The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1893-08-09
INDIAN PIG STICKING.
ONE MAN WHO SAYS 1T IS THE
FINEST SPORT IN THE WORLD.

Countries-Plenty of Danger.
As an ardent pig sticker may be for
given for advancing the opinion that it
Is the finest sport in the world. BY "pig
sticking" Of course mean pig sticking
as 1t is practiced in India and in north
ern Africa and perhaps In some other
English colonies-viz, riding down the
pig on horseback and dispatching him
with spears.
The Indian wild pig varies naturally
according to his home. The biggest ]
have ever seen were in the Vindhya
mountains, where used to shoot them
as food for my beaters. Sometimes they
were OF vast size, bigger, think, than
even their Ganges cousins.
A popularity of the wild pig Is the
straightness of his tail as compared with
the curled appendage of his domestic
brother. From the top of his low fore
head to the end Of his snout is almost a
perfectly straight line, and he has a far
longer snout and jaw than the English
market pig. His skin is a kind OF
blush gray and his bristles gray OF
black, though sometimes an almost
brown pig Is found. The wild pig will
never live far from water. He is hap
pieet in the long grass, often 10 feet high,
that grows along the banks of the big
Indian rivers, and above all rejoices in
'jao," kind of evergreen brushwood
that is as common as the grass. He only
eats at night, and about 10 p. m. he sal.
lies forth from cover and will go many
miles to find the succulent sugar cane OF
other luxury returning as rule about
an hour before the first streaks of dawn.
Pig sticking begins usually about
Christmas week, when the giant vegeta.
ton of the rains has died down sufficient.
ly to get at piggy, and the marshy
ground where he lives is firm enough fol-
horses, but it is not till the end of Feb.
ruary that really good pig sticking be,
gins, and it improves as the weather gets
dryer and hotter till the June rains come
and pig sticking instantly ceases.
AT about @ a. M, after a light break
fast, the sportsmen set out-usually "
"tumtums"-to tho meet, having sen,
their spears and horses on ahead owe,
night, together with the all important
mess tiffin basket, In which huge bloch
OF ice and innumerable soda water bot
ties and beer bottles figure largely. Il
is rare to gather together more than 1.
men. 1t may have been different IL
olden times, but polo is O formidable
rival to pig sticking nowadays, and tht
ordinary British subaltern can rarely af
ford time and money for both. Indeed
from my own experience, 1 should ga,
the average field was not above five, ant
personally, 1 much prefer, except from
the social point Of view, very few com
panions.
The officer in command divides the
party, if large enough, into little section.
of three, and each section separates from
the other and keeps together all day
either at one end of the line or in The
middle. The coolies are usually abou,
90 in number and form line, COVERING
about 200 yards Of ground. Each i,
armed, or should be, with a big stick
and the end men carry flags, which car
be seen above the long grass and helptc
keep the coolies in line. Behind then
marches on each wing one of the shl
kari's satellites, and in tho center is the
shikari himself on horseback, and these
officers, like sergeants, keep the line
l
more forcible than polite, the apathetiC
coolies to strenuous exertions, The
| sportsmen generally ride q few wards il
advance of the line, unless, from the ma
ture Of tho covert, the pig is likely te
break back.
A pig lies usually in q kind of form
like hare and will sometimes let 1
man or horse almost tread on him be
fore moving, and being often covered
with mud or dust is very difficult 10 SC
in tho grass and weeds. When, how
ever, he does jump up, he slips along n
an incredible speed for the FIRST 80 or A
yards and then octtles down to n yor,
fast gallop. l have known bears at one,
on being put up make straight for tht
first man or horse they sec before the,
have been wounded or touched, and, a,
all know, the tusk of the wild boar cut,
like razor, though luckily tho wount
is usually healthy, clean cut-yery diff
ferent from mauling by the fetid claw
of tiger or leopard or the thrust of ,
stGgs horn.
Wherever pig gets up one of tn,
sections go after it, and there are various
little rules as to how the pig should b,
attacked and in what order. The mos
important rule is never to drop you
spear, still less throw it ut the pig, n
some beginners have been known to do
Spears are weighted with lead at TIN
handle, and when dropped from the hant
in the long grass, the sharp end, bein,
the lighter, naturally sticks up, 80 tina
the next horseman or beaten may b
Nv11tpHa1 I fE1,ptr- 20 n
cidents that have happened in this way,
The man who first draws blood get
'the first spear" and is entitled to tn
carcass. The body is given to the coolie
to eat, and the head is taken home by tn
triumphant sportsman to adorn his bun
galow hall, or the tushes are taken on
and made into some knickknack. o
course he is In honor bound to he'll,
fairly kill as well as prick his foe, but
is the second horscmnn, riding perhap
four lengths behind him, who has til
most dangerous part to play. A ri,
when wounded rarely pursues his for
mer course, and the leader often lose
touch with him. while his follower hn
to bear tho full brunt OF terrific charge
J 1t is fatal to receive boars charge at
walk or trot. One cannot go too fast
not straight at the pig, but at Sigh
anglo to him as he charges.
In Bombay long spear is used, am
the boar is stuck by an CUMBERLAND
thrust. In eastern Bengal a jabbin,
spear is used and is more deadly, / think
OF course 1t is unlawful to stick sows
} They cannot fight well, havingno tushen
-Bcily's Magazine.
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