The Hunters' Feast Part 10

If our astonishment was great before, it was now beyond bounds. The identical b.u.t.tonwood with its great parasite was before us, the dog barking at its foot! The third 'c.o.o.n had taken shelter in its capacious cavity.

"`Wagh! ma.s.sa!' e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.ed Abe, in a voice of terror, `its de same varmint. It ain't no 'c.o.o.n, it's de debil! For de lub o' G.o.d, ma.s.sa, let's get away from here!'

"Of course I followed his advice, as to get at the 'c.o.o.ns was out of the question.

"We returned once more to the corn-field, but we found that we had at last cleared it of 'c.o.o.ns. It was still early, however, and I was determined not to give up the hunt until I had a.s.sisted in killing a 'c.o.o.n. By Abe's advice, therefore, we struck into the woods with the intention of making a circuit where the trees were small. Some 'c.o.o.n might be prowling there in search of birds' nests. So thought Abe.

"He was right in his conjecture. A fourth was started, and off went Pompo after him. In a few minutes the quick constant bark echoed back.

This time we were sure, from the direction, in a new tree.

"It proved to be so, and such a small one that, on coming up, we saw the animal squatted upon the branches, not twenty feet from the ground.

"We were now sure of him, as we thought; and I had raised my gun to fire; when all at once, as if guessing my intent, the 'c.o.o.n sprang into another tree, and then ran down to the ground and off again, with Pompo veiling in his track.

"Of course we expected that the dog would speedily tree him again, which after a few minutes he did, but this time in the heavy timber.

"We hastened forward, guided by the barking. To the extreme of my astonishment, and I fancy to the very extreme of Abe's terror, we again found ourselves at the foot of the b.u.t.tonwood.

"Abe's wool stood on end. Superst.i.tion was the b.u.t.t-end of his religion; and he not only protested, but I am satisfied that he believed, that all the four 'c.o.o.ns were one and the same individual, and that individual `de debil.'

"Great 'c.o.o.n-hunter as he was, he would now have gone home, if I had let him. But I had no thoughts of giving up the matter in that easy way. I was roused by the repeated disappointment. A new resolve had entered my mind. I was determined to get the 'c.o.o.ns out of the b.u.t.tonwood, cost what it might. The tree must come down, if it should take us till morning to fell it.

"With this determination I caught hold of Abe's axe, and struck the first blow. To my surprise and delight the tree sounded hollow. I repeated the stroke. The sharp axe went cras.h.i.+ng inwards. The tree was hollow to the ground; on the side where I had commenced chopping, it was but a sh.e.l.l.

"A few more blows, and I had made a hole large enough to put a head through. Felling such a tree would be no great job after all, and I saw that it would hardly occupy an hour. The tree must come down.

"Abe seeing me so resolute, had somewhat recovered his courage and his senses, and now laid hold of the axe. Abe was a `first hand' at `chopping,' and the hole soon gaped wider.

"`If de hole run clar up, ma.s.sa,' said he, resting for a moment, `we can smoke out de varmint--wid de punk and de gra.s.s here we can smoke out de debil himself. S'pose we try 'im, ma.s.sa?'

"`Good!' cried I, catching at Abe's suggestion; and in a few minutes we had made a fire in the hole, and covered it with leaves, gra.s.s, and weeds.

"The smoke soon did its work. We saw it ooze out above at the entrance of the 'c.o.o.n hole--at first in a slight filmy stream, and then in thick volumes. We heard a sc.r.a.ping and rattling within the hollow trunk, and a moment after a dark object sprang out upon the lliana, and ran a short way downward. Another followed, and another, and another, until a string of no less than six racc.o.o.ns squatted along the parasite threatening to run downward!

"The scene that followed was indescribable. I had seized my gun, and both barrels were emptied in a `squirrel's jump.' Two of the 'c.o.o.ns came to the ground, badly wounded. Pompo tackled another, that had run down the lliana, and was attempting to get off; while Abe with his axe clove the skull of a fourth, that had tried to escape in a similar manner.

"The other two ran back into the `funnel,' but only to come out again just in time to receive a shot each from the reloaded gun, which brought both of them tumbling from the tree. We succeeded in bagging the whole family; and thus finished what Abe declared to be the greatest `'c.o.o.n-chase on de record.'

"As it was by this time far in the night, we gathered up our game, and took the `back track to hum.'"

CHAPTER FOURTEEN.

WILD HOGS OF THE WOODS.

Next day while threading our way through a patch of oak forest--the ground covered thickly with fallen leaves--we were startled by a peculiar noise in front of us. It was a kind of bellows-like snort, exactly like that made by the domestic swine when suddenly affrighted.

Some of the party cried out "bear," and of course this announcement threw us all into a high state of excitement. Even the buffalo itself would be but secondary game, when a bear was upon the ground.

The "snuff" of the bear has a very considerable resemblance to that of terrified hogs, and even our guides were deceived. They thought it might be "bar" we had heard.

It proved we were all wrong. No wonder we fancied the noise resembled that made by hogs. The animal that uttered it was nothing else than a wild boar.

"What!" you will exclaim, "a wild boar in the forests of Missouri? Oh!

a peccary I suppose."

No, not a peccary; for these creatures do not range so far north as the lat.i.tude of Missouri--not a wild boar, neither, if you restrict the meaning of the phrase to the true indigenous animal of that kind. For all that, it was a wild boar, or rather a boar _ran wild_. Wild enough and savage too it appeared, although we had only a glimpse of its s.h.a.ggy form as it dashed into the thicket with a loud grunt. Half a dozen shots followed it. No doubt it was tickled with some of the "leaden hail" from the double-barrelled guns, but it contrived to escape, leaving us only the incident as a subject for conversation.

Throughout the backwoods there are large numbers of half-wild hogs, but they are usually the denizens of woods that are inclosed by a rail-fence, and therefore private property. One part of the year they are tamer, when a scarcity of food renders it necessary for them to approach the owner's house, and eat the corn placed for them in a well-known spot. At this season they answer to a call somewhat similar to the "milk oh!" of the London dairyman, but loud enough to be heard a mile or more through the woods. A traveller pa.s.sing through the backwoods' settlements will often hear this singular call sounding afar off in the stillness of the evening.

These hogs pick up most of their subsistence in the forest. The "mast"

of the beech-tree, the nut of the hickory, the fruit of the Chinquapin oak, the acorn, and many other seeds and berries, furnish them with food. Many roots besides, and gra.s.ses, contribute to sustain them, and they make an occasional meal off a snake whenever they can get hold of one. Indeed it may be safely a.s.serted, that no other cause has contributed so much to the destruction of these reptiles, as the introduction of the domestic hog into the forests of America. Wherever a tract of woods has been used as the "run" of a drove of hogs, serpents of every kind become exceedingly scarce, and you may hunt through such a tract for weeks without seeing one. The hog seems to have the strongest antipathy to the snake tribe; without the least fear of them. When one of the latter is discovered by a hog, and no crevice in the rocks, or hollow log, offers it a shelter, its destruction is inevitable. The hog rushes to the spot, and, bounding forward, crushes the reptile under his hoof's. Should the first attempt not succeed, and the serpent glide away, the hog nimbly follows, and repeats his efforts until the victim lies helpless. The victor then goes to work with his powerful jaws, and quietly devours the prey.

The fondness of the hog for this species of food proves that in a state of nature it is partially a carnivorous animal. The peccary, which is the true representative of the wild hog in America--has the very same habit, and is well-known to be one of the most fatal enemies of the serpent tribe to be found among American animals.

The hog shows no fear of the snake. His thick hide seems to protect him. The "skin" of the rattle-snake or the "hiss" of the deadly "moccasin," are alike unheeded by him. He kills them as easily as he does the innocent "chicken snake" or the black constrictor. The latter often escapes from its dreaded enemy by taking to a bush or tree; but the rattle-snake and the moccasin are not tree-climbers, and either hide themselves in the herbage and dead leaves, or retreat to their holes.

It is not true that the hog cats the body of the snake he has killed, leaving the head untouched, and thus avoiding the poisoned fangs. He devours the whole of the creature, head and all. The venom of the snake, like the "curari" poison of the South-American Indians, is only effective when coming in contact with the blood. Taken internally its effects are innoxious--indeed there are those who believe it to be beneficial, and the curari is often swallowed as a medicine.

Most of this information about the half-wild hogs of the backwoods was given by our Kentucky comrade, who himself was the proprietor of many hundreds of them. An annual hog-hunt was part of the routine of his life. It was undertaken not merely for the sport of the thing--though that was by no means to be despised--and the season of the hog-hunting is looked forward to with pleasant antic.i.p.ation by the domestics of the plantation, as well as a few select friends or neighbours who are invited to partic.i.p.ate in it.

When the time arrives, the proprietor, with his pack of hounds, and accompanied by a party mounted and armed with rifles, enters the large tract of woodland--perhaps miles in extent, and in many places covered with cane-brakes, and almost impenetrable thickets of undergrowth. To such places the hogs fly for shelter, but the dogs can penetrate wherever hogs can go; and of course the latter are soon driven out, and forced into the more open ground, where the mounted men are waiting to receive them with a volley of bullets. Sometimes a keen pursuit follows, and the dogs in full cry are carried across the country, over huge logs, and through thickets and ravines, followed by the hors.e.m.e.n-- just as if an old fox was the game pursued.

A large waggon with drivers and attendants follows the chase, and in this the killed are deposited, to be "hauled" home when the hunt is over.

This, however, often continues for several days, until all, or at least all the larger hogs, are collected and brought home, and then the sport terminates. The produce of the hunt sometimes amounts to hundreds-- according to the wealth of the proprietor. Of course a scene of slaughtering and bacon-curing follows. A part of the bacon furnishes the "smoke-house" for home consumption during the winter; while the larger part finds its way to the great pork-market of Cincinnati.

The Kentuckian related to us a curious incident ill.u.s.trating the instinct of the swinish quadruped; but which to his mind, as well as to ours, seemed more like a proof of a rational principle possessed by the animal. The incident he had himself been witness to, and in his own woodlands. He related it thus:--

"I had strayed into the woods in search of a wild turkey with nothing but my shot-gun, and having tramped about a good bit, I sat down upon a log to rest myself. I had not been seated live minutes when I heard a rustling among the dead leaves in front of me. I thought it might be deer, and raised my gun; but I was greatly disappointed on seeing some half dozen of my own hogs make their appearance, rooting as they went along.

"I paid no more heed to them at the time; but a few minutes after, my attention was again drawn to them, by seeing them make a sudden rush across a piece of open ground, as if they were in pursuit of something.

"Sure enough they were. Just before their snouts, I espied the long s.h.i.+ning body of a black snake doing its best to get out of their way.

In this it succeeded, for the next moment I saw it twisting itself up a pawpaw sapling, until it had reached the top branches, where it remained looking down at its pursuers.

"The snake may have fancied itself secure at the moment, and so thought I, at least so far as the hogs were concerned. I had made up my mind to be its destroyer myself, and was just about to sprinkle it with shot, when a movement on the part of one of the hogs caused me to hold back and remain quiet. I need not tell you I was considerably astonished to see the foremost of these animals seize the sapling in its jaws and jerk it about in a determined manner, as if with the intention of shaking off the snake! Of course it did not succeed in this, for the latter was wound around the branches, and it would have been as easy to have shaken off the bark.

"As you all know, gentlemen, the pawpaw--not the pawpaw (_Carica papaya_), but a small tree of the _anonas_ or custard apple tribe, common in the woods of western America--is one of the softest and most brittle of our trees, and the hog seemed to have discovered this, for he suddenly changed his tactics, and instead of shaking at the sapling, commenced grinding it between his powerful jaws. The others a.s.sisted him, and the tree fell in a few seconds. As soon as the top branches touched the ground, the whole drove dashed forward at the snake; and in less than the time I take in telling it, the creature was crushed and devoured."

After hearing the singular tale, our conversation now returned to the hog we had just "jumped." All agreed that it must be some stray from the plantations that had wandered thus far from the haunts of men, for there was no settlement within twenty miles of where we then were.

Our trapper guides stated that wild hogs are frequently found in remote parts, and that many of them are not "strays," but have been "littered"

and brought up in the forest. These are as shy and difficult to approach as deer, or any other hunted animals. They are generally of a small breed, and it is supposed that they are identical with the species found throughout Mexico, and introduced by the Spaniards.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN.