Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1909-05-08

W
A German sportsman succeeded inone
OF his hunts In getting possession OF
very young panther, of which he tried
to make a pet
But one day when they had taken
him into the forest he was long IN res
turning to his masters, and two serv4
ants were sent to learn what had be-
come OF him. The panther sprang on
them, threw them both to the ground
and tore their bodies open.
Subtle, swift and sinister, the pan,
Their has flendish fondness for tor.
turing his victims, beast or human.
He will play with half dead man
like cat with broken winged bird.
Having crushed down a native, the
panther will spring into the bushes
| and hide. The unfortunate thinking
/ his enemy gone, essays to rise or crawl
away, only to be suddenly struck to
earth again, to be fought over by jach
| ais, hyenas and yultures
NJ. Jacques Arago, scholar and
| traveller of European celebrity. thus
! draws the portrait of the panther:
SIS that tiger, a lizard, a serpent
or lion which so devoured spacef III
| 1t fame whose movement flashes
with the rapidity of thought2 It ia the
! panther In quest of his prey; 1t i9 the
nimblest, the most agile Of the quad
rupeds that the hunter pursues. YouE
ball must fly swiftly to orertake him.
| The arrow is not so swift as he. And
how is ii possible to strike that elastic
body which stretches out, curves
bends about, shortens?
"How seize ON the moving being ia,
which all quiet is impossible, which 10
refreshed by motion. enervated bNd
calm and sleep?
"You aim at the earth. The pantheFI
/ you thought to strike with an infalls>
bic missile draws your eyes above
your head to see him. He does notggol
on feet; he flies.
st is the panther rather than thai
lion or the tiger who should be known
as the king Of beasts"
4 More silent than other dangerous
beasts, the panther 30 contributes to
the perplexities of his pursuerS. His
cry, infrequently heard, Is harah
noise, something between a grunt and
cough. He emits a short roar al
times when charging an assailant.
While difficult for parties to circuxnS
vent panthers are less suspicious OF
traps than lions, ETC., and they ara
often caught in baited cage traps.
A writer in the American Field deS
scribes thrilling panther hunt In Brio
ish East Africa, northwest Of En-.
tebbe illustrating the brute's agility
resourcefulness and tenacity to life
eve were following elephant trackR
into thicket Of wait bit brushes
$50 named because of the annoying
thornsy when large leopard sprang
III front of u.s." he says.
Burns, who was in the lead, took a
Z shot at him, but scored clean miss
on account Of his pony rearing to the
side. | noticed the brute make for q
bush to the right Of us, SO we started
after him on foot, leaving George to
look after the ponies. Suddenly up
, jumped the leopard about twenty yards
, from us. We both fired together, and
the brute made leap as If hard hit
Burns was about SIX yards to the right
Of me when he cried out:
: Look out. kidP
But before 1 had time to look the
leopard sprang and foored me Hike
tenpin, knocking my rifle from my,
hands. He sprang from the left side
80 my right arm was free. As luck
: would have 1t, my knife was on the
right side Of my belt. Drawing It, 4
let the savage brute have It's point
clean in his snout just as he was In
: the act Of clawing at my throat Burns.
. who had fixed his bayonet, came to
my assistance. The brute thought ~
. best to clear out.
"After creeping fifteen yards Burns
: pointed to bush, and there il saw the
| old fellow lying down, evidently In
> great pain. He would keep getting up
. and lying down, all the time licking
: his side where the wounds were This
: time we decided to have good broad
: side at him, so crept to the left, taking
Z care not to- let the animal see us,
When we got between fifty and a hun
dred yards from him we had good.
view and watched his antics. Them.
:. leveling our rifles, we fred together.
8 The leopard sprang up, leaped about
n twelve feet and rolled over on his side.
! | was about to make q run up to him
e when old Burns luckily dragged me
Q back, for just then up jumped the
y leopard and cut some of the queerest
$ capers I ever saw. Leaptng suddenly
q toward US in last try for revenge,
he presented as fearful a sight as I
y ever want to see.
g BURNS let him have another shot
J In his side, at which he made leap
b in the air and came down all Of q
{ heap, dead.
= ut is seen that it took Ave well
aimed bullets from guns designed for
elephant and lion killing, In addition to
: my knife thrust, to lay low that brute"