Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1903-08-21

before. He stammered out:
81 guess I'll take it.
I'm less than three minutes his sig
nature was on the deed, witnessed by
the lawyers clerk."-New York Times.
PUTNAM AND THE WOLF.
Descended Thrice Into Den and Killed
Pernicious Beast.
OF the great number Of summer res
idents in Pomfret, Hampton, and others
of the beautiful Windham county
towns, 1t Is doubtful II many ever
heard the complete story Of Gen. Israel
Putnam's adventure with wolf, and
his descent into the "darksome den"
In which the monster had taken refuge,
his dispatching Of the beast, and the
curious manner in which both Gen.
Putnam and the wolf were brought to-
gether from It's terrifying depths. This
den" is a well-known object Of inter-
est in Pomfret to this day and to
those who never heard the story, this
account Of the exploit, taken from the
American Preceptor, a famous old
Hartford imprint of the date Of 1910,
by Caleb Bingham, author Of 1.-THE CO.
lumbian Orator, Child's Companion
etc., will be found interesting:
1. When Gen. Putnam first moved to
Pomfret, in Connecticut, in the year
1889, the country was new, and much
infested with wolves. Great havoc
was made among the sheep by she
wolf, which, with her annual whelps,
had for. several years continued IN that
vicinity. The young ones were COM
monty destroyed by the vigilance OF
the hunters; but the old one was too
sagacious to be ensnared by them.
2. This wolf at length became such
an intolerable nuisance that Mr.. Put
nam entered into combination with
five of his neighbors to hunt alternate
ly until they could destroy her. Two
by rotation, were to be constantly In
pursuit. It was known that, having
lost the toes from one foot by a steel
trap, she made one track shorter than
the other.
8. BY this vestige, the pursuers re-
cognized in a light snow the route OF
this pernicious animal. Having fol-
lowed her to the Connecticut river, and
found that she had turned back In
direct course toward Pomfret, they
Immediately returned, and by 10
o'clock the next morning the blood
hounds had driven her into a den
about three miles distant from the
house of Mr.. Putnam.
4. The people soon collected with
dogs, guns, straw fire, and sulphur to
attack the common enemy. With this
apparatus, several unsuccessful efforts
were made to force her from the den.
The hounds came back badly wounded
and refused to return. The smoke OF
blazing straw had no effect. Nor did
the fumes Of burned birthstone, with
which the cavern was filled, compel
her to quit the retirement.
S. Wearied with such fruitless at
tempts (Which had brought the time
to 10 o'clock at mighty, Mr.. Putnam
tried once more to make his dog enter,
but in vain; he proposed to his Negro
man to go down into the cavern and
shoot the wolf. The Negro declined
the hazardous service.
6. Then it was that their master,
angry at the disappointment and de-
claring that he was ashamed OF having
a coward in his family, resolved him
self to destroy the ferocious beast, lest
she should escape through some un-
known fissure Of the rock.
Z. His neighbors strongly remonstra-
ted against the perilous enterprise;
but he, knowing that wild animals
were intimidated by fire, and having
provided several strips Of birch bark,
the only combustible material which
he could obtain which would afford
light in this deep and darksome cave,
prepared for his descent.
8. Having accordingly divested him.
self of his coat and waistcoat, and
having long rope fastened around his
legs by which he might be pulled back
at a concerted signal, he entered, head
foremost, with the blazing torch In his
hand.
9. Having groped his passage till he
came to a horizontal part of the den,
the most terrifying darkness ap-
peared in front of the dim circle of
light afforded by his torch. 1t was ST.
lent as the house of death. None but
monsters Of the desert had ever be-
fore explored this solitary mansion OF
horror.
10. He cautiously proceeded onward,
came to an ascent, which he slowly
mounted on his hands and knees until
he discovered the glaring eyeballs OF
the wolf, who was sitting at the ex-
tremity of the cavern. Startled at the
sight of fire she gnashed her teeth and
gave sudden growl.
IL. AS soon as he had made the ne
cessary discovery he kicked the rope
as a signal for pulling him out. The
people at the mouth Of the den, who
had listened with painful anxiety,
hearing the growing Of the wolf and
supposing their friend to be In the
most imminent danger, drew him forth
with such celebrity that he was strip
ped of his clothes and severely bruised.
IL. After he had adjusted his clothes
and loaded his gun with nine buckshot,
holding a torch in one hand and the
musket in the other, he descended a
second time. When he drew nearer
than before, the wolf assuming a still
more fierce and terrible appearance,
bowling, rolling her eyes, shaping her
teeth, and dropping her head between
her legs, was evidently In the attitude
and on the point of springing at him.
13. At this critical instant he leveled
and fred at her head. Stunned with
the shock and suffocated with the
smoke he Immediately found himself
drawn out Of the cave. But having