Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1901-05-07
Iowa Man Attacked by a Circus
Leopard.
SPOTS APPEAR AND DISAPPEAR ON HIM
Experiences Narrow Escape From
Death During Voyage at sea-Leop-
ard Springs on II. L. Carpenter
and Bites Him.


ter of Algona was in Des Moines Wis
iting friends, whom he entertained
with narrative of his trip across the
ocean with Barnum and Bailey's show
few years ago, his tour of Europe
with that organization and his almost
miraculous escape from death when
attacked by a pet leopard, But the
strangest part of his tale was told in
cidentally-that at certain times his
body and face are covered with Loop
ard spots, as plainly marked as those
on the skin of that beast, which re-
main for little while and Zen fade
away.
Never Get Rid of 1t.
The physicians tell me-" he said,
chat l will probably never get rid of
that difficulty. Their theory is that
the poison from the leopard's teeth
and claws inoculated me and the vir-
us remains in my system just as vac
cine virus remains in the system of
the person who is vaccinated. The
only difference is, | presume, that
am not proof against leopard bites.
while the vaccinated person is proof
against smallpox.
Seized Him by the Neck.
'The leopard that made the attack
on me was about four feet long, pet.
an animal in whose affection had the
utmost confidence. Leopards play like
cats This animal attacked me one
night after l had slapped her and
made her lie down in her cage about
ten feet away from me. was braid
ing straw or hay about the bottom of
her cage and she kept rubbing her
head against mine, bothering me in
my work. | struck her on the side
of the head and made her lie down in
the other end of the cage I went on
with my work when suddenly the
brute leaped on my back, Selling the
back of my neck with the claws on
one foot and front of my neck with
her teeth.
Burned the Animal.
A leopard will not chew meat till it
has sucked the blood from it. Els
pecially is this true of a living thing.
This animal simply lay still by me and
partly on me, sucking the blood from
my body. Fortunately some of the
circus men We're burning paint off the
cages with red hot irons. They leaped
in the cage and burned the animal s
mouth till she let go my neck. | was
unconscious on account of the loss OF
blood.
Tooth Grazed Vein.
THE animals tooth had grazed the
jugular vein. The doctors said it was
plainly visible when the wound was
opened. l lay in the hospital for sew.
eral months. The wound made by the
brute's teeth healed quickly, but the
one in the back of the neck where her
claw had gone into the flesh bothered
me for two years and still troubles me
when am sick otherwise.
Spots Came Out.
"The spots come out on my body
when am overheated especially. Nc
one seems able to account for it, even
if l am inoculated with the poison
1t is frightfully disagreeable sensa
ton. 1t has taught me two things: TIC
let curcuses alone and to avoid leop
ards.
Il believe, also, that | have learned
that there is no affection in the ami
NAL kind. | used to think that animals
/ loved their keepers, and all that sort
of thing. But my experience with the
circus convinced me that they do moi
Every animal man meets the same fate
if he sticks to the business Ions
enough. Moreover, he brings it upor
/ himself AS long as men are careful
in handling animals and watch then
| closely there is little danger, for the
| animal world is largely filled with COW
ards. The trouble is that men engag
ed in this kind of work get careless
They begin to think the animal il
their direct charge has knowledge o
their personality and possess an affec
ton. Then they turn their back, as