Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-09-07

In winter they often come out into the roads
and are shot or caught in somebody's door
yard 1 heard an old miller relate, with most
ludicrous pan.omime, how he had seized q
buck by the horns and held his head down by
main strength, while it kicked about rods
backward the neighbor who incautiously ap-
preached from the rear; but the old man Che
was young and sinewy them hung on and
twisted the deer's head in spite of its struggles
until his wife could come with butchers
knife and cut the poor creatures throat.
Ii was formerly the practice to run deer with
dogs and every countryman kept hounds, but
II was seen not only that this was running sport
but caused disturbance Of the cattle grazing
upon the hill pastures and prevented the keep
ing of sheep. 1t is now against the law to hunt
deer with hounds and they have not only null
tipEed but have fled into these protected noun
tains from other states. Killing them by any
means is unlawful, except from September Is
to December Is, except upon premises set
apart for the protection and propagation of
game within the boundaries thereof" This
clause means. principally, the tract on Cheat
river, owned by an association of sportsmen in
and out of the state, which has probably the
best hunting and fishing preserve on the Allan
tic slope. Prominent in this association are
members Of the South Fork club, the breaking
OF whose dam caused the disaster in the Cone
maugh valley.
BEAR HUNTING.
Bears have always been plenty in these
mountains. There is a story extant of pioneer
who killed thirteen one morning near the
White Sulphur. This shows that thirteen is an
unlucky number for bears. That would be
good days work at present, but the man who
goes hunting for bears anywhere in the eastern
part Of the state can find them if he knows his
business.
Both bear hunter and deer stalker are very
likely to encounter wild cats or lynxes now and
then, and more rarely panther, a painter"
as the southern backwoodsmen call them. The
former, known by the descriptive name Of
bob cat and ''catamount' (really cat-of-the-
mountain). visit the fowl yard now and then,
and when hard pressed may seize lamb, but
for the most part they subsist upon ''squeeruls,
rabbits, chipmunks and sich-like insecks," as
an old citizen informed me.
WOLVES AND PANTHERs.
The panther, however, is a constant menace
to the sheep fold and to the calves Of the hill
pastured cattle, while great number of deer
are destroyed by it every year, and most wan
tonly SO, for the brute often does no more than
to suck draft Of blood and then go in search
of another victim.
Wolves were able to breed so plentifully dur
ing and following the war in forested and
thinly-settled mountain counties that they
presently became a terror to travellers in winter
and did immense damage to live stock. Some
times bands would make long forays from their
native haunts and they almost put an end to
sheep raising in the very districts best adapted
to it Now a bounty is paid for their scalps
and wolves are diminishing.
Foxes are still numerous, principally the in
roduced red one; but many native gray foxes
still remain. They are hunted in winter with
dogs. Coons and 'possums furnish local sport
and squirrels, hares and the like are always
present.