The Camden journal. [volume] (Camden, S.C.) 1866-1891, 1872-10-10
My Bear Hunt with Gen. Wade
- Hampton. @es - ''o' =


~ Hampton. n:es - .o' .
EDITORS TURF, FIELD AND FARM Il Is
now more than fifteen yeats Snse Epassed
through that embarrassing, clothestearing
braiu.exciting experience 5aept, "a bea'
hunt; :" and I am frank to confess;that L ne
vcr felt anxious to go on another. Not that
I don't like tho 'bear" in the abstract ladd
but in the concrete! Isay it solemuly, give
me the chances Of shipwreck, a.lighted cigar
in powder-mill, the rattling vOlley of line
of battle, a kerosene lamp explosion any.
thing, in short, that has a reputation for be-. s
ing dangerous, in preference to 400 or 50o
pounds of wild meat that runs riot without
chart or compass, ignores all'rules OF losltl'
mate sport, and requires a flask of powders
score of rife shots, and the salient argu-
ment of Bowieknife, before you can enjoy
the satisfaction of knowing that your game
is so cminently dead as to deserve an obituary
notice. I'll tell you all about ltaas a. rest
from nv summer labors. Il determined Ito
devote couple of the autumn months. tol a
iaunt Westward. I did SO. Riaesm band!
I had spent considerable portion OF the faii
of 1856 on the prairies i had shsbhbbbeu
with Indians until could give a: comancbe
war-hoop like native; drank, "bair-triggerS
liquid lightning with the trappes until they
agreed was entitled to 7ote, and shot buffalo
from my mustang until it seemed like mur.
der to kill any more In fact l was tired OF
the sport, and had reachedsSk Paul on my
Journey East, when who should unexpectedly
turn up but my old friend, jim Kayanagh
for years afterwards delegate and member
of Congress from the new Western Terrific;
ries and States-a born pioneer The meet
ing was mutually cordial, and after exehangt
ing the usual salutatory compliments, our
conversation ended in my agreeing to ac;
company him on an expedition down the
Mississippi on the following day. lie was
going to look after some land along thurEer;
knew all the planters worth knowing'' tand
could promise me an amount Of pleasure that
would make me feel as, happy as Adam and
Eve before they knew anything about orlgl-
nal sin, soho said. This@Was certainly a
change, and it suited me. H. ,,,
Past st. Louis, past Memphis, past all the
pretty islands that wave doubtless ONCE been
ina state dissolution; past great bends and
bluffs, against which the Father of Waters
had written thewrinkles ofhis age; past
great plantations where thousands of acres,
fecked with the snow of Southern summer,
foretold the wealth that would, inGas few ~
months, pour into the Golfers of the success
notton at laat =
Helena, ARK. This was my friends desti3
nation-a quiet, inconsiderable frontier town
Mt that time, where boats wooded up and
merchants landed supplies. Our traps had
not been at the hetcl more than An Appr,
when who should make his appearance at
the hotel but Col. Wade Hampton-iike
ourselves, temporary ,sojourner, he having
come up for the aonce;on an crrand from r 4, ms
plantation several miles below. >" 70 describe
the man IS scarcely necessary,sf for ne has ap-
pearcd in the character of the leader,of q thc
Confederate cavalry in the late ulclFil war.
have made his person familiar to almost r
every reader of every newspaper in the eoun-
try At that time, however, he was the
plain Southern planter, perfect type OF
his class, and never a better exempliiica.lou
of their hospitable characteristics than when
finding us to be gentlemen OF some culture,
(?) he pressed US to accompany him on his
return homcward and partake ofsuch pleas
ures Us his place afforded. I remember that,
among other things he proposed "a bear
hunt" andI, fool.like, jumped at the idea
like school hoy. But | won spiticpate
Have YOU ever been on Southern plan
tation in old times, before the decree Yas
promulgated as part of our modern. decla-
ration of independence, that white matl
was as good as niger, and ,witnes ed tl!c
working of the vast social machine? II not,
let me tell you the story in a few words. - =
Here are $50 slaves, the property Of one
person. We land from the steamboat soon
after they have finished their respective
tasks for the day, and os we pass through
the little village which they constitute, there is
not man, woman or child who does not come
rushing out from his cabin to bow or curtesy.
aHow 'dy, Moss Wade" with all the en-
thusiasm of unadulterated affection. The
mansion itself sets back from the!river, on
high ground, and as we approach there are
a score or more Of hunting dogs, of various
breeds, that gather from their sleeping spots
to give us welcome. The house servants,
stable boys, garden and field hands mingle
with the quadrupcds: and there is wagglng
of tolguesand q alysgging of tails that sun
mistaEably attest the earnestness of the wei
come that is accorded to "Moss' Wade and
he frcn'" Externally the house seems %
be made of piazzas and pillars. Internally
you might imagine you were in palace:
where art had brought its contributions OF
books. pictures and sculpture to make home
A nights rest on the downiest of beds; a
dawn broken by disappearance Of d body
servant with cup of hot coffee, while we
were yet on our backs, followed bya plate
of fresh oranges and figs, and we were re-
freshingly prepared to Dress A. breakfast
on game and the usual luxurics Of plantation
life, for which, by the way, an appetite had
been prepared by an old fashioned infusion
y -