Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1930-02-15

P)-EXcited baying Of hounds broke
the stiffness Of the Sierra Nevada
mountains. A tai, dark-haired, I'M
shaven man with a pack or his back
came running into a clearing where
the dogs we're citcling about a big
fir tree, jumping up at the limbs
futilely. swapping, baying. Perched
in a crotch Of the tree, some % feet
above the ground. was a yellow,
snarling beast, green eyes glaring
defiance. The long tail. thick as q
mans ARM. waved back and forth.
For a full minute the hunter
watched the cougar. He showed no
excitement at the situation. Already
he had killed 3T5 lions. He vas the
state lion hunter Of California and
as such an official Of that common
wealth. This was all in the days
work. The man was JAY Bruce,
hired by the state fish and game
commission 10 kill cougar that deer
may be saved.
Grabs His Dogs
Bruce's first acs was TO grab hiJ
dogs. one BY one he caught them
ana tied them NJ.
IF / shot the Get out or the tree
wounded. the dogs would mix II up
and get killed" he explained. II al
wavst tie them first. once 1 had 10
dive in and pull open the paws OF =
lion with a broken jaw that was
irving vainlv to drag the head q
one of my precious hounds into Us
nav. "A favC-ite trick Of thelr -
IA roll over on their back. present
ING nothing but steel sharp claws 70
the hounds. Cou ars have mere
dible strength-one biz male ac-
tuallv left his teeth marks on the
steel barrel Of a rifle l thrust into
his mouth"
Bruce had tied the DOGS as he
talked Drawing his 38-4O cGloer
revolver he came close 70 the tree
n get 4 better shot. lie uses 2 re-
volvar because a rifle Is 70 cum
horeogne 10 carry when fighting
br,,sh SWIMMING s-reams. lumnhA@
rrccipices and climbing mouhtaliis'
Uses Both Hands
Bruce Ieveled his revolver.
i've cot TO kill him the first shot
~ thnrerl be he'll TO pay he said
He aimed, holding the revolver ih
ho.h hands. He ram shoot eIPcrtly
in this way.
SHARPLY the gun s,?at. The big cal
stiffened and then came tumnllIls
down through the foliage dead.
Bruce allowed the dogs TO maui
the carcass. then pulled them OIL
He nroduced scales and tape mea-
SIRE and strung the cougar up 70
tree. The weight WAS l6O pounds
Measurements showed six fSet seven
inches from the tip Of the tan 70
the tip of the nose.
The lion hunter skinned the non
fed a few pieces of the meat 70 the
dogs ~ make them eager TO hunt
cats. and proceeded back 70 the
rangers cabin where he was camp
ed.
Jay Bruce. 49,
You may ask: Why can Bruce
make a living Killing mons wnen
rthers can't even get one? The ans
ver lies in his grit and perseverance
re- u like a bloodhound once ne
hits a trail. Nothing can stop nm
He runs for hours uph III and down
after the hounds, tear ing through
brush. making his way over the
toughest country. Any otner man
would give up in disgust Bruce has
trailed a lion day and might Tor ~
DAYS straight, living on hardtack'
drenched TO the skin, travelling
through the snow and Slusn. But
AZ the end Of that time ne got MS
lion and collected his S35 bounty and
salvage.
The cougar, known also as noun
tain lion, panther. puma, catamount
and American lion. Is a ca peculiar
10 America and lnfestS the noun
tain ranges, the greatest OF all
menaces to deer. In 1918 the Cali
fornia legislature created the office
Of state lion hunter and OH Jan. !,
1919, Bruce. hunter, traploer and
guide from Yosemite Natiol lal park
was given the position. He then had
killed 81 cougar. He was given q
salary Of 500 a month and allowed
a $50 bounty. He sells the skins from
SIS to $40.
Bruce's first move was to stick
pins in a big map showing where
every lion had been killed sir &c the
state began to pay bounties. They
were more than $500 of these pins
a miniature metal regiment ov sr ar
area representing Is miles in width
extending through the Sierras ano
Coast range at an altitude bet xeen
5000 and 5000 feet above sea level
4 r~kf- u-a fHa first ft1-~ thai 1,~xn,~.n