The National tribune., 1890-10-16

~ and cats are innumer-
able. The cats, of every variety, from Maltese
to tortoiseshel, are exceedingly fierce, while
tho dogs are mongrel, ferOCious, and hunt other
animals in packs for a living Their original
progenitors were tame specimens brought over
in ships. So it Is with the wild cattle that roam
our mountains and forests. good many
years ago an enterprising man shipped 70 the
Islands from San Francisco bull and two COWS,
two or three calves six sheep and three or
fOnr goats. Some of their descendants escaped
into the comparatively uninhabted interior of
Hawaii, Oahu, and others of the group, and
now we have myriads of wild bulls and cows,
sheep and goats travelling about on their own
hook and affording game for the sportsman's 8
rife"
:" DO you have any wild pigs2" the Hawaiian
was asked.
Thousands and thousands of them, and 10
Is great fun hunting them, because the boars
are exceedingly dangerous. Their lower tuBks
arc perhaps eight or nine inches long and
curved, and the upper tusks, curling about the
lower one in peculiar way, keep the lower
tusks by mere friction sharpened to such an
edge for about three inches from the point that
they cut like razors literally, and would rip
your flesh easily They will not attack one if
let alone, but when wounded they are demons.
] remember very we'll little experience l had
about two years ago, while hunting wild cattle
| on the great interior plateau Of Hawaii. We
had killed seven cows and bulls, the party of
US, had cut them in quarters and hung them
up on trees, so that they might be- sent for
subsequently, and were just sitting down to
some newy-cut slices of portoFhouse steak
when we heard n rustlng in the bush and one
of my companions sang out:
Jim there's n pig Give him shot.
quick, as no passes
picked up my gun aud, seeing the beast
in timo IA he tore by, let fly at him and
knocked him over. Surprising from its size
that 1t was SOW, dropped my rifle and sprang
forward 10 secure the game. When i reached
it the young boar--fOr such it was-had re-
gained It's feet and made for me, with tusks
displayed / had just time to make a frantic
leap In the air as it passed beneath my feet,
upon which it turned and made another rush,
0bliging me TO Jump again for safety. This 1t
kept up for some time. making dash after dash,
whilo | leapod and leaped the other fellows
simply lying back and almost splitting their
sides with laughter instead Of helping mo.
Finally picked up a big stone, and as the boar
rushed at me viciously for the 10th time, / let
him have it in the head. That stunned him,
aud had no trouble III finishing him OF"
" How did the pigs get to the islands2"
That nobody knows. They were there
when Capt. Cook discovered the Hawaiian
group. But the suppostion Is that thoy came
across, like the human population, from South
Fastcin ASIA 1ou see, the lslaJlus are hiereiy
humps projecting out of the water and belong
ing to great volcanic chain extending. mostly
under water, from Asia. At one time there
must have been other islands or humps out Of
water along the line between the present group
and the Asiatic Archipelagoes, and from one to
another animals. human aud otherwise. made
their way. Since then. however, these inter
mediate islands have been undermined by vol
canic fires aud have disappeared 1t was in
this way that only few years ago, incidentally
TO the great Krakatoa eruption, large part Of
Java vanished from view. | was going to say
that tho wild bulls Of the Hawaiian Islands are
most dangerous creatures 10 chase. IL one Of
them be wounded you must kill him. for from
that time forth he is looking for gore. aud will,
If left alive, attack every human being within
reach"