Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1892-08-04
A WILD HOG TRAP.
How Two Boys Made Money to
Soc the Centennial.

Yesterday | heard one farm boy say
to another: Come and see my two
calves. I'm going TO keep them till
they're two-year-old steers, and then
sell them and go TO the Columbian expo
sition on the money. They'll bring fifty
dollars by that time"
But I've got colt thatll bring sew
enty-five by that time" rejoined his
companion, triumphantly.
Maybe" replied the first lad, COM
posedly. but tell you, Frank, there's
good deal more risk on colts than on
steers"
Their earnestness wildly recalled to
me a time, fifteen years ago, when l
was boy of sixteen, and lived in the
Arkansas "backwoods. was making
similar plans TO visit the centennial ex-
hibition OF 1876 at Philadelphia.
A young neighbor, Benton Arbuckle
by name, was equally DESTROYS of at
tending the exhibitions; but, like my
self, he was in painful doubt where the
dollars were to come from for railway
fares, for new suit OF clothes and for
other necessary matters.
Often we raised little money by
gathering pecan nuts in the woods and
selling them at the store two miles
away; but the pecan crop was light
that year, and our hopes suffered
blight with il. We knew that seventy
dollars apiece was the least possible
sum that would suffice TO transport us
to Philadelphia and return us to our
l.
less.
We studied hard TO think of some
other means Wild turkeys were get
ting scarce in the woods. Formerly a
good many had been shot and market
ed every fall. Deer, too, were far from
plenty.
After n careful canvass of the situn-
ton, Benton and / decided that our
only chance to raise money lay in the
wild hog, which were still TO be found
in considerable numbers in the river
bottoms in bur part Of the state.
These wild hogs are descended from
ordinary swine brought into the coun-
try by the earlier settlers In several
generations Of wildness they have de-
veloped the characteristics OF the wild
hogs of the old world. They run swift
ly through the brush upon the slight
est alarm, and are always difficult TO
approach.
Shooting is not the best method of
hunting wild hogs, for unless shot
through a vital part they squcal
frightfully, and often run long dis
lance, The squealing may brighten the
drove away, and cause them to desert
the locality for another tract of forest,
My companion and proposed to trap
them, and so far as possible TO conduct
n still hunt We intended to make
bacon, for which we were reasonably
sure of obtaining eight cents a pound.
We fitted up a disused log-shanty as n
smoke-house, and arranged to bring
home the carcasses on mules from our
traps.
Benton, who had more time than |,
spent several days in looking about for
good place in which 10 set trap, and
chose one upon Sugar creek. At a
point where high bank had been
washed out we set stakes and built a
strong corral eight feet high, in such n
way that the bank formed one side Of
the Enclosure, and the fence skirting
the margin Of the stream formed the
other sides.
che yard thus formed included a
space fifty or sixty feet across, which
on one side was overhung by bank
from twelve to fifteen feet In height.
The earth had been cut away by fresh
cts, so that the roots of the brushwood
above hung down in a struggling
fringe.
A trap gate was constructed TO rise
and fall between posts ON each side Of
an opening five feet wide. To spring
the gate line was attached to (which
ran across TO our hiding place on the
other side of the stream.
We did the work very quietly, for we
heard hogs moving about In the swamp.
Carefully removing all the chips, we
masked the corral and the gate with
brush, causing II to look like thicket.
For bait we had bought four bushels
Of corn on the cob This we broke into
short pieces, which we strewed on trails
leading to the trap. We also gathered
several bushels OF acorns, and these
and the corn trails were sown TO
distance Of half mile in three direc-
tions-all leading TO a generous heap Of
the provender inside.
We laid these trails very early tho
morning after the trap was completed
We were to take turns watching, day
by day. Benton undertook 20 watch
the trap the first day, and went home.
We hoped TO capture at least one hog
every day.
Before eleven o'clock that forenoon
Benton appeared az our house, very
hot and much out of breath from run
ming. lie could hardly speak, and
wasted no words