The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1886-03-20
Wild Hogs Beset a Wolf.

county, Ohio, was wont to tell with
great glee the story of an adventure
he once had in the Owl Greek bot
toms among wild hogs. His story
was as follows: II was out deer
hunting one day in the Owl Creed
bottoms, when all at once heard,
far away in the woods, an astonish-
ing roaring and boob bOOhin = Of
hogs. What in the thunder was up
with the critters 1 Couldn't conjec-
ture, but determined to find out.
ut WAS a wet drizzly day, and I
could get along over the leaves with
out making the slightest noise. I
scooted along from tree to tree, and
at last came to place where there
appeared to be about two acres of wild
hogs.
"Such grand gathering Of hogs
had never seen before. and have
never seen since. All had their
bristles up, and all were 'hooh-hoOh-
bOOhing' their fercest. There we're
white hogs, black hogs, sandy hogs.
spotted hogs and hogs of all sizes,
colOrs and degrees of cussetlness.
Mad? They werejust raging-fr"th-
ing at the mouth and champing
their teeth at fearful rate. A sort
of steam or fog rose out of the
wet hair of that mass of enraged
beasts that filled all the woods with
an almost overpowering smell OF mad
hogs.
"What the cause Of all this commo-
ton was i was not long in discover.
ing. Out in the midst of the great
convention of hogs stood n big oak
stump about FIVE feet high, and in
the centre Of the stump stoTi II big
gray wolf-as gaunt. hungry-looking
devil as ever saw.
He was handsomely freed hy the
hogs, and wasn't very pleasantly sit
uated, as he was beginning to find
out. All about him was n sward Of
uneasy hair, and thousands OF devi
ish eyes, frOthing mouths and gleam-
ing teeth. Poor devil! There he
stOod-his tail tucked close between
his legs, and all his feet gathered into
i the exact centre of the stuinp-and,
Lord, wasn't he a sick looking wolff
He seemed to be thinking that he
had sold h imself awful cheap.
"Close about the stump and rOarin,
up against it was crowd OF the big
gest and most unprincipled old sOws
that l ever set eyes upon. Every
half minute one of the old she devils
would rear W, get her fuEefeet on the
top of the stump, and make a savage
snap at one end or the other of the
wolf. BIER teeth ela-bing together like
the jaws of a steel trap.
| "rbe wolf would whIrl round to
watch that particular hog, when one
on the other side of the stump would
make a plunge for his tail. and so
they kept the poor, cowardly cornered
critler whirIing round and Y,Asnd.
He had all he wanted to do at haul
ing in his feet and tail, humping his
back, and in every possible way re-
ducing his average. I'll bet his en-
tire innartl5 were drawn UP into a
bunch not bigger than my FIST.
almost every instant there was
charge made upon him from some
quarter. and sometimes from thr.eOr
fur directions as the same IN IN m.
Lord, wasn't it hurryiug times with
him then!
"When the poor devil had mo-
ment in which to rest and gaze about
him, all he saw was those twp acres
of restless briStles, open mouths and
fiery eyes. His hong rel tongue hung
out of his open jaws. and as he uDtaS-
lily moved his head from si'le to side
he seemed to have about the poorest
opinion of his snnartness of any wolf
ever saw. He hal got him self in
10 - pretty pickle by tying to steal a
pig, and he knew it just ~ we'll rs if
he had been Il human tnief, aud was
ashamed of himself accordingly. No
quarter could he hope for anywhere
among those open, upturned, roaring
mouths.
"Such was the noise, charging and
rushing to and fro. that hardly felt
safe behind my tree, one hundred
yards away.
~ determined 10 try an expert
ment one hat wolf. raised my gun
add fired 1t in the air. At the report
the critler forgo, himself. He bound.
ell from the s,uR p at the crack ofmy
rifle. but he never touched the
ground. Half dozen big mouths
reached w for him, and in them he
launched. There was just one sharp
yelp, then FOR a rod around were seen
flying strips of wolf skin, innartl.,
legs and h4ir--fOr half n minute vas