WEST SHORE.
m
darkness became bo great that nearly every object was until nearly daylight. He lay in great pain ami thor
swallowed up. oughly chilled until after sunrise. Remembering the
After debating in his mind the advisability of halt- great strength and ferocity of bin antagonist, and fear
ing for the night, the hunter decided to push on, hop- ing that it still lurked in the immediate vicinity, the
ing to find the camp and relieve the anxiety of his wounded hunter remained motionless for several hours,
companion. Warned by the abundance of " signs," When ho did arise, no trace of the cougar could I
the two hunters had exercised, ever since going into discovered. Fearfully bitten, scratched and bruised,
camp, great caution and vigilance for their protection he made his way back to camp by painfully slow
and safety againBt the large carnivorous animals which marches, not reaching it until nearly noon. His corn
infest those wild regions. It was of the sly, treacher- panion had passed a sleepless night, a prey to painful
uuh and powerful cougar that the belated and bewil- apprehensions. Very early that morning two other
dcred man now stood in great dread, and the sequel hunters who had ton stalking elk farther back in tho
showed that his fears were far from groundless. With mountains had stopped at tho camp on their way down
rille in hand, he advanced, holding himself in instant to the valley, and learning of the missing man, had
readiness for defensive action. It was now so dark concluded to halt for the day and assist in the search.
his way through Before tho wounded man arrived in camp, iwo 01 ui
men nail aireauy wen oiu soiun umn
that ho could only grope
the tangled thicket. While
descending a steep ridge,
which ran up from adark,
narrow canyon, without
the slightest warning, he
3
I. h I IK ShkJ Mi a
scouring the woods, but, failing to
find him, had returned.
Fortunately, one of tho elk hunt
ers proved to be a young surgeon,
who was out for a summer vacation.
He immediately full to work and in
short timo bad tho wounded man
mite comfortable. Considering th
nature and extent of tho injuries, it
was divined best to remain in camp
a few days.
After giving an account of his
thrilling experien during the
night, tho invalid described the lo
cality as minutely as possible, and
the two elk hunters posted off In
search of tho wounded buck and
disabled cougar. Success crowned
their effort. The deer was found in
n dying condition near where the
hunter had abandoned the trail
the night before, and quickly dis
patched. On searching for the cou-
la -1 . v J!tJiMijbil tfjttttjt it til.
- i m . irnr il wim ninit ii m wir i i r '
. . nih an. (1()wn Uw ravln( Uy tliHR.
. I., 1,1ml The creature had received several thrusts front
was suddenly attacked by an enormous ouga .,,, ,u vitals, but ,,hsc,hI
this hand to hand conflict the rifle was useless. ' I
Ping that cun ,rsomo .pon, drew .1 Jj , ,,
knife and made desperate efforts to defend us. g u m
The knife was long, two-edged and keen as a rawr. trashing uiroug.i
For some time he fought with tho advantage greatly
on the side of the fierce animal. While the strugg e
or life was at it. height, approac ing to. ar h J - k.. Marvel turn
brink of a steep declivity, man and brt .nt J Th of (hn M (U.ri,ng
rolling down to the bottom o the ravine K rr M( o Bn
Weakened by the Iom of b hkI an ' , ' puMio Bew inj ,,,. wonder, a long a
olent contact with rock, and Wilder, ceiouanwa 'I I nul.
foratimefors.H.khim. In that cond.t.on he remained the pres. nt low pru