244 



THE CABINET OF NATURAL HISTORY 



hogs and their young came grunting at the well known call 

 of their owner, who threw them a few ears of corn, and 

 counted them, but told me that for some weeks their num- 

 ber had been greatly diminished by the ravages committed 

 upon them by a large Panther, by which name the Cougar 

 is designated in America, and that the ravenous animal did 

 not content himself with the flesh of his pigs, hut now and 

 then carried off one of his calves, notwithstanding the many 

 attempts he had made to shoot it. The Faintci; as he 

 sometimes called it, had on several occasions robbed him of 

 a dead deer; and to these exploits the squatter added several 

 remarkable feats of audacity which it had performed, to give 

 me an idea of the formidable character of the beast. De- 

 lighted by his description, I offered to assist him in destroy- 

 ing the enemy, at which he was highly pleased, but assured 

 me that unless some of his neighbours should join us with 

 their dogs and his own, the attempt would prove fruitless. 

 Soon after, mounting a horse, he went off to his neighbours, 

 several of whom lived at a distance of some miles, and ap- 

 pointed a day of meeting. 



The hunters, accordingly, made their appearance, one 

 fine morning, at the door of the cabin, just as the sun was 

 emerging from beneath the horizon. They were five in 

 number, and fully equipped for the chase, being mounted 

 on horses, which in some parts of Europe might appear 

 sorry nags, but which in strength, speed and bottom, are 

 better fitted for pursuing a cougar or a bear through woods 

 and morasses than any in that country. A pack of large 

 ugly curs were already engaged in making acquaintance 

 with those of the squatter. He and myself mounted his 

 two best horses, whilst his sons were bestriding others of 

 inferior quality. 



Few words were uttered by the party until we had reach- 

 ed the edge of the Swamp, where it was agreed that all 

 should disperse and seek for the fresh track of the Painter, 

 it being previously settled that the discoverer should blow 

 his horn, and remain on the spot until the rest should join 

 him. In less than an hour, the sound of the horn was 

 clearly heard, and, sticking close to the squatter, off we 

 went through the tliick woods, guided only by the now and 

 then repeated call of the distant huntsman. We soon reached 

 the spot, and in a short time the rest of the party came up. 

 The best dog was sent forward to track the Cougar, and in 

 a few moments the whole pack were observed diligently 

 trailing, and bearing in their course for the interior of the 

 Swamp. The rifles were immediately put in trim, and the 

 party followed the dogs, at separate distances, but in sight 

 of each other, determined to shoot at no other game than 

 the Panther. 



The dogs soon began to mouth, and suddenly quickened 

 their pace. My companion concluded that the beast was on 



the ground, and putting our horses to a gentle gallop, we 

 followed the curs, guided by their voices. The noise of 

 the dogs increased, when all of a sudden their mode of bark- 

 ing became altered, and the squatter, urging me to push on, 

 told me that the beast was treed, by which he meant that it 

 had got upon some low branch of a tree to rest for a few 

 moments, and that should we not succeed in shooting him 

 when thus situated, we might expect a long chase of it. As 

 we approached the spot, we all by degrees united into a 

 body, but on seeing the dogs at the foot of a large tree, se- 

 parated again and galloped off to surround it. 



Each hunter now moved with caution, holding his gun 

 ready, and allowing the bridle to dangle on the neck of his 

 horse, as it advanced slowly towards the dogs. A shot 

 from one of the party was heard, on which the Cougar was 

 seen to leap to the ground, and bound off with such velocity 

 as to show that he was very unwilling to stand our fire 

 longer. The dogs set off in pursuit with great eagerness 

 and a deafening cry. The hunter who had fired came up 

 and said that his ball had hit the monsterj and had probably 

 broken one of his fore-legs near the shoulder, the only place 

 at which he could aim. A slight trail of blood was disco- 

 vered on the ground, but the curs proceeded at such a rate 

 that we merely noticed this, and put spurs to our horses, 

 which galloped on towards the centre of the swamp. One 

 bayou was crossed, then another still larger and more muddy; 

 but the dogs were brushing forward, and as the horses began 

 to pant at a furious rate, we judged it expedient to leave 

 them and advance on foot. These determined hunters knew 

 that the Cougar being wounded, would shortly ascend 

 another tree, where in all probability he would remain for 

 a considerable time, and that it would be easy to follow the 

 track of the dogs. We dismounted, took off the saddles 

 and bridles, set the bells attached to the horses' necks at 

 liberty to jingle, hoppled the animals, and left them to shift 

 for themselves. 



Now, reader, follow the group marching through the 

 sw.amp, crossing muddy pools, and making the best of their 

 way over fallen trees and amongst the tangled rushes that 

 now and then covered acres of ground. If you are a hunter 

 yourself, all this will appear nothing to you; but if crowded 

 assemblies of "beauty and fashion," or the qu-et enjoyment 

 of your "pleasure-grounds," alone delight you, I must mend 

 my pen before I attempt to give you an idea of the pleasure 

 felt on such an expedition. 



After marching for a couple of hours, we again heard the 

 dogs. Each of us pressed forward, elated at the thought of 

 terminating the career of the Cougar. Some of the dogs 

 were heard whining, although the greater number barked 

 vehemently. We felt assured that the Cougar was treed, 

 and that he would rest for some time to recover from his 



