San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1923-10-21

dust behind. Two or three minutes,
and then on top of the ridge behind
appeared two more specks. That was
ThorIly and Jones, riding down the
| mountain like wild men.
The buffalo turned to the right and
skirted back toward the highest peak.
But back on our trail we had left one
mounted man. and as he galloped to-
ward the mountain the buffalo saw
him and turned again, plunging down
a ravine TO the flat valley and head.
ing straight toward us. We could
count them now, there were just 20
in the herd.
There was some excitement! Joe
Robbins, the ranchman, had been sta.
| toned in the rocks below us, to signal
which way the herd would pass. either
along the mountain side, or along an
open strip of lake shore below.
Looking over the rocks / saw the
buffalo pounding up the hill toward
us at full speed. They can run 20
miles without slackening pace-can
run n horse to death.
We all ducked under cover. Robbins
yelled back that the buffalo were
heading above us. Jack Dempsey
jumped out from the rocks and ran
across the open to another ledge to
get closer shot. Then Robbins yelled
again: "They turned-below.
Close Call for Dempsey.
Dempsey dashed back. And sud-
denly, just as he reached our rocky
ledge, the whole herd came thunder
ing through the opening between the
rocks where he had just crossed,
passed with pounding hoofs and toss
ing horns within ten feet of us. They
had turned again and charged straight
down on US between the rocks instead
of along the open way.
1t was q close call for Dempsey.
He went over the ledge like a cat,
whirled and dropped his rifle to cover
one of the two big bulls in the lead.
As 1 waited Dempsey's rifle crash
ed close to my ear. ! saw dust fly from
the big bulls side and saw him stag
ger and leap ahead. ,
/ fired at the next one as the herd
turned toward the lake at top speed
hit him through the shoulder. He
gave one lurching leap. turned out OF
the herd and stopped, but didn't go
down. Dempsey and / were both using
rifles that hit tremendous blow. and
my first bullet had gone through my
buffalo from shoulder TO shoulder.
A buffalo is the hardest animal to
knock down that / ever hunted. That
80 soft-nosed bullet would have
dropped n moose on the SPOT. It took
two more shots to make the big bull
keel over. Meanwhile Dempsey was
pumping bullets into his bull. which
fell in the rocks fifty yards farther
along.
In an instant the herd had crossed
n ridge and disappeared. A few min,
utes later we got the horses up and
Dempsey and Madsen galloped after
the buffalo.
Dempsey hunts the way be fights.
Just one "soek" after another. Ono
buffalo Just started him. Now he and
Madsen ran the herd over the next
ridge, pounding along in the dust be-
hind. There they separated. Madsen
circling to the left. expecting the but
falo to turn. and Dempsey through q
coulee TO the right. ,
Here is where Jack Dempsey had
the real thrill of the day, and one
which might have left FirpO good
chance to step into the champions
shoes without waiting for another
fight.
As Jack rode up the ridge at the
end of the coulee he heard pound.
ing of hoofs ahead. and before he could
turn n herd of about 70 buffalo swept
over the ridge and down upon him.
Madsen had turned the herd above,
and it had run into another bigger
herd. which also started running.
In an instant Dempsey was IN the