback canyon, between Grand
Junction and the Garfield county line,
and the superintendent was young
man by the name of John A. Rhone, a
printer by trade, but who proved to be
a careful and competent officer of the
company. The country through which
the road ran is wild and picturesque
one, and in those days the rugged can
yons were fairly alive with mountain
lions, a cowardly but destructive AMI
NAL.
To maintain the road the company
kept several horses, among which was
a fine biooded Kentucky mare, which
the president of the company had Sc
cured from a passing emigrant in ex-
change for another horse. The mare
was turned out with some of the COM
pany's horses which were not then in
use, and in a short time she dropped
a fine colt. The mare and colt were
progressing finely, until one morning
the entire band came rushing wildly
down from the hills to the toll camp.
The colt was missing, and the mares
side was covered with blood and the dis
tinct impressions of the claws of a
mountain lion, which evidently made
spring, but not getting a firm hold
simply scratched down the mares side,
leaving deep bleeding trail of each
claw.
The sight of the mare painting. fright
ened and bleeding and the loss of the
colt so enraged Rhone that he immedi-
ately seized his Winchester and started
out for the scalp of the mountain lion
which had done the mischief. BY fol-
lowing the trail of the horses he soon
found the place where the brute had
seized the colt, and then it was not diff
fcult to follow the course the lion had
taken with it's prey. Turning abruptly
around a ledge of rocks he surprised the
lion making breakfast from the re-
mains of the colt. Before he could raise
his Winchester to fire the beast retreat
ed into a cave in the rocks. Not to lose
his game, Rhone Immediately built
fire and attempted to smoke it out, but
that failed, SO, raking the embers away
from the mouth of the cave, Rhone pro-
ceeded to crawl into the lions den on
his hands and knees, but soon the en-
trance got so small he had to lie down,
and finally his body filed the entire cav
ity.
Just then he heard growl and inn
mediately before him he could see what
appeared to be two balls of fire. Rails
ing his Winchester as much as he could
and aiming at the space between the
eyes, he fired. There was a roar and a
spring, but young Rhone was out of
harms way. Proceeding back to camp,
he procured a rope and the colored cook
called Punch, and they dragged his lion
ship ANONYMOUSLY forth by the feet
The beast was monster in size, but its
day of depredations were over. Rhone
is now one of the proprietors of the New
Era Standard, at Kearney. Neb., and is
living quiet and religious life. And
Punch, the happy coon who worked for
the company for several years as cook
is now selling hot tomales at Cripple
Creek.-Denver Field and Farm.