The Republican., 1899-06-29
Hunting a Panther.
BY Joseph E. Badger, Jr.
John TAYLOR, wife and family lived

Ohm TAYLOR, wife and familylived
u in one of the border counties of
Texas. Hewas poor and started farming
in humble way, but, being skillful and
industrious, he was getting ahead in
the world, when his life and property
wer both swept away by one of those
Mexican forays, even more common
then than now. BY good luck his fam
lily were absent, and thus escaped shar-
ing his fate Two horses, wagon and
an old hound, the charred shell of their
log cabin. a few odd tools-these and
the land itself were all that the widow
and her two sons, David and Saul, eight
and ten years of age, h-d TO keep the
wolf from the door.
The neighbors rebuilt the cabin and
gave the lone ones such aid as lay in
their power, but it was one weary.
never-ending struggle for life against
starvation. Yet they did live. and two
years later David and Saul had earned
by night work enough to buy them
selves each a rife and ammunition.
They were too poor not to become
good shots, ard the very nature of their
lives rendered them bnId and sa1f-raTi-
ant. Saul. the Oldest, was Just 13 years
old when tbe folIo,vinu incidan+ oo-
CURED:
The deep mellow baying of hound
came from the nnderoro,vtb that
fringed the slender creek. the bell
notes comino a+ reo,IIar intervals
He's Jumped some critter." cried
David, eagerly.
It's a fresh trail. but he amt sight
'u "H"U Hi"ut IL YET IeSpoudeu 'he
1'"CI 3,. Oio' ''ei' i'iisn uI'S''l'.l l
"0ii i0'"oil II > IiioI i"""''' VI
iiiCDoe ,,' " VOL,
i'O . '.i ''''' an ''"l Se'' anu '!'e "oS >
li'',' P"V - &" 'O"S anu li'i" " u"S > "0i
Dei'i,I 'h' now oi!'E s'oPli'S ~ e"'
ool' Iu',I'' i0' "ii''!ei any "uI Z"
IVY " III ,i'e Il 0e SPiII' ol d luii 'ei
NIiU ii'' i''''e T''O'i 'i.' ilo'ii'' '' SCI
oii" ,iouSi NJ Ho"'e' LOU anu RESI-
0'' i'', '' 0e'n ,i'''l oi'0 '''9ii & I'u'
i'i' 'ii9 les ui'i' meas III GU o"S
w ~ d 'iu, ,' Jo'',ili ''o1'9 'i''"ol
tlail ,ae, llll ,,0' , So, " i:-',,
4i,oii, ,,'S ,i,.lt -l- 0'l,,' t,ils
ili.9' 90 ~ q '"J
HAlellellce 'olu 'helii 'naV 'ne ol'
hounu was al'er no Plepel"h game
anu .ney Niie"' 'oo' 'il"I He was no"
uiiiiii'S oS eJo' i"'nel 'iI"n 0S Soeh'
"lone'
Ere 'ney hdo run "oo yaros 'lere
cdllie herce yeiPing cry sliarl' tlie
SOUNDS Oh sllarP II sllorI sculne, .nen,
the old hound.
They knew that the game had turned
at bay. that old Hector had dashed in
and been bea+en off and that he was
now calling for help to secure the
quarry which he had BROUGHT to a
standstill-a s+ag buca +irbar wolf
or some vet nobler game: if ANYTHING
less awaited them the bound would
never have been driven off once he had
closed with it.
You can imagine the emotions which
swelled the bosoms of these lads as
they rushed forward at ton sDeed.
They were too eager. The game
heard their bastv footsteps and turned
t. seek safety in renewed fiobt old
uac+or oloso rnon i+s bools co,,1
CAUGHT one olimpse of the lonU oray
body as if oIided across the omen
ground. and, throwing forward his
rife made a snan-sbo+ fearipo he
mioh not oet another chance
A++ba charm renort +,e animal Ieoned
far ahead as tboncb sbarnIv s+I,ne, and
Saul sau bv +be fresb hiood ,,non +bo
dry, oross +bo+ bis lood bod not hoo,, ar,
tirel9 ,yos+od ond tLo ho1.s r,,.aesod -,
with reno,,.od o,,o,c,,, cr,,idad h.. 40 ~
,i+oa ,.o1,,ir,. 81 Leo15 81, = tr.,.,5
..UrS,u -,t -. -.4,,, -, c.,
lli-li -: -, p'n,eu ''''ui
y, W PM --i'i' l III iiio4' '''i
.,,,-,.. 20
G., l..s ""' ,.ie 0I"i,'i 60
So ','i' NN'"' W ii'''n "is
NO more was Saio' a STEADY run OF
illle' cdrI IylhS heaVy rlre' is no easy
5 - a. "a uil'' 'l'e
iu W IA 'no uu was I'e''l d ldii''' once
n n