Forest Life and Forest Trees: comprising winter camp-life among the loggers, and wild-wood adventure.: with Descriptions of lumbering operations on the various; rivers of Maine and New BrunswickSpringer, John S.
History
Forest Life and Forest Trees: comprising winter camp-life among the loggers, and wild-wood adventure.: with Descriptions of lumbering operations on the various; rivers of Maine and New Brunswick
Springer, John S.
Lumbering -- Maine; Maine -- Description and travel; New Brunswick -- Description and travel; Trees
There is an animal in the deep recesses of our forests, evidently
belonging to the feline race, which, on account of its ferocity, is
significantly called "_Indian Devil_"--in the Indian language, "the
Lunk Soos;" a terror to the Indians, and the only animal in New
England of which they stand in dread. You may speak of the moose, the
bear, and the wolf even, and the red man is ready for the chase and
the encounter. But name the object of his dread, and he will
significantly shake his head, while he exclaims, "_He all one debil!_"
An individual by the name of Smith met with the following adventure in
an encounter with one of these animals on the Arromucto, while on his
way to join a crew engaged in timber-making in the woods.
He had nearly reached the place of encampment, when he came suddenly
upon one of these ferocious animals. There was no chance for retreat,
neither had he time for reflection on the best method of defense or
escape. As he had no arms or other weapons of defense, the first
impulse, in this truly fearful position, unfortunately, perhaps, was
to spring into a small tree near by; but he had scarcely ascended his
length when the desperate creature, probably rendered still more
fierce by the promptings of hunger, sprang upon and seized him by the
heel. Smith, however, after having his foot badly bitten, disengaged
it from the shoe, which was firmly clinched in the creature's teeth,
and let him drop. The moment he was disengaged, Smith sprang for a
more secure position, and the animal at the same time leaped to
another large tree, about ten feet distant, up which he ascended to an
elevation equal to that of his victim, from which he threw himself
upon him, firmly fixing his teeth in the calf of his leg. Hanging
suspended thus until the flesh, insufficient to sustain the weight,
gave way, he dropped again to the ground, carrying a portion of flesh
in his mouth. Having greedily devoured this morsel, he bounded again
up the opposite tree, and from thence upon Smith, in this manner
renewing his attacks, and tearing away the flesh in mouthfuls from his
legs. During this agonizing operation, Smith contrived to cut a limb
from the tree, to which he managed to bind his jack-knife, with which
he could now assail his enemy at every leap. He succeeded thus in
wounding him so badly that at length his attacks were discontinued,
and he finally disappeared in the dense forest.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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