The Harrison times. (Harrison, Boone Co., Ark) 1876-1938, 1903-12-05
Bloody Combat Between d Young Man
and a Panther.

relate an interesting account of
young mans terrible experience with
panther during the early history of
Beaver creek in fancy county. The
young man was a cousin of Mr..
Wright's and of Mr.. Esiick's wife.
When | interviewed these men they
were living on Brushy creek near Herr
cules postoffice in fancy county, Mo.
Since that time Mr.. Wright has died
and Mr.. Esliek has moved south of
Buffalo fork of White river. They
were early settlers of fancy county
and both remember the particulars of
this event we'll. Without giving their
exact words will give the story as
follows:
A long time ago when the picturesque
valley of Beaver creek began to be in
vaded by white people and some few
log huts had been erected, man by
by the name of Richard Pearce located
some three miles below where the
Lawrence mill was afterwards built.
There was young man By the game
of Ellis Lamar who lived with PeasSse;
he was brother of Pearce's wife. II
was d common practice then and years
afterwards among the settlers to al
low their work horses to run on the
range of nights during crop time and
hunt them up next morning. gu
many occasions boys and young men
and old men too have waded through
the tall grass during early morning
hunting the pillow horses and probably
sang 'the morning dew is awful wet"
for their clothes from feet to shout
ders would be saturated with water
from the effects of the heavy dew on
the grass and weeds. Lamar and
Pearce we're cropping together and
Lamar made practice of rising early
and going out to hunt the horses.
One morning early he started on his
usual errand. 1t was a fine June
morning clear, with the grass laden
with heavy dew, the song birds filled
the morning air with the noise of their
beautiful songs. Lamar was just 10
years old and he felt merry and hap
ply. The horses were not far from
home and he was not long in finding
them but discovered that they had
been attacked by wild beast. A
young colt in the bunch was badly
used up and its mother was in no bet
ter condition. They were both badly
wounded and bleeding freely. An in
vestigation showed that it was done
by panther. 1t had tried to kill the
colt but the mother had interfered and
the beast had turned on her and tore
gaping wounds in her flesh. It had
been about an hour since the panther
had attacked them and the horses had
not got over their scare. The panther
was not in sight but more than likely
il was lying crouched in the rank
grass near where he found the horses.
Having no desire to search for the
animal, for he had no gun, he finally
got the bunch of horses quoted and
started them toward home. Lamar
said that he walked behind them and
kept keen eye out for the approach
of the beast, but after travelling a few
hundred yards and not seeing or hear
ing Of it he grew careless supposine
that II had left. As he went on he
quit looking back or on each side Of
him. Careiessness had overbalancec
his watchfnlness and plncking a blade
Of grass he applied II to his mouth and
initiated the bieating Of fawn; bu
he paid dearly for his nnthoughted
ness for while continuing to hold th'
blade Of grass 70 his mouth and hleat
ing like a little deer and expecting !
doe to run up near him on the hunt foi
her fawn, the bleatiug was cut short
fer while he was passing down a hill
side the same animal or another ou'