One day, when Lewis, Susannah's husband, was away for Muster in nearby Germanton, her two sons came running into the house to tell their mother that some kind of animal was in the calf pen, trying to kill the calfs. The calf pen was located near the spring and Susannah grabbed the fire shovel and ran to the pen. A panther was already on a calf and in a few more minutes would have killed his prey. However, with the true grit and courage of all the pioneer Jarvis women, Susannah attacked the panther and when her husband returned several days later, he found a beautiful panther skin nailed to the barn wall to dry!!
Another Susannah story - but this time her husband is home:
During the middle of the night, a noise was heard at the cabin door. (This is before their permanent home was built.) Lewis, Susannah's husband, opened the cabin door (first mistake) and a big black bear walked in! Now, Lewis had a splendid record as a Rev. solider, but his wife said he could not face the bear that night. He jumped over the bed and into the rafters, leaving Susannah to face the bear. Without a word, she calmly took the gun from over the door and killed the bear.