Southern sentinel. [volume] (Plaquemine, Parish of Iberville [La.]) 1848-1858, 1857-11-28
a Rear nunt and q Fire HUNT.

IN
Our particularly cheerful and good natuFed
felIow-citizen, about this time-the lately
elected Auditor, E. w. ROBERTSON, Esq.-has
lust come in from a Bear Hunt on the Maran'
gouin, in company with his brother MIR. c. D.
ROBERTSON, and others. With q slight excep~
ton, he informs US that he spent a very delights
ful time of it-the weather being delightful and
the company having bagged three BEARS
The slight exception" however, liked to have
proved a serious affair, not only to the stops
ping of the Bear Hunt for that time, but for all
time to come. 1t was this
One Of the party, rather green with regard
to sylvan matters, (the party at the time being
in the midst of a dense canesbreak of several
miles square, thought, while lighting his segar
| with a match, that he would touch the dried
leaves of the cane. "to see how nice it would
burn" Of course, it was almost like touching
powder an immense and instantaneous flame
at once burst forth, and the breese catching it,
it spread aud sped off in the direction Of the
other hunters, gathering force and flame as it
went. They smeit the smoke and heard the
cracking of the cane, and simultaneously they
shouted, "the caneebreak's on FIRE y and know
ing the danger (for a cane~break on fire speeds,
with the swiftness of a prairie on fire. felt all
the horrors of their situation.
Quick as thought, the hunters started on
the trace for life I" But think of running
through a thick canesbreak /! There was a
bayou some three miles off; their only chance
of life was to reach it before the fire did, or
else run the risk Of setting the cane on fire
ahead, and thus destroy the food of the flames.
They made but slow progress, and while de-
batting the means of escape as they pressed
through the inhospitabie cane, the fire was eV-
identity gaining upon them, To make the
matter worse, one of the hunters, who was
rather oyerburdened with corpulency, found
that he couldn't get through like the others,
and |gallantry forbid them to leave him behind.
This was a yexatious hindrance that much inns
peded their progress.
BY and bye, however, the forked flames
began to show themse yes among the tree tops
at about a good squirrel shot in the rear. 1t
was devil take the hindmost, now!" The PEI
Rod where politeness or thought for others
stops, had arrived, when 'evefy man for him>
self and God for all" was the feeling among
the soJlest. The fat hunter, putting like a
porpoise. begged R. not to leave him that he
didn't hink-the-fre-would-ca them-hoo!
90! oo!' But the Auditor split it! Fire was
too near his coat-tail to be eeremonious and
on either side of him the cane was opened
by his strong arm with more grace and effect
than when he used it on the stump. The State
House was in his minds eye; what cared he
if a voter or two persisted now that the cleo
ton was over and he first on the ticket! He
was also ahead in the ane-break!
The smoke became bIacker-the popping
of the cane became Iouder-the flames arched
high over the tree tops. Charley, in the des-
peration of the moment, was about taking to
a tree! Another, who had all along kept up
his spirits pretty well, suddenly got stiled
with the smoke-lost his reason and his sight
fell over a log, and followed with all his
might, "Fire FIRE! where in the HIS the en-
gines!" But just at this moment the joyful
cry was Heard that a wide road was reached.
Having then a clear track, the party soon got
out Of danger, when a bottle Of old rye soon
quieted the beating of their hearts.
The Auditor declares it was the only time
he came near "loosing his wind since the
commencement Of the late canvass, He'll not
bear hunt it again, soon.