The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-11-14
"VARMINTS'' GONE DEER ARE PLENTIFUL California Hunters HaveChance
 for Sport MOUNTAIN LIONS SLAIN Three Thousand of These Animals Have Been Killed in Two Years as Result of Bounty-story of
 Game Warden's Escape.
MOUNTAIN LIONS SLAIN
La Lbs Angelo. Times

From the Los Angeles Times.
 Three thousand mountain lions slain in California in two years explains the plentifulness of deer this season, accord ing to County Game Warden Morgan. just back from a vacation on his ranch at Rosamond, Kern county.
 There Morgan bearded the lion in his den, but failed to get it, though the animals abound in that wild vicinity.
 Venison has been more abundant in Los Angeles this season than in 20 years. the veriest tyros among hunters coming back to the city with one or two bucks after short trips into the mountains. Per sons who never tasted deer meet have had 1t on their table, and they have won- dered why they could never get it before.
 Morgan has the solution, and he has figures to prove his case
 While humans may hunt deer for but a few months in the year, the mountain lion is obliged to respect no season. It hunts every month. and it slaps does as well as bucks. Sportsmen estimate that an active mountain lion kills and de- yours an average of 25 deer in 12 montNs
 Thus by the killing of 5000 of the ''varmits," the lives of at least 10, ,0O0 deer have been preserved in the last two years for the men with the guns and ability to use them. This does not take into ac- count the natural increase in the lion fam- fly, which would have amounted to pos sibly S000 more.
 Little interest was taken in the killing of the lions until the state fish and game 1 commission, realizing the need for great CT protection of deer and other game, of fered a bounty of s20 for each mountain lion killed. This is not a state law; sim ply an action on the part of the com mission, which has at its disposal the money collected on hunting licenses and obtained from other sources.
 At $2o each, the dead lions have cost the commission s60,o00, though 1t is said that the bounty has not been claimed in each case. The skins of quite a number of the animals have been brought to Los Angeles, where the bounty was claimed.
 Some of these animals are of great size, measuring 12 feet from tip of nose to end of tail, while eight-footers are common back in the sparsely-settled mountain dis trictS.
 Trophies of Hunt.
 Though Morgan failed to get a noun tain lion, he and his party slew five wild cats, Il coyotes, 250 jack rabbits and other pests. not to mention deer. duck, quail and miscellaneous game. Morgan and several friends had an ex- citing wildcat hunt one day at spot | where two years ago c. F. Patterson. l then supervisor, and James J. Jeffries. slaughtered six of the beasts. The game warden and his party got five, but they | missed one, and thereby hangs a tale, but not a tail 1 When the cats were encountered in a | group by a hunter in advance of Morgan and Fred Johnson, the man in advanc, blazed away and killed three-bangl bang bang!-just like that, Morgan says. Th' | warden, who was scrambling up a hill l plugged two others, but the biggest on, ! of the lot tore down the mountainsidt within 20 feet of Morgan, making one lear : of 90 feet into dry wash, along which l Johnson was making his way.
 Johnson was out for bear, or almost anything but wild cats. In a holster he carried a revolver, in his belt was an i'm mense hunting knife, and over his shoul- der was a big shotgun.
 A Dash for Life.
 The big mountain pussy, tearing toward him like a projectie from a battleship seemed to turn Johnson's superheateo hunting blood Into ice water. Turning like a man who had left his car fare al home, he raced for the camp, only a short distance, where women of the party breathlessly watched the animal as il swiftly gained on the fleeing form. Off flew Johnsons' hat, his revolver popped out of his pocket and his gleaming hunt ing knife fell In his wake, but the wild cat kept on gaining.
 Breathless and white, Johnson finally reached the camp, having turned his head not once in his flight. There he found the women convulsed, and as soon as he could sputter out Interrogation he found why.
 About halfway from where he began the race the cat turned suddenly to the side and dashed into the brush, where 1t was lost to sight. The women saw this, knew Johnson was safe, and their fun came in viewing the scared Hunter in his flight from a danger that was only i'm aginarY.