Carroll free press. [volume] (Carrollton [Ohio]) 1834-1861, 1842-01-28
Sports of the EaOWntaiAccTs

Sports Of thc EaOWntal&accTs +.
The Allegheny range of Mountains
in Virginia and Pennsylvania, afford
decidedly the best huIing grounds With
in the limits Of the old Thirteen States.
Bear, Deer, and Turkey are still found
in abundance in the Gades, Thickets,
and Businesses Of these wild and stupen.
dous mountains. The race of proles,
siona hunters, it is true, IS fast passing
away; and the semi.savage mode OF
life which once characterized the thlnly.
settled regions TO which we have refer
red, is now partially abaUdonod But
there gre still hundreds Of mountaneers
who rely upon The riAo and not upon The
plough, for both pleasure and susie
nance. The life Of the hunter, is full oil
keen excitement, stirring incidents and
even rapture. lie would not yield the
pleasures Of his lofty, free home on the
frosty heights Of the Allegheny, for all
the refined and fashionable enjoymento
of the Metropolis. That the profess
sionaI hunter enjoys more unaIIoyed
happiness than the Statesman or Cour-
tier, ofiice-holder or otFice.seoker, there
cannot ba doubt. No wonder then
that he should adhere 10 the natural
pursuits which gave charm to his life
in boyhood, and which impart spirit and
animation TO his declining years.
On The head waters of Cheat river, in
Preston county, Va, there are few
specimens Of the real hunter row Ilv-
ing. or two Of these we know some
thing. They have growOsgrey in the
sports of the mountains; and, having
families around then, they have dis.
irbuted among their boys their old trus
" rifles, and now rarely engage in q
hunting excursion. The witd spirit,
however, now and then stirs within;
and they may occasionally be seen, with
all the apparent ardOr Of youth, tread
ing with stealthy step over the snow,
clad hills, OF creeping cautiously through
the Laurel thlckets, in pursuit OF their
faVorite game.
Little more than a year ago, these
old hunters, being neighbors, entered
into a partnership in the business OI
Bear trapping, The. bear like the hog
soaces himself al certain seasons by
wallowing; and the place which he go
Iects for this purpose, is known by hun
ters as "Bcdr UallO,U." Not far from
the home Of our Preston county friends
there was one Of these "wallows" which
was much resorted to; aud near this
swallow" the hunters built their bear
pens, or traps We need not describe
bear pen or trap for the benefit o.
old hunters-they understand The gdmt
much better than we do. 1t will ans
wer our purpose briefly to state, that 6
bear pen is constructed by laying length
wise in the ground two logs, usually
about ten feet long and placing then
permanently four feet apart. The up
per side Of each log is l1atlened TO fe
ceive the floor, which consists OF slabs
roughly rived out and closely pinned
down upon the logs, Upon this floor
the trap or pen is erected. A single
row or tier logs, split in two, is laid
firmly on the floor, and these are again
covered with slabs, forming the ;oP oI
the pen--one end Of which is made tc
raise up, after the fashion Of common
domestic rat trap, by lever or spring
connected with the front of the trap anC
tree, uear by which the bear pen i,
always erected. From the end Of the
pen next TO the tree pole is let into
the trap, and to tba, the apparatus he
Cessary to form treadie, are attached
The bate is commonly a caI's or Sleeps
head.
Somewhat in this woy, our old hunt
ors constructed their pens; and wen
regularly into '6" business, they hoc
Indifferent success for a time, but e.
Aough to keep up the spirits of a hun
Ter, who is always patient and long suf
fcring. Early one morning with rifle
Il ,tn,t thni. IHaY