Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1901-03-20
FIGHTING A WILDCAT
AN ADVENTURE THAT MADE ONE
MAN SHY OF THAT KIND OF BEAST

~ D"A . SS%A AAAV
They VIII Flee ut Mans Approach.
II have read in the papers certain
scientific assertions that no wild ami
NAL will voluntarily attack o pursue
a human being, but that, on the con-
trary, the iercest Of them, as tradition
and the tales of woodsmen* classify
them, will make haste to escape the
possible sight of man, unless, IN des-
perate cases, hunger may urge it to APP
proach him, its most dreaded foe, such
cases being extremely rare" said a
business man.
eff that is so, I had a little expert
ance once with a wild animal that must
have been the most desperately hungry
beast that ever longed for food. The
occurrence was in northwestern Penn
sylvania, where n winter I had some;
business that called me ten miles from
woods districts. It was late in the aft
ernoon when / started on my return to
the village. The way was v e a lone
~, narrow, crooked mountain road, bor-
dered by deep woods much Of the dis,
lance. Toward Dusk as I vas round
ing d short turn in the road, my horse,
which had a good deal of spirit, SHE'D
suddenly and sprang forward on a
furious run. s -
Sat the same instant an animal with
glaring eyes pumped down from
where and landed in the sleigh at my
feet. It had evidently leaped from a
tree at the horse, the quick movements
Of which nervous animal had defeated
that purpose, and the attacking animal
had alighted with its fore feet on the
robe that lay across my lap. 1t glared
f%uriously at me, with its face not more
than two feet away, as it chung to the
robe with its sharp claws, growing
Hereby. I had eve seen a wildcat,
but / knew instantly and instinctively
that / had one to deal with here, and
it seemed to be a very large and saw
age one at that. I had no weapon, but
fortunately the whip that stood in its
socket ON the dashboard was loaded at
the butt. i"
'tClinging to the reins with my left
| hand-the horse was running away--I
| quickly drew the whip from the socket
| and struck the wildcat on the head
with the heavy butt. That caused the
| animal to loosen its hold on the robe
and drop into the snow at the side of
the sleigh, but the agile and furious
| beast was up in the fraction of a sec
and and with one bound sprang on the
| back Of the sleigh, which had a low
body. %% -
although the horse was running
madly away along the narrow and
crooked road, throwing the sleigh from
side to side and threatening it con-
stantly with destruction against some
rock or stump, I was obliged to drop
the reins and leave the result Of the
Runaway to chance, for the wildcat
was struggling desperately to gain a
foothold In the sle';"-'a and fight me at
close quarters. I new that If the
sleigh should happen to come into col
lision with any obstacle heavy enough
to wreck it ! would be no match Tor
the catamount, now wrought to the ut
most ferocity, fighting it on the Slip
ping snow, even If I were unframed by
the collision, SO I strained every nerve
to conquer the determined beast while
I still possessed the advantage of foot
hold in the sleigh. %%
"Once I thought it was all up with
me, for as the sleigh was carried
abruptly round a short turn in the road
by the speeding horse : one runner
struck a stone or a root, and the sleigh
careened and al at least so feet on the
other runner alone. / mechanically
threw the weight of my body toward
the upper side of the sleigh, all the
time raining rapid blows on the head
of the wildcat with the butt Of the
whip, and forced the sleigh down to its
balance on both runners again. a few
more blows after that, and ] was re-
joiced to e the determined and tena-
cious beast first loosen one claw, hang
for second or SO by the other, while it
tried to seize the top Of the back of the
sleigh again with its teeth. and then
tumble to the road and lie motionless
in the snow. SsEs! e #
81 dropped back on the seat limp
and weak and too much unnerVved to
make the least effort to obtain control
Of the runaway, which was still rush
Ing wildly along the uncertain road,
made still more uncertain by the gath
ering darkness. The horse ran at least
three niles farther and then began to
slow mp and at last stopped half way
l&..-E1o Af L~.ll&A- 5rsXSE.-&S srr & GEtS&sS SHtAEIE