The Turnbo Manuscripts
by Silas Claiborne Turnbo
1844-1925
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SEEING A PANTHER
By S. C. Turnbo
One day in the early part of the year 1860 while my parents lived on the old George Fritts farm on the north aide of White River in Keesee Township in Marion County, Ark., my brother, J. N. (Newt) Turnbo, rode off up the hollow that puts into the river just below where the old house stood on the bank of the river to hunt for some cattle. This hollow has three main prongs, one of which enters the main hollow from the west at the foot of the bluff near the mouth of the main hollow. Near a half a mile above the mouth of the west prong the hollow forks again, the right prong of which has a solid rock in the bed of the branch for a short distance up it. The left prong is the main hollow and has its source just over the line in Missouri. In olden times this hollow was known as the Cal Hollow. My brother in hunting the cattle had gone up this left prong and just before he reached the part of the hollow where the division line between Missouri and Arkansas crosses it he met a panther which crouched itself at the side of the pathway and Newt hurried up the side of the hill and surrounded the ugly beast and came back into the trail 50 yards above where he had seen the panther and stopped. At this moment he discovered a rattlesnake lying in a coil. He could not see the panther now but he would look where he last saw it, then at the snake until finally he dismounted and killed the reptile and remounting his pony he urged him on up the hollow at a rapid gait.
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