The Manchester journal. [volume] (Manchester, Vt.) 1861-current, 1900-11-08

%, s,rs isiiehius earioasiy. shils his "a
y whipped 10 and iro.
io Nou be rose sgsia and moved. snihsr
w cautiously sloas The rim OF the gully. u
oil seemed 10 reasun thai the scented eres.ul
nf masi hsve sbif ed iis posi,ion. Again b
~ nose toot siod Of me. sbd efouebins. b
~ emitted dosn >, The gaping col ss u
make sore ci the difee,ion Their. % hi
y esrs we're ls,d ai. and bis yellow talon
P, we're unshesihed TO take firm srip ppo
.. the rock, l gave myself mp Tor losl.
With bic spsris menscins me and etos
u ips louder and loader, knew the crestur
% vas certain Of bis ground. lie bad DO
been blind slwsys, snd be bad lespet
C many times upon the shelf where Icy
! Horor-siriekep. l watched him ss,be
) himself, and then vault 10 = sweeping
. curve shove the chssn and slisht upof
? the rocks within fonr or Eve steps o.
Q where lay.
. l expected in.tsnt desth. My nerve,
. we're suddenly rscked with cutting psins
? which ran through my chest uulil gssr
ed for breath. Add yet the susrling. sni'
fling lion did DO. spriLg upon me. lie
bad jumped to wiudward Of me, and the
alt currents no longer carried the scent
He reared again upon bis biud feet, snufl
ing snIiously. Then to my JOY bis bristles
lowered. bis savage aspect changed to one
OF disrnst, and be turned and lesped back
across The cut.
He stood upon the brink for = moment
10 a listening at itude OF suspicion, and
then, irotting away, disappeared within
his lair.
II was now snowioe very fast. and in the
nt II few N IL utes, relieved oi intense react
log pains, | lid some hard thinking. /
dared not shout TO sttisct the attention OF
my fellow hunters. and was 10 moment
sry fear Of . resppesrspoe oi the puma,
or, worse yet, OF its mate.
The weather WAS wsrin, hardly st the
freezing point, and was warmly clothed,
| might. concluded, survive twenty .ioui
hours and longer il let alone by the lions.
and long before that time Curtis aud Pete
would be securing the hiils for me, Camp |
was not more than two miles distant /
decided to lie quiet 10 the snow until
should hear some sound OF searching.
Within hall an hour the wisdom Of ths
course WAS made apparent. Then l saw,
coming down out OF the storm upon the
fer slope, two more red-yellow beasts,
which soon proved to be the blind lions
mate and ber well-arown cub.
shrsnk In fear under my covering Of
snow. Some tsiDt Of my presence there
was yet 10 the notch. for both tbs lions
paused, at twenty steps or so. and snarled
sngrily, with bristlius backs and nervous
twitching Of their tails.
For 9 moment the two seemed TO be
glsring straight ut me, and | closed my
eyes 10 fearful suspense. / wanted, hardly
breathing for some seconds; then, hesring
no more OF the cougars. looked again, TO
find that they had passed on and gone to
their den. 1t was but moment, however,
before they resppesred, and this time the
blind male was with them. The three
passed together up the ridge beyond.
There had been kill somewhere. and the
blind lions mate and cub had come dnti
ully to conduct him TO the feast.
Under safer circumstances, l should 8
,sve felt the keenest interest in this evi 2
lsnce Of family devotion among fierce
,easts. and, with perfect opportunity, l x
hould have hesitated to kill either the
am or her cub. As II was, WAS TO wit 81
ess something very like tragedy. o
The lions had been gone q half-hour, 9
when heard the booming crack.
rack OF a fl just over the rock ridge in e
ront OF me, | answered the shots with u
sllo ss lusty ss could give, and hitched OF
,yseli 10 more conspicuous posture 'e
sainst the ledge. shouted again and
gain, . rather feeble wall. but loud ss
nough to be heard q, q considerable die %
snce.
Then. as II by magic, | was confronted sl
y the thre, licn ns, which bad slid down bt
0 inward curve OF the rock ledge upon 81
y left. They came on in great bounds 10
within 1itsen or twenty yards OF my bt
erch. There catching tight OF me, the
70 iermosl came 10 hsli, and united hi
,eir voices 10 menace. 1t was assy to be ts
zen that something exciting and unususI ht
I'd happened to the pums family. The de
lind one, apparently cowed by his help vi
ssness. SUNK to bis cavern. mutteripg Vi
osrsely as be ran, Despite their savage st'
concentrations, the dam and her cub did oh
ot stack. a.
Some new i3,r seemed TO possess them. tai
hey whrled shout rspestedly, to guard bu
,sinst surprises. They fnug themselves SCI
oon the snow, snd Isshed their tsils eIcit cs
IIy:
/ understood that some one -Cuttis OF ioI
ste. doubtless - b been shooting q, bo
EN-. Perhsps for the fret time they bsd an
,srd The thunder OF gun and the hiss wh
q vhine Of bullets. ms
Then Q iiHs cracked again, this time th'
ose at hand, and l saw the cougar dam pr
,ten out upon the sno~ With bullet brt
roush hn brain. Tie cub bounced los
out wildly. splitting and hissiog. until es'
O OF three more shots were fred, en res
too, dropped iato it, tracks dead. Look
, in the direction Of the firing. ! saw slo
: Indisn. Pete. searching for vsy 10 old
scebd the ledge "