The Logan Republican. [volume] (Logan, Utah) 1902-1924, 1904-12-17

rRR NATIVES HAULED THE LEOPARD AND
HER CUB OUT.
ing at spot some twenty feet higher
up. | had seen two of them the day
before leading little leopard cub by a
chain. I had asked them what they
were going to do with the little clumsy.
furry creature. no larger than an ordi-
nary cat, for ! wished to purchase 1t
and keep II A. q pet. But my highest
o6er failed to tempt them. aud could
not discover what they wanted with
the cub.
With these men were four others, all
sturdy fellows OF the cultivator class,
clad only In waist cloth and puggaree,
and each Of them was armed with a
lathi, n heavy bamboo stan about ave
Arst long, tipped with a massive brass
knob On the ground was great
heap OF the cakes used for fuel. As I
looked at these began 10 have an
inkling OF what was to happen.
The bank OF the stream where we
were standing was thirty or forty feet
high and ran steeply down to the wa.
ter's edge. A number of whitened
bones and a few chinkara horns were
strewed about the ground. and from
a hole halfway up the bank. ut which
the natives were staring inir = "ame
nm overpowering stencil, like ,..., OF
the lion house In the geological gar.
dens, but many times worse.
One OF the men. In answer to my
question, told me that the hole was the
entrance to n cave in which leopard
which had for long haunted the neigh.
borhood had her lair. Recently a pair
or cubs had been born. and these men,
having watched the mother leave her
cave in search OF prey, had carried OF
the cubs to be used as bait to lure
her 10 destruction. They kept the cubs
for three days. and then. when the
the loss OF her offspring, they had
watched her 20 out again and In her
absence had tied up one of the cubs at
the back OF the cave. 1t was necessary
to DO this in order that they might
proceed undisturbed with their opera.
tons, for they knew that the leopard
would never leave the cave while her
cub remained bound within It, A.
soon as the man whom they left to
watch the entrance to the cave report
ed that the leopard had returned they
set out, armed, az | have described
with the intention OF smoking her out
They then proceeded TO build up the
entrance with stones. paying no heed
TO the continuous low growing from
within. In short time they had quite
closed It up, with the exception OF Que
hole few inches across. and the stones
were so firmly wedged as to be quite
immovable. They next brought stifl
wet clay from the bed OF the stream
with which they proceeded TO stop W
the chinks and crannies between the
stones.
After this had been done the dried
fuel cakes were brought up. They sci
IRE to them one by one, and, after
blowing upon them until they were
well alight, they threw them into the
cave through the small hole they had
left These cakes OF fuel will 20 on
srnoldering for hours. and they give
out great deal of pungent smoke.
After half an hour or no | suggested
that the smoke must have done itS
work. But the natives would not hear
OF opening the cave 80 quickly. Their
sporting Instincts were not sufficiently
developed to allow them to give the
leopard the smallest chance OF escape
With true oriental patience they squat