The Black Hills union and western stock review. [volume] (Rapid City, S.D.) 1904-19??, 1910-09-09
FOUGHT FOR HIS LIFE
A Western South Dakota
Rancher Has an Exper-
fence He Will Not
Soon Forget
WITH WOLVES

To crawl into a wolf den with a
rifle and fight a life and death battle
with gray w~olves-those pests Of n
range-was the experience Of George
Porch, a rancher living in the region
between the Missouri river and the
Black Hills, in Western South Dakota.
The gray woles of that part OF the
state are usually large and fierce, and
when the region was devoted to cattle
raising it was nothing uncommon Tor
wolves to attack and kill half-groWn
cattle by the score, the Losses TO
stockmen from the raids Of these
pests being greater than from any
other cause, not even excepting the
fierce storms of winter, when great
herds of cattle were turned loose on
the open range to shift for themselves
until spring.
Recently the small ranchers who
have supplanted the big cattlemen
have suffered considerable loss from
the depredations Of gray wolves and
Porch and four Of his neighbors
started out to run down and kill some
of the animals which had been par
ticularly active in killing their young
cattle and sheep.
The five men came upon the trail
of four full-grown wolves, which they
followed for many miles, succeeding
in killing one of them on the open
prairie. The other three animals
headed for their den and took refuge
in it, doubtless thinking they were
safe from further pursuit. Porch,
however, when himself and compan-
ions came to the opening to the VOLTS
den, never hesitated a moment, and
was soon we'll into the hole after the
wolves. He was determined to follow
and kill them if he had 10 crawl a
distance of a mile or more into the
side of the high bluff where the den
was situated.
Porch found that the tunnel through
which the wolves made their way to
their den ran along mi hundred feet
nearly parallel with the ground.
With a hugh hunting knife in one
hand and his rifle in the other he
crawled the whole distance, ready for
instant action when he came upon
the wolves.
In making his way into the den it
was necessary to enlarge the hold,
which while large enough to admit
the passage of the wolves was not
large enough at many places to adj
NIT the body of a nan On one &C.
casion one of his companions was
summoned to relieve him in the
work of digging, and this was all the
respite Porch had from his strenuous
efforts to get at close quarters with
the three wolves.
After digging into the bluff for a
distance which seemed to be a half
mile or more, Porch suddenly saw
ahead of him in the darkness six
sparkling bright eyes, all centered
upon him. But there was no stop
ping short Of securing the three wolf
pelts which he had set out to capture.
Some more trimming out of the hole
and he was near enough to fire a shot
straight into the group of shining
wolf eyes ahead of him.
Bang went the rifle and in an in
slant all was darkness and smoke.
Porch had provided himself with a
lantern and this was extinguished by
the conclusion when the heavy rifle
was fired. Porch relighted the Ian
tern the light from which revealed
the body of mi dead wolf.
AS he reached forward to drag out
the body of the dead wolf one of the
live ones attacked him, swapping vic
iously at his. arm. The sharp teeth
of the animal closed upon his coat
sleeve tearing tito shreds and grazing
his arm and leaving a scar. A rough
and tumble fight between Porch, who
is an old cowboy, and the wolf then
followed. The courage and strength
Of the cow-puncher was not lacking
and after q fierce battle he overpow-
cred the wolf and then ended its life
by firing a bullet into it from his rifle.
g.