463 



source of much loss to the farmer. He then lurks about th.- 

 grass and g-raJnllelds waiting for chickens, turkeys or othi;j 

 kinds of poultry, and sometimes he gets In amongst the sheep. 

 About two years ago one of my neighbors. Mr. Joshua Doran, 

 of Covington township, had three half-grown lambs killed by 

 a cat. 



TOWNSEND PRICE, Monroe County: 



Wildcats are quite numerous here, and their depredations to 

 game and lambs certainly are of a serious character. Never 

 knew them to attack persons and do not think they would un- 

 less they could not get away. I have ixjisonal knowledge of 

 black bears killing cattle, sheep and pigs. Last year (1893) I 

 had the misfortune to have between thirty and forty sheep 

 killed by bears. In the northern part of Monroe county, near 

 the line of Pike county, there is a great deal of land which is 

 useless except for grazing, as the timber has been cut for the 

 bark and it burns over nearly every year. This is the place 

 where the bears and Wildcats have been doing their destruc- 

 tive work 'tor the past few years. If there is not sufficient 

 bounty placed on these animals to decrease them this pasture 

 ground will have to be abandoned. I have known Wildcats 

 to bite lambs in the neck and then leave them lay Favor 

 bounty being paid by State. 



J. C. HETTLER, Nauvoo, Tioga County: 



The greatest enemies the sportsman has to deal with are 

 Wildcats. They certainly destroy more Ruffed Grouse than 

 anything In the woods. I have known them to scent Grouse as 

 much as eighty yards and catch them without any difTiculty; 

 and I have seen them capture Grouse on nests. They catch 

 and devour numerous other kinds of birds, and also kill small 

 deer. I lose on an average from three to seven lambs in a 

 season by them. A Wildcat sometime ago visited the home of 

 one of my neighbors and in one night killed twenty-six chick- 



C. K. SOBER, Lewlsburg. Union County: 



Wildcats destroy game and poultry. At Glen Union a fam- 

 ily of these animals inhabited, until recently^ a cavern in the 

 mountains. In this place I found the bones and remains of 

 fawns, poultry and other kinds o£ animals, which they had 

 carried there to feed upon. I regard Wildcats as the greatest 

 enemies we have to game, such as Pheasants, Fawns and Rab- 



