Walker Lake bulletin. (Hawthorne, Nev.) 1883-1926, 1903-07-17
vERMONT'S LAST "PAINTeR.'
Two Countrymea Track and XIII Hun
and Get 9I2 State Bounty.

Ineys people III efnlont AS
thought that the painters was
all dead" said BLACK Bear
Joe" of Hen mountain to a
writer in the Boston Journal.
as he sat on barrel in the back shop
of Main street store In Burlington.
but they want. | heered one on 'em
screech up at Hen mountain In the
middle o. the night this winter. an il
friz my blood up tlghter'n drum.
II came down by Montgomery GeI-
ter way tother day, an there | heerd
tell on the biggest painter that | ever
seen.
"Some folks call 'em panthers an
some folks cali 'em painters. an more'n
all of 'em cnll 'em Wildcats But the
real name, | heered tell when | was
down to the sportsman's show, was Il
mountain lion. Thems the eritturs
that they let the President shoot down
in Arlzony. an they is scheduled to
run up as far as Canada an down
across the northern end o New York
an over inter Maine, New Hampshire
and Vermont.
Bakersfield mountain is bout the
zeal live panther. But they killed one
ther' tother day.
Some of the boys was out In the
hills cunning an digging spruce gum
an the like when they came upon the
crittur's tracks. They was big enough
ia ha a ttDa,fo or "a nf
lads found where fox had been
caught and eaten. The snow was all
tracked down and bloody like and the
hide was torn up somewhat. Bear
never tear up hide but skin Il off
careful like an roll II up on. the
ground.
None of the young fellers could
make out what the tracks was. But
oil Teddy Sheldon. who Is now going
on TO II years, an | suppose has XIII.
ed more than seventy bear shook his
head and said to the young uns, ses
he: That's a painter, or my name
amt Theodore. I'm 40, but IN bless
ed II don't git out the old gun an
have a try at the $l2 that its hde'll
bring in bounty
"He an William II. Jewett polished
up their guns an set out. They found
where deer had been pulled down
an her throat bitten by the panther,
but the deer had evidently shook the
brute off an got away. After running
long distance Ii fell ard died.
Probly the painter was too full o his
earlier dinner TO foiler an so he never
knew that the deer died.
They got some o. their dogs on the
track of the panther, an after lively
chase they found the trail leading down
into Cold holler. Now, Cold holer Is
valley that no one yt ever had good
luck hunting in. Cal'late that they
would "a had IL they had gone there,
but the name sorter gives all the Ba-
kersfield mountain boys cold feet to
hear, an they have fought shy of It,
The panther was lying along n log
o. maple when they came up with their
dogs in leash an after letting out one
or two o. his bloody screeches he went
into the trees and began running along
an jumping from limb TO limb an.
tree to tree. Every now and then he
would stop an sorter turn back to fight
but the dogs troubled him | caflate A
full-sized panther will tackle man
any time. specially at nigh
"At last the dogs driv' him into a
tree that stood all alone an there he
turned at bay. Jewett fired at him, the
ball going through the shoulder mus
cles. The great cat fell sprawling into
the snow, but Immediately ran up an
other tree, where bullet. fired from
the rife of Sheldon, reached his brain,
''Old as | am I'd given a year Off
the fust end o. my life ter have shot
the last painter In Vermont, for | cal'-
late that's what 1t was. Amt been
none shot here for fifty years as
know on.
When | was boy they pulled down
cattle an children most every day.
Sheldon an Jewett took him TO the
town clerk of Montgomery Center an
collected $12 bounty. Might JUS well
close the account. Amt no more COM
Ing In"