New-York tribune., 1901-10-24
PRESIDENTS COUGAR HUNTING.
FINAL INSTALMENT OF HIS ACCOUNT IN
"SCRIBNER,S" OF ROCKY NOUN
TAIN EXPERIENCES

President Roosevelt concludes the story OF hts
hunting trip after Rocky Mountain cougars in the
second paper entitled With the Cougar Hounds"
which appears in the November 'Scribner's' In
detail he tells of dozen fights with bob cats and
cougars. in which the animals always lost the
sturdy trained hounds. assisted by a final death
thrust from the writer's knife In one instance his
guide held him suspended the edge of cliff
that he might shoot a cougar which had taken
refuge inaccessible ledge.
1t was January A. near the Keystone Ranch.
that the first cougar killed After telling how
they stopped in the midst of an exciting chase to
permit Stewart TO make photograph of a fright
ened rabbit he says:
T Then we resumed our march toward the tree and
nents, jumped out. She came down just outside
the dogs failed to seize her and for the first dfty
yards she went a great deal faster than they did.
Straight out behind her found out sfterWaFd that
s and w6ee 6ee @ d6 ITS tail straight st in the
by the pack; before they close. will. if angry.
grnning and snarlng
In minute the cougar went up another tree.
but: as we approached, again jumped down. and
on this Gc as5on aft.r running couple of hundred
the grow,1ng snarlng and yelling rang among the
rocks; and Leaving our horses we plunged at full
wfeh abe 5f 5he down the rugged ravne in
though old female. only few pounds heavier than
hand when We arrived. They would certainly have
adea sue u unasslsted put as it was doing some dam
dog, ended the struggle by a knife thrust behind
dangerous for the dogs as for their quarry Three
OF the dogs were badly scratched ard Turk had
one hind leg.
When the hunt was few days old the dogs dis
covered female cougar in with several OF
her cubs The capture ended in rather ignominl-
oos fashion after one of the dogs had been killed
1t evidently very rough house inside and
above the baying yelping and snarling Of the dogs
we could hear the rumbling overtone OF the cou-
Queen the white bull bitch to enter her at cou
ntrv Wa Mas eeria9ly lively experience for first
ana the hound bitches out of the hoe. 1t was evf-
dent that the dogs coul do nothing with the cougar
tneer % such circumstance its claws and teeth made
then 1t would charge. driving them ali back. and
out; AZ intervals there would be an awful yelling
ahd mound would come out bleeding badly, quite
again. Poor Badly was evidently killed inside
SSqeen' queen Turk and Tony were badly clawed and
went In three times, and came out on each occa-
last the onV one 2ea or 2re Turk t vas at the
Inen we trled 10 smoke out the cougar, for as one
upper entrance We supposed the cougar co9d m aq
out out by the same route However. it either could
eRsrenTe fere # sf5SGs ThsTs we et had built the
turned to the ranch carrying its skin but not over
pleased and the pack much the worse for wear
The killing OF the wounded cougar on the ledge
Is thus described:
When we reached them the cougar had gone
aIohS the face of the cliff, OF the dogs could
not see MIN. and II was some time before We could
make MIN out ourselves. Then got up quite close
AIthough the moonlight bright, could not see
the sights or my rifle, and fired a little too far
oack. The bullet. however. inflicted a bad wound
ana tne cougar ran along the edge disappearing
showed that he had not left the cliff but IN was
impossible to him either from the sides or from
oelow. The cin was about fifty feet high and the
top oEerhung the bottom, while from above the
ground sloped down to the brink at a rather steeD
ssIlsie, so that We had TO be cautious about our
iootinS. There was a large projecting rock on the
orIHk' 10 thls clambered down. and holding ft
win one hand, peeped over the edge. After a
minute or TWO / made out first the tail and then
iIle heao or the cougar. who was lying on a narrow
tIedge only some eight feet below me his BODY
hi0den oy the overhang Of the cliff Thanks to the
steepness OF the ncline. I could not let 20 OF the
rolled over; so got Con to come down brace his
ieet against the projection and grasp me hv INV
tess; ne then lowered me gently down until nv
head ana shoulders were over the edge and M,
arms tree and shot the cougar right between me
ears ne being in a straight line underneath me
Inc dogs were evidently confident that he was 90
ing 10 be shot, for they had all gathered below Tha
ch 10 wait for him 20 fall; and sure enough dow
ne came with crash luckily not hitting anv ~
Ilein- we could hear them seize him ard they ali
Sead cougar and Worrying dogs rolled at least a
hundred yards down the steep slope before tbev
were stopped by a gully. '"'
Actual hunting ended on February IA In an sx
citing fight on Juniper Mountain which resulted
In the death of a cougar which weighed 227 pounds