The Tiffin tribune. (Tiffin, Ohio) 1868-1887, 1870-05-20

numerical strength OF the population
and the thriving condition Of its indi
yidual members, and must have real
/ lied, in sOOth, the most sanguin
a hopes Of its beneficent founder.
!, Long before We came near these III
teresting cOlonists they shifted ap
= preaching danger, as We knew b!
their snorting and grunting; for, in
ured to savage warfare, their outpost
had been on the alert, and conveyed
intelligence of our approach, when
precipitate retreat, Oh their side, wa
the immediate and simultaneous re
suit. On Onr side, small detachment
Y OF six or seven men each, were callet
out, with instructions To skirmislI
: harrass, and, if possible, surround tbs
I fugitives. At this juncture, Hill
r who led a division, and to whose com
mand 1 was assigned-recommendet
= me to keep in the rear, observing thal
though hunting wild hogs was excel
+ lent sport, il was not any the less dan
gerous to persons inexperienced II
d such adventures.
Therefore" said lac, ''keep at dis
: tance until you see chance OF using
your spear with safety To yourself"
On We went for about a mile, each
L division followed by a full compile
lmenf of dogs trained to the business
on hand, when we recOnnOitered
herd OF about five hundred on the
summit of biil, apparently in deeI
Constellation. This was the citadel
ON Which il would appear they meanl
to make final stand, and this citadel
= our men proceeded to invest with all
possible caution, and with all Our
I available force. Keeping our dogs III
the rear, we reached the base of the
I hill, and began the ascent with a
steady, stealthy pace. N0tYItlstand-
ing the cunning and vigilance or the
herd, we were within fifty PAGES OF
their sentinels before they perceived
p us. Fancy five hundred pigs, of all
sizes and both genders, taken by sur
prise, and then you can imagine the
tumultuous rush, the squealing, and
the grunting that Immediately fol-
lowed. Now was the opportunity for
the dogs. In they went, Tearing" the
Juveniles, and holding them, while
!. we DISPATCHED them with our clubs
and spears. In less than forty mln-
utcs. rs many "yOung slips" (as an
Irishman would say lay dead on the
|, sward. No one knew, indeed, where
had not Just then observed a bristly
boar of enormous size, sweeping down
the slope at about twenty yards dis
tance.
fHurrah, my lads" | shouted,
there's magnificent boar; lets have
a dash at him 90 and away ! ran at
top speed.
s'Come back 9" shouted Hill "mad-
man where are you gOing""
"Come on, come on n' ] cried, ''or
else he'll be Off" without slaekiDgmy
speed. While Hill and q few of the
natives followed me and the boar,
some more of our men had hand-to
hand conflicts with other boars for it
is the nature of these creatures to turn
and fight when one of their number
is attacked or closely pursued, al
though, if only one or any number of
the common herd is assailed, their
sense of chiyairy does not call upon
them to make the least resistance
On went the bristly beast. which,
| from his enormous size and fePOGiOus
aspect, appeared to be the great-grand-
sire of the whole herd, closely pursu-
ed 10y me, while Hill and the natives
kent eiamOring and shouting for me
10 come back. Mistaking their noise
and alarm for the excitement of the
chase, only raB the faster, and was
every yard gaining on the boar. The
animal, meanwhile, uneoaseious that
! he had been the object of particular
pursuit, kept running straight ahead
! for a considerable distance, when at
last, instinctiyely apprehending the
state of affairs, he made sudden
| - III. 70
ment and incipient rage; his long,
coarse bristles stood erect all over his
| body, and his tusks, as large as
young elephants Overslot his hOrrid
| laws. ! was now within ten yards of
! the terrible monster, and it was only
now that saw the supremely form
! idable character Of the adversary
| had the temePity to p4PsUe, and the
still greater difficulty now 20 avoid
Hissize, as have said, was prodigi- |
Gus, and for the first time I had q |
clear look at his dreadful tuskS. He l
was standing with his side toward
me, and watching, with that peculiar |
cunning and ferOcity characteristic of
the species when enraged. / paused, |
but only for an instant, for, though |
struck with wonder and astonish- |
strength exhibited in the animals |
structure as at his strangely savage
appearance, il was no time for Ie6ee-
ton, far less for indeeision; ! must /
prepare for attack or defense, perhaps
both, for to retreat might tempt pur-
suit on the part of my adversary, and
this would be unpleasant, perhaps
dangerous, and certainly degrading to
a sprig of chivalry like myself, i'm
patient for some dashing adventure.
Scarcely had these thoughts crossed
my mind, when the boar, furious and
impatient for attack, turned sharply
round, and rushed at me Open-mouth-
ed. ] retreated little. for TO attck
him single-handed, with O Samoan
spear, would be sheer madness. Hill
and the natives, who were now very
close at hand, called out "tO take TO
the nearest tree" This | immedi-
ately did, and, fortunately, it was a
large one.
dodge him now" cried Hill, ''and
keep a sharp lookout, while we try
and divert his attention"
l did so, and kept cautiously going
around the tree, closely pursued by
my enemy, who kept dashing his
tusks against the tree in a perfect
rage, shiVeri1g tho bark in pieces.
In vain did they try TO set on the
dogs ours only yelped and barked,
but did not dare to ''gO in After ]
much urging and great deal of ;
swearing, two of the better bred VEN
tnred forward, but only to be instant
ly mangled. One of them he struck {
on the ribs with his tusks, and tore ;
out his. entrails; the other, Inc crush ]
ed to death under his feet.
From this incident, together with
Hills anxiety, and the absolute ter 5
rOr exhibited 10y tho natives, per- ;
ceived the mortal peril in which my {
absurd love of adventure had placed {
me. Hill and the others threw their {
spears, in the hope of WOunding him, {
or at any rate diverting his attention,
but the fragile weapons glanced Off
his bristly hide as though he were 4
In fact, the furious mon t
ster did not notice them at all. now I
saw plainly enough that my safety {
must entirely depend upon my own '
and that my rescue, if at {
all possible, must be achieved by my \
self alone. Therefore, reversing our {
positions, ] became the pursueT, in
stead of the pursued, and this ! ac- t
eOmplished by running rapidly round 5
the tree, and coming within two feet Z
of my enemy's rear, Istruek him c
with my spear in the flank, and
quickly recovered my position at the 1
tree. The boar turned sharply and I
round, but, expecting such a '
j also took the opposite j
direction to that in which had been e
pursuing him. c
"Bravely and cleverly donew shout a
ed Hill, jOyolIsly. ~ Be cool, my dear r
fellOw-be cool, and you'll vet kill Il
hims feat which no man on this I
island has ever done, single-handed. e
He blOeds profusely; be quick and a
cautious, but do not speak for your b
voice will only madden him, by indi- v
eating your proximity. Give him Y
time to bleed rs much as possible be- h
fore you make second attempt" ! 10
Tliis was cheering, and I felt doubly !,
courageous, and much more conf I
lent. Before, it was the imperative d
necessity of making some attempt to b
save my life, which prompted the c