The Saline County journal. [volume] (Salina, Kan.) 1871-1893, 1888-06-07
FIGHTING A WILD HOG.
An Exciting Adventure in a New
York Forest.
Desperate Encounter with an Infatuated
AnImai-ThouEh BadIy Wounded
the Beast Nearly Kills
Two Men.

There are still dense tracts Of forest
in Sullivan County. n. Y, lying less
than one hundred miles from New
York City itself. where the black bear
and other animals which long ago dis
appeared from regions that were set
tied years after Sullivan County woods
began to fall before the axe. are still
as numerous rs they were when the
first settlers took up land in the coun-
" a century and half ago. With
such surroundings there naturally sN-
lists In those wild localities race Of
sturdy hunters and traPpers. descend
ants of the pioneers. and the seeker
after material for exciting and thrill
ing stories Of adventure need go no
further than to one Of the many back
woods hamletS where these rude but
hospitahle people make il their home.
A striking figure among one particu-
lar settlement Of this kind was Peter
Stewart. who had spent the most Of
a long life in the woods but who
was an important man among his
people. having twice represented them
in the New York Legislature. and Oc-
cupisd many local Offices of trust.
During his life in the woods il once fell
10 his lot To be a participant in hunt
ing adventure. the like of which but
few. II any hunters ever experienced,
on this continent at least. Old Mr.
Stewart related to me once this thrill
ing incident connected with that hunt
They will make a lively chapter in the
literature of adventure.
The extensive beech woods Of Sulli-
van county were Of great Importance
20 the early settlers before they had
cleared up farms and fields under oul-
tiVation to raise corn sufficient for
feeding the large number Of swine
they were obliged keep. Pork being
the chief article Of baekwoOds diet.
they fattened their hogs on beech-nuts
for several years The nuts made
pork that WAS soft and greasy, but It
was pork. aud the food cost nothing.
The beeOh-nuts we're scarce some years
and in others they wsrs unusully
plenty. The greatest beech-nut year
ever known was 1920
"The nuts were so thick on the
trees" said Peter Stewart in giving
this "reminiscences. "that there was
barely room for the leaves. When
they dropped in the fall they covered
the ground two inches deep. That
autumn a man who lived along the
EeVersink river was struck with the
idea Of turning = drove of hogs into
the woods and fattening them for mar
ket. u was calculated that 3 hog that
was turned into the beech 10 fatten
would increase in value FIVE dollars by
the time il was taken out This spec
ulator argued that he could. therefore,
make FIVE thousand dollars by feeding
one thousand hogs on beecb-nuts until
they were fat enough TO sell He
bought all the hogs he could find in the
neighborhood and turned them into
the beech all marked with his brand
A few days before the time he intended
TO collect his herd there came sudden
cold snap with heavy snow-stOrm-
The storm lasted for two days aud
when the hog owner went 20 the woods
b. found his hogs scattered about in
heaps dead They had collected to-
gether during the storm TO keep warm.
in groups Of fifty or more, and most Of
them were trampled or smothered 10
death. Out Of his one Thousand head
Of swine the speculator did not have
more than one hundred left The dead
ones were shipped away for soap
grease
"In 1873 Sam Rarbee and myself
were hunting bears IN ROcklaad
bsssh We 80 Kidd thEes bssn Aaa