Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1898-03-08

fined his demonstrations to me he had
lain very composcdly, smoking cigar
| cttc, occasionally giving mo a word OF
announcement Now he reused him
self up, and leaning on his elbow. with
! sword In readiness, he watched the
! creatures movements. His hammock
| perhaps had sagged little since 1t had
been strung up AT any rate, the
| Jagunrs first leap brought him so, close
| that q claw caught In a mesh ut the
netting, Earring the hammock so that Il
Jerked and swayed and was made to
| sag II little lower. on striking the
| ground the jagunr turned and sprang
back at the hammock striking upward
at IL with his paw; then crept to the
place from which ne had made his first
jump at the officer ana prepared to leap
| again,
Hen get to mo this time said Cor
te2. raising himself a little higher on
his left elbow He was holding ms
sword strongly with his right hand and
his legs We're bruced crOsswise OF the
hammock so as to best protect him
from being thrown or dragged out of
II by the jaguar. His sword he held
pointed at the jasuar as Dredor
levels his blade Mt charging Nh.
Then the tnguor made hi unp-a
superb leap that carried hi upward
In long, straight slant as II he would
overlap man and hammock. AT its
hight, his momentum sim carrying him
onward. his head and forepaws were
level with Cortez's face us he came
against the hammock. The officers
back was turned TO me, but I saw the
elbow Of the arm that held the sword
straighten sharply and the whole body
move slightly forward to meet the at
tack The hammock bounced and
swung upward, and turning upside
down, spilled everything I'm IT, The Of
ficer came to the ground on all fours,
with his blanket fallen on top of him,
about six feet behind where the Jaguar
had landed, which was directly beneath
my hammock. Cortez scrambled to his
feet and stood gazing Mt the jnguar,
who was tumbllng about and struggling
strangely. | noticed that the officer did
not have his sword.
d" Its all right. The tigers done for
he called to me. The jaguar had fallen
on his side and was laying still.
Come down to the ground said
Cortez l want you to see where have
planted my sword
II dropped to the ground. taking good
care to land well away from the iaguar
whom | was not inclined to trust. even
dead Sticking from his breast near
the left shoulder was the basket hilt
and half Il foot of the blads ofCortes's
sword. The rest of the weapon was
buried In the creatures body.
" 1t is mountain tiger-a panther
tlEtT t1lP utDtTOS IL. Sulu NsOtttZ,
calling my attention to the shape OF
the creature. which was that of huge
panther. although the skin had the
Jaguar spots. They are the worst of
all the tigers
at was easy to see. though he dis
played the feeling in n modest way,
that the officer was very proud of his
performance, as indeed he had a right
to be. Seldom had a swordsman been
called on to meet so formidable an at
tack In position of such disadvantage.
We did not try to take the jaguar's
skin, although ! offered to assist the
captain If he cared to set about 1t. But
he cut OF forepaw as a trophy and
afterwards l saw 1t hanging in his
quarters at Caracas.
with all his inveterate feroclty and
bloodthlrstiness Instances have been
known In which the jaguar has re-
Trained from attacking human beings
whom he has met face to face, while at
the same time he has manifested no
fear of them; indeed has displayed
something like playfulness. Such n case
occurred with an Indian woman named
Paz Borrego, living in n lonely little
Pampas hamlet called Las Matas, on
the Apure river She had gone from
her hut to the mata, or woodland
mile away, for firewood. carrying a ma
chete to cut II with. As she gathered
sticks she heard from the trees, some
distance away, the deep, purring sound
which the jaguar sometimes utters, and
soon she could detect the beasts
stealthy approach through the under
brush. She knew that. there was no
use In her running away,so she stepped
behind a tree and waited for what
might happen. The light cracking of
twigs and bushes came nearer and pres
emily on the further side of a little for
est opening the 1aguar appeared. He
cd "a s,f tI,eat
bud did not rush upon her Mt once as
she expected he would. Instead. he ad-
vanced towards her by degrees. occa-
sionally stopping to dig among the tree
roots with his paw, tearing up the
roots and scraping at them as II to
sharpen his claws.
AT last. as II In play, the jaguar
bounded to the tree which sheltered the
woman, and clutched its trunk with
both paws. Instantly the woman struck
with the machete, cutting off one of
the jaguar's paws. With n scream the
beast sprans back. Then as he darted
forward to attack the woman, she
brought the machete down on his head
with all her force. and MS the jaguar,
partly stunned, struggling hlindly to
reach her, she dealt him blow after
blow until he fell dying. The woman
got scarcely SO much as a scratch in
the encounter The jaguar was so cut
to pieces by the machete that the skin
was worthless. I saw two pieces of the
skin and two claws, preserved as SOU
venirs of the womnn's bravery in
the hut of her son In Las Matas. more
than thirty years after the fight
occurred.
Another instance in which a jaguar
forbore to attack human being in
his power was that of Tomas Delparto,
cattle herder of the llanos, or plains,
of the Azure country. While hunting
sirnY cattle the fall Of rirht found lin,