The Chickasha daily express. (Chickasha, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1899-current, 1901-04-02
BOY VERSUS JAouARs

AultuAl4c LHAhErn IT anu LuC QUASI Wctc
wrapped 10 a gloom which the rising
moon.B still too feeble to penetrate,
says a writer ia the New York Dis
patch. Any one would have needed
good eyes TO make out that the shad-
oWy mass on the brink Of q small
stream, which runs down one of the
higher valleys, was 3 huge iron cage
with q man inside Of II.
Was be a pFisonerg Hardly. for lie
was unbound and armed With a rifle;
but. on the other hand, If lie was free
agent. it was odd that he should be
lingering at q spot which every one else
carefully avoided after dark. as the
chosen haunt Of all the wild beasts ia
the neighborhood Aud, stranger still.
this strange watcher was a mere lad
barely 20years old, whose local repuia-
ton was that Of 4 -milksop' fellow
Of no spirit whatever
Daniel Martin was the junior Of the
STAFF Of a mine that had Just been
started At the head Of the valley. With
the other employees he was very unpop-
ular, partly because he was the only
Americana" amorg them ffor all the
rest We're natives and partly because,
instead Of spending his evenings like
them in fooling away his money at
cards OK drinking himself stupid with
bad rum, he was always pouring over
scientific books or studying the con-
struction and working Of the mining
machinery.
No one ventured actually to molest
him. for, quiet IS he was, there was q
look about him that warned the most
reckless not TO 60 too far But they
all looked down upon him as a milk
sop, aud whenever he passed they
whispered spileful Jokes 10 each other,
which he was luckily not so silly as to
mind.
Noy, in this Wild aud thinly peopled
district the beasts Of prey we're so
troublesome that the owner of the
mine, a rich citizen Of Lima, had
offered aprelty high reward for every
iaguar (panther) killed. but to kill
them was no easy matter. The wary
beasts seemed 10 avoid by instinct al
traps and pitfalls. and would not touch
poisoned meat II a band Of hunters
went forth against them they were
nowhere TO be seen, while any man
who yentured through the bush alone
was apt to see more Of them than he
liked.
This was the perilous mission that
bad brought the brave American lad to
the dangerous spot by night. He had
set q trap for the iaguars aud baiied it
with himself, and nov he was watching
to see what would come oft.
He had not long 70 wait The saw
age bruies hal already scented him,
and ere long a rustling aud cracking
was ilcnrd among the bushes, aud the
frightening moon showed him three
long, gaunt bodies creeping stealthily
toward the cage in which be stood
ready, rifle ia hand.
There was q complete iaguar family
father, mother. aud son-the younger
beast being almost full grown, and
armed with teeth and claws well-nigh
as formidable as those Of his terrible
sire aud dam. With their huge, fiat
heads lowered, their great, white iaugs
IN the moonlight, and theis
striped, sinewy bodies creeping noise
lesaly over the ground, with a fierce,
elastic life IN every movement, they
were indeed a grim baud, the sight Of
which might well Rave made even an
old hunter look grave.
But Dan Martin had faced in his
time the painter" and grizzly bear Of
the far West, and be was not the lad to
be scared BY any wild beast upon earth.
Cody waiting till the fearful group
came near enough to make his aim
sure, be leveled his piece at the fore
most beast, which happened to be the
cub, and let fly.
His aim was true and down fell the
cub stone dead, but the fall was fol-
loved by q frightful yell as the fe.
male iaguar. maddened by the loss Of
her young. flew raging At one side Of
Dams sheltering cage. while the male,
either by accident or design, dashed at
the other
The attack on both sides at once,
intended or not, brought the
gallant lad within a hairs breadth OF
4tn&ANlAAa4l ANA TIC AAlH we're MiAD
enough apart to let his grim foes
thrust their paws between 50 far as al
most to touch him on either side, while
be, standing as erect as he could be-
twixt the clutching talons (for he knew
that one inch to right or left would
cost him his hie). reloaded with all
possible speed.
But all at once the she iaguar, mad
with rage az being unable 70 reach the
slayer Of her young, rushed around to
the other side cf the cage and leaped
up on the bars just as the male beast
made q dash at them likewise.
Dan fired again and wounded her
but i was too late The
weight Of the two huge bodies, sud-
denly thrown both at once upon The
same spot, overbalanced the cage Il
totlered on the edge Of TIE bank.
turned over and fell with a loud splash
right down into the stream, carrying
Martin along with It.
Happily for our hero (who would
otherwise have been drowred ia this
novel sentry hoxl, the shock Of the
fall snapled the worn and rusty catch
ol the bolt and Dan, bruised and
dizzy as be was, vas able to push back