Year: 1874

From the San Francisco Golden Era.l


An Eastern tourist read to his com
panion the following newspaper para
graph:


"The cougars are killing a great
many sheep in Washington Territory.


In New York, he said, "they pro
tect their sheep from those insects by
rubbing tar on their noses, it keeps the
cougars from going into their nostrils. y


A Sacramento man, who was down
here attending the pioneers celebra'
ton, heard what he said and remarked


One of them once attacked me, and
| am of the opinion that tar on my nose
would not have been of much benefit to
meP


l was not aware they troubled men. "


They have got to be pretty hungry
before they will do SO. )"


The pioneer then informed the tourist
that he was laboring under mistake,
and told him that cougar was a fero'
cious animal, not sheep insect.


He complied with the request to re-
late the particulars of his encounter
with one OF them, and commenced:


suppose it was the spirit of adven-
ture that brought me here twenty-five
years ago that prevented me from re-
naming in San Francisco, where could
have amassed fortune, and made me
the Wandering Jew " of the many and
widely spread mining regions. | was
among the first that went to the newly
discovered diggings on the head waters
of the Missouri river My partners and
myself had discovered a quartz ledge
and were sinking on it in hopes of find
ing the paymaster. 1t was situated near
the summit of the Rocky Mountains.
The road leading to it was unfrequented,
and all the wild animals to be found in
that region we're our neighbors.


One day, when returning from neigh
boring claim, where | had been to get
drill sharpened, l stopped to rest under
the shade of large pine tree. | had
placed one end of the drill on the ground
and was in the act Of sitting down, when
/ was startled by a strange noise over
my head. | looked up and saw cougar
just in the act of pouncing down on me.
His huge mouth was open and his eyes
shone like fire-balls.


Men who lead lives fraught with dan
ger, in moments of great peril think
rapidly. The thought flashed to me that
must catch the cougar on my drill or
be his breakfast. / dropped on nay
knees and aimed the drill at the place
where thought his breast would come.


When / recovered enough from the
shock to realize my condition, | found
myself on my back with the carcass of
the monster on top of me. For some
time | thought my arms were broken;
on finding they were not | managed to
roll him off. | next thought my legs
we're broken; they were numb and re-
mained that way long time. No one
part of me was injured more than the
Others; but all parts we're nearly MUIR
dered. Instead of penetrating his breast
the point of the drill had entered his
mouth, passed down his throat aud come
out near his backbone. 1t was a long
time before | fully recovered. The drill
had only partly broken his fall and the
monster had nearly crushed me to death;
but / had the satisfaction of knowing
that outgeneraled him, and spelled his
appetite for miners.


After the pioneer concluded, the tour
list congratulated him on his escape from
a horrible death, and admitted that a
mans life would be lost to such an oc-
casion, if he had nothing but tar on his
nose to defend himself with.