Carson City Daily Appeal

July 6, 1910

“Man Fights With Wild Animal To Save Child.”

The following remarkable story has been received by the Las Vegas Age from James S Abbott its correspondent at Bunkerville, Nevada: Bunkerville is a small town in the Virgin river basin, about two miles from Mesquite, where the incident occurred. Both places are remote from the railroad, in one of the wildest localities of the southwest, yet which is now beginning to attract considerable attention on account of the fertility of its soil. Mr. Abbott’s story follows:

Child in Death Grip of Monster

In the small hours of the morning of June 22nd, at the town of Mesquite in Clark county, the two small daughters of Mrs. Aaron H Leavitt, a widow, were peacefully sleeping on the floor between the open doors of the room. Under cover of the darkness an animal crept through the open door and immediately plunged its sharp teeth into the brow and temple of one of the sleeping children. The little girl screamed with pain and threw up her arm to ward off the attack, whereupon the fierce brute fastened his jaws upon her forearm driving his teeth to the bone. The mother awakened by the anguished cries of her baby, sought in the dark the cause of the trouble. She felt what she supposed in the darkness to be a huge cat and undertook to drive him off, but by this time the animal was drinking the life blood of the child, who was writhing in pain and screaming “take him off!” The little sister was sent for help to the house of a neighbor and Mr. Herbert A Leavitt was awakened and came running to the scene. A desperate fight with the monster immediately began.

Leavitt a Hero

After vainly trying to beat the beast off he saw that something must be quickly done to save the life of the child. He settled himself down onto the animal and holding its throat in a powerful grip finally succeeded in choking it so that he loosened his grip from the arm of the child. After getting it loose a terrific struggle began and it was only through the great strength of Mr. Leavitt that the struggling beast was held until more help came and the animal was finally killed with an ax.

The beast proved to be an immense badger, weighing 55 pounds, and was strong enough to have carried off and killed the child had not help fortunately been at hand. The badger’s mate was seen around the place later.

The child is doing nicely after the frightful experience, under watchful treatment and it is hoped that no bad effects may follow.

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-The Pine Barrens Institute

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