The St. Johns herald., 1901-01-19
BULLS FIGHT JAGUAR
Stirring Encounter cn a Texaf
 Cattle Ranch.
The Jaguar Whips Two Bulls, Dut IS Put to Rout by a Third and
 Finally LassOed by Five A. Cowboys.

a few days ago trying to look up a strayed horse" writes X. C. Gillespie, a Texas ranchmaI, 10 his brother in this city. "Ihere are always plenty of cattle On the plain, eSrtcia!.y in tle winter when the stock drifts south be. fore tEe EGrthers: They were Ii. there to-day, but instead Of beiSG ScC:tttred
 over the prairie as usual most cf them
 were punched together rear the mid
 dle ot the plain and all the .:hers in
 sight were running to jcin them. The herd was good two miles Ewav, but
 had the curiosity 10 ride over 10 see
 what was happening. expected to see
 fight between two bulls, but when IT
 got to where 1 could look over the heads of the cattle I saw that a jaguar had
 come out on the plain and knocked over
 a yearling heifer. The COWS and steers had gathered and formed a half circle
 about him, and they were believing and paving the ground at great rate,
 but they stayed at safe distance from
 the jaguar, who was tearing the heif-
 CTS throat, now and then lifting his
 head to snarl at the cattle.
 ''So far it was a game of bluff on both
 sides. The arrival of two-year-old
 half-grade Texas bull changed the situ- ation. He passed to the front of the
 herd and advanced alone toward the jaguar. At this the jaguar left off tear- ing at the heifer and leaping over her body faced the bull. He was a hand some, fierce looking fellow, with his
 sleek skin of black and yellow, as he crouched to the ground with his white
 teeth showing and the tip of his tail curving in and out like snake. The bull came on, roaring, stopped to paw the ground and shake his head at four or five yards away, then lowered his
 head as he charged upon the jaguar. Just as the horns seemed about to touch him the jaguar rose, curying, from ths ground, overleaped head and horns and
 landed square upon the bulls shoul. ders. In an instant he had shifted po- sition and, clinging to the bulls side and shoulders with his claws, was bit ing savagely into the back of his neck. The bull believed and shook himself, but could not shake the jaguar off, and at last ran, cireling back to the herd. Just before he got among the other cattle the jaguar leaped to the ground and crept back to the heifer where he stopped again, facing the herd.
 ''The young bull had got more than enough of fighting, and he took up his position among the non-combatants in the rear of the herd, but a new cham pion appeared in the form of a boiled angus bull, big one, as black as mid night. He ran straight for the jaguar, with perfect confidence; then, as he lowered his hornless head to butt, the jaguar following the same tactics as be- fore, rose above it with an easy leap, landed at the bulls shoulders, and in second more was biting at his neck. The boiled angus thrashed around and made a longer struggle than the twe- year-old had, but the jaguar hung oE and the big bull at last ran back to the herd while the jagular dropped off and went back to the heifer as before.
 "He scarcely had taken his position behind the carcass when he was called once more to defend it and this time I saw that it meant serious business for him. The newcomer was an old Texas bull of the wild cattle variety, with long horns pointing forward; he had arrived late, but was full of fight. As he came on the jaguar, who perhaps was tired of fighting, did not attempt to spring upon him, but at the last moment jumped away. The bull followed him up, darting at him with his horns and showing an agility astonishing in so heavy an animal. For a minute or so the jaguar lodged his rushes, then turned and broke on the jump for the wooden bank of Alamosa creek, mile away. The bull chased him a short dis tauce, stopped to below and gaze after him, then turned back to the herd and promptly tried to start fight with the polled angus and with the young bull, but neither wanted anything to do with him. 4e ,.-~ ,'t-, 'aa<.:, "Once safe away from the bull the jag uar slowed his pace and trotted along toward the timber, making good time with his long, smooth, cat-footed stride. | He had got half way there when out from the creek bottom directly in front | of him five cowboys rode up over the bank upon the plain. At once they spread out and rode to head him off | from the timber. The jaguar made few bounds in the effort to get pass | them, then as they surrounded him stopped on his defense There was not | a firearm in the party and it was not easy for them to force their horses near enough the jaguar to use their lassos. At last one of them, a Mexican named Juan Ribera, letting the loop of his las so lie on the ground, caught the moose and setting spurs to his horse rolled the beast upon his back and dragged him. Other lassos quickly caught the jaquar's neck and one hind leg, and then with the three ropes pulled taut the animal lay helpless. The question was debated of trying to. pre- serve him alive, but was settled by one of the cowboys killing him with knife. I measured the jaguar and he was just eight feet long. When I rode away the9eowboys were skinning him." IN. Y. Sun.