National opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1865-1874, 1871-01-13
Hunting Wolves In Russia.

Hunting Wolves In Russia.
Against these midnight marnuders,
the Russian mujik has various resources
the trap, the pitfall, the inseparable
fopor, or short axe, deadly weapon in
such hand but the programme Of n
regular "wolf hunt" in the provinces
is ALWAYS the same. At some abnormal
hour "between the night and the day."
YOU are aroused almost, as it seems, be-
fore you are we'll asleep from rough
couch in one Of the little log-huts of
some outlying village, by violent shake
OF the shoulder, and hoarse voice nd
monishing you to "get up, and look
sharp about it for there's no time to
lose" You make hasty toilet, and sal
living forth, see in front Of the hut, in
the dim light of the coming morning, u
huge dark, shapeless mass which, rs
d your eyes get used to the darkness,
assumes the form g broad, heavy
three-hnrao sledge, with very high sides,
not unlike an enormous wastfing-tub),
around which are fitting three or four
spectral figures with lanterns, the flitful
glare making their grim bearded faces
look griminer and less human than ever.
Guns ammunition, haversacks, are stow
ed away in the bottom bf the conveyance
and llast, but not leasp Young pig ;
your query respecting which elicits from
the leader of the party only the oracular
answer that eth come in hand by-and-
by - and all being now ready, the
hunters squeeze themselves into their
places, the driver shakes his reins with n
"Wo-o-oi ~ aud away we go into the
darkness. Mile after mile Of the frozen
waste goes by like dream, till at length
spectral shadows OF the forest slowly
gather round US, and the squeals Of our
unlucky pig Whose ears one of our party
is now pinehing Justify begin to be
answered by another sound, which no
one who has once heard it will easily
forget-not tho long melancholy howl
wherewith q suppcrless wolf may be
heard bemoaning himself on the out
skirts Of Moscow, almost any night in
the week, but quick snarling cry, as of
one who sees his dinner coming, and
wishes to hasten the bringer of it. And
there they come at last, the gaunt, wiry,
slouching fellows, with their bushy tails,
and fiat narrow heads, and yellow, THE
wish. murderors eyes. There is perhaps
nothing on earth more thoroughly mean
and hateful-looking, at first sight then
the genuine Russian wolf but the
rascal has certain pilturesqueness of
his own, Notwithstanding, though OF \
disagreeable kind. There is something
grand in the dogged and sinister tenacity
of its pursuit; coming on, with head
thrown forward, and sharp white fangs
unsheathed, untiringlv and unrelent-
ingly, like hunting Fate,
with his long gallop. which can tire
The hounds deep hate and hunters fre.'
But there is no leisure for moralising
now for the wolves are almost level
with our sledge and it is time to let fly
Bang The foremost of the pack rolled
over on his side, kicking convulsively
but the rest gallop on, unheeding.
Bang bang and two more fell dead,
blotting the snow around them with a
smear of dull crimson. Some of the
boldest pursuers swarm up to the sledge,
and attempt to leap over the encircling
barrier; while We hammer them with
the butt-ends of oar pieces, and chop at
their paws with hatchets. and slash them .
across the eyes with hunting knives
the two hind most of our party mean
while cracking at them over our should
ers as fast as they can load. SO for
time the running-fght goes tiercely on,
making altogethera very striking tableau.
The white skeleton tracery of the frozen
forest the long snaky line of the
pursuing pack, shadowy and spectral, as
if bodied of the mist from which it |.
emerges the whirling figures of the
foremost wolves amid the tossing spray /
of snow and curling clouds of blush
smoke the ceaseless flash Of the busy
rifles the stcaming horses, urged to
their utmost speed the driver, with his
broad sallow face all ablaze with excite
ment, shaking the relns, and hanging
forward to ply the whip; the huge,
cumbrous sledge, rocking and reeling
over the snow with its freight of strug-
Cling forms-all this, seen in the dim,
light of the early dawn, has. a
weird and ehostly Appearance, sugges-
tive of an attack of goblin highwaymen
upon one of those phantom mail-coaches
in which the bagman's uncle made that
journey which so much
Mr.. Pickwick. But the pace
is too stiff to last" as our leader observes
with knowing grin. A run of full :
speed through half-frozen snow tries the s
feet of even full grown wolf too severely .
10 be continued beyond a certain time
and in the face of stout resistance, the {
beasts inherent cowardice is sure to
come to the surface sooner or later.
Already three or four gaunt, shaggy
haired veterans, who had probably made {
a good supper overnight, begin to hang {
back, as if doubling the wisdom of risk
ing their lives for n Hypothetical break '
fast the speed of the rest slackens by '
degrees and at length the whole pack !
drop off, as if by tacit agreement, leav-
ing us to pass our way unmolested. As {
we emerge again into the open plain, {
p ross which the first beams Of the rising :
sun are just beginning to fan, we see the '
last of our grim followers sinking away {
like belated spectre into the ghostly {
shadows of the forest that we have quit ,
ted.
WANTED TO Try HIS LUCK.-A man
having mari d a woman who had already
had four b 3bands wrs asked why he
became the tift1. He =" ! am of an
adventurous disposit N, and having .
heard that her first husband ran away,
that the second hung himself, the third ,
shot himself, and the fourth drowned ,
himself, wanted to try my luck, and sec
l-.a Of mo o,l H.,