Who or what event is portrayed in this story?
When he looked back, he couldn’t see anyone but he knew the man that chased him was fast and cautious. Oh, why did he come back to the island? Hawaii wasn’t worth it, not for any discovery.
A large root across his path made him trip and he fell hard on a fallen tree. When he got to his knees and pulled his hand from his head, he found it covered in blood. Damn. He ignored the pain and ran forward. His eyes couldn’t focus, all he could hear was ringing.
That’s why he fell into the hole.
He attempted to climb from the cattle pit but the dirt walls were too high. The sun was almost down. Perhaps he could wait until dark to crawl out. His pursuer would have a difficult time following him at night. He sat down to wait. Every little sound scared him. However, eventually the moon became the only light he saw through the trees.
Douglas listened. He could hear noises here and there, but mainly birds. Was it safe to leave the hole? As he attempted to crawl out, a large branch broke above his head. Quickly, Douglas jumped down into the hole. He looked up but couldn’t see anything.
It was too late, however, when he saw the horns of the bull. He couldn’t stop the bull from falling on top of him.
Who or what event is portrayed in this story?
The previous Death By … story is based on:
In 1939, well known Finnish actress Sirkka Sari (Jahnsson) was celebrating the premiere of her new film “A Rich Girl” at the hotel Aulanko. During the celebration (most likely in a drunken desire to have some mischievous fun) Sari climbed the stairs to the roof of the hotel. At the top of the stairs, she opened the door and saw a black rectangular area which she thought was asphalt. She mistook it for a scenery deck, and jumped right in it. Unfortunately for her it was actually a chimney. She fell to her death in the boiler at the bottom.
Sources:

Congrats Laura Marcella and JT Webster again! One point each.
ReplyDeleteThe tally so far:
Laura - 4 points
JTWebster - 2 points
Glynis - 2 points
Bev - 1 point
Youngman - 1 point
Angela - 1 point
Cherie - 1 point
Let me know if these tallies are off.
And just a hint: Not all names used in the stories will be the right name. Sometimes if I use the right name, it'll be too easy. I can't make it that easy, can I?
Wow, I have no clue for this one.
ReplyDeleteHappy Easter!
Clarissa - I'm so enjoying the way you share the real-life stories that inspire your posts! How cool! And you really do a good job of telling these stories.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteHi Clarissa - thought maybe I deserved a point for my answer for the first one - I said it was a Russian astronaut caught in a training accident but perhaps I need to know the name?
ReplyDeleteHa Ha! I found this one! It is David Douglas (1798-1834), Scottish botanist.He discovered the Douglas fir. He died on the slopes of Mauna Kea in Hawaii after falling into a pit dug to entrap wild bulls and being gored by a wild bull that had previously fallen in. He may have actually been murdered by a convict that had escaped from Australia's penal colony. Fascinating story!
ReplyDeleteDavid Douglas fell into a pit that contained a bull. Gored and trampled... this is definitely NOT the way most people would think they'd go, yeesh! :/
ReplyDeleteHope you have a great weekend, Clarissa!
I see Jan has already nailed this one.
ReplyDeleteAlright Jan, I'll give you a point for that one. Here's the update:
ReplyDeleteLaura - 4 points
JTWebster - 2 points
Glynis - 2 points
Bev - 1 point
Youngman - 1 point
Angela - 1 point
Cherie - 1 point
Jan - 1 point
Not a good way to go!!!
ReplyDeleteWe're at G already and I know none of these. Sigh.
ReplyDeleteI feel like a loser not knowing any of the answers, but I am enjoying them.
ReplyDeletePS I saw my aunt tossed about by a very large bull once.
Teresa
Ouch! I've read other stories about bulls who attacked people; they always make me cringe. :P
ReplyDeleteVery cool story! Sound like it hurt lol
ReplyDeleteWhat a way to go.
ReplyDeleteThat's a rather unfortunate way to die. ._.
ReplyDeleteHmmm. I don't know any of these! But it's too bad that he got punctured more than once. The bull at the end was just over the top. I really feel for that guy. I think that's the king of bad days.
ReplyDeleteSuch fascinating stories. I love them, even though I don't know any of them. Wow! All the different ways one can die - some ways quite bizarre. Such stories are a goldmine to a murder mystery writer such as you, to stimulate those gray cells...
ReplyDeleteAnn Best, Author of In the Mirror & Other Memoirs
Amazing Blog!
ReplyDeleteSALUDOS DESDE BARCELONA
Up The Hammers & Visca el Barça!
I'm waiting to:
penyabogarde.blogspot.com
now, that was a nasty way to die :)
ReplyDeleteGreat story from yesterday and greater story brewing today. I jump over a lot of blogs to read this first!
ReplyDeleteCan't believe yesterday's answer. Wow. Today's seems straightforward - a bull goring, but of course it's not!
ReplyDeleteDenise
Terrible. Awful. Terrible.
ReplyDeleteMORE!
Heather
I guess the real question is how do you know all these? It's either that you have an exceptional prowess at researching strange ways to die or a fascination with death and I'm impressed either way.
ReplyDeleteNot going to give this one a go because I checked the comments first. Darn me! But, I couldn't help remembering the cover of an ESPN layout that showed the most terrible gore. A bullhorn curved up and out from the mouth of a matador. Somehow, the bull hooked his horn at just the right point beneath his neck so that it shot out his open mouth. I mean, it was a perfect miss from death because he survived.
ReplyDeleteAnother good story, but what a way to go!
ReplyDeleteDon't know the inspiration, but goring is always a winner - my yr7 Spanish class loved talking about goring when we looked at bullfighting.
ReplyDeleteWagging Tales
Hoo boy, gored by a bull? In Hawaii? Very intriguing. Will pop by Monday. Curious to find out the true incident.
ReplyDeleteJ.C. Martin
A to Z Blogger
I can't help thinking this would be a terrible way to go. Intriguing story! Looking forward to the next installment
ReplyDeletehave a great Easter!!!
ReplyDeleteDeath by goring? Never though of that one. Just one more thing to think about today.
ReplyDeleteGreat story! Not the way I want to go, but well-told!
ReplyDeleteNow this looks like a fun party I've joined :-)
ReplyDeleteSplat!
ReplyDeleteEek. I don't mind gore or goring, so I can stomach these posts. :)
ReplyDeleteWhat an unusual death for Sirkka Sari.
Entertaining as always, but I haven't been able to guess one yet. :)
ReplyDeleteyikes! What a way to go!
ReplyDelete