The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1893-07-28
PIG-STICKING IN INDIA.
ONE VINO HAS TRIED 1T SAYS IT II
r8EFryEsrsP0RTIS the WORLD.
Hard to SAY whether the Wild Boar OF
the Tiger IL tho King of
the Jungle.

iish coionie5-yiz.. riding down She pig
on horseback and despatching him with
spears.
I believe that there are many different
METHODS OF hog hunting on the continent
| once took an Austrian nobleman out
after pig IN India, and he told me that
in his country they hunted with boar
hounds, and the sportsman who first
caught the hog by the hind legs was sup
posed to have taken hrst SPEAR" and
not the one who first drew blood; and
am under the impression ne told me that
the sportsmen were not mounted | can
only say that the Austrian pigs must be
Of a very different breed TO those in
India. for the man who attempted TO
catch the Indian wild boar by the hind
legs would have an uncOmmonly bad time
of 1t. even IL his quarry were in articulo
mortis.
The Indian wild pig varies naturally
according 10 his home. The biggest l
have ever seen were in the Nindhya
Mountains where ! used to shoot them
as food for my heaters; sometimes they
were of vast size-bgger, ! think, than
even their Gauges cousins. | always inn
agine that the Ganges pig is so heavy
and 50 fierce through his obtaining flesh
10 eat on the banks OF the river That
they do prey on the pious dead Hindoos
IS l believe, undoubted; ana II is Gu
rious reflection that the nation OF all
others that loathes and despises swine
should in many cases actually form their
food. though. doubtless, the crocodiles
have the first chance at their only half
cremated remains
A REGULARITY 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 10 the end Of his sno1t Is almost
perfectly straight line. and ne has a far
longer snout and jaw than the English
n arket pig. His skin is a kind Of blrish
gray and lis bristies gray or black.
though sometimes an almost brown pig
is found The wild pig win never live far
from water. lie is happiest in the long
grass, often twelve feet nigh, that grows
along the banks Of the big Indian rivers,
and above all reioices in lao a kind OF
evergreen brushwOOd that Is as common
as the grass. lie only eats at night. and
about 10 r. NJ. he sallies forth from COW
or. and will go many miles 10 find the
succulent sugar cane or other luxury, re-
turning. as "A rule, about an hour before
the first streaks Of dawn. Whole herds
Of pigs sometimes 90 foraging together
and do terrible damage 10 the poor In
dian cultivatOr. who rushes off TO the
magistrate promptly for "a license In
Form IL" which he gets gratis. TO arm
himself with blunderbuss against his
foe
Pig-stickine begins usually about
Christmas week, when the giant yegeta-
ton Of the rains has died down suilici-
emily to get at piggy, and the marshy
ground where he lives Is firm enough for
horses but il is not till the end Of Feb
ruary that really good pig-sticking begins,
and il improves as the weather gets dryer
and hotter till the June rains come. and
pig-sticking instantly ceases. Ia India,
after the end Of March. the heat is so
great by about 10 \. NJ. that practically
only the young and strong can stand
pig-sticking, though many a senior who
ought to be at home under the punkah
risks his health for the sport.
l will now describe n days pig sticking
| in a good Indian station. BY good" /
mean one where there are plenty Of Euro
peans, military and civilian, such az
| Cawnpore. Agra. Allahabad and many
| others. There is usually what Is called a
| Tent Club. to which each member sub
| scribcs few rupees month, and the
meets are fixed and published by the
! secretary. Under the secretary there Is a
willy native shikari. on the-to him-really
| excellent salary Of two pounds a month.
| With two or three satellites IL is his duty
| 10 report 10 the secretary where the pigs
| are and where the best sport is TO be ex-
| pected. He has 10 collect the coolies In
| adv, rec. and have everything ready for
| the sahibs by about a. NJ. which. IN
I L. IL
easy task. II is also his pleasant duty "a
/ pay these poor fellows. and lac always
| takes mis- dustoorie. or percentage, which
curiously enough. the coolies never
| grudge him. # being. they consider. his
right" The shikari has TO keep a horse
| Of some sort, and the sport very much
| depends on his energy and common serse
At about a. NJ, after a light break
| fast. the sportsEen set out-usualiy in
| "tum-tums'-to the meet. having sent
! their spears and horses on ahead over
| night together with the ail-important
| mess tifin basket, i'm which a huge block
| Of ice and innumerable sOdawater bottles
| and beer bottles figure largely. IL is rs r.
| 10 gather together more than twelve men
| it may have been different in oiden times
| but polo is a formidable rival TO pig
| sticking nowadays, and the ordinary Brit
ish subaltern can rarely afford time and
money for both. Indeed from my own
experience, I should say the average field
was not above five and. personally.
much prefer, except from the social point
| Of view, very few companions.
The officer in command divides the
party, If large enough, into little sections
Of three. and each section separates from
| the other, and keeps together all day
| either at one end Of the line or I'm the
| middle. The coolies are usually about
| fifty In number and form line. covering
| about 200 yards OF ground; each is armed
| or should be, with a big stick, and the
| end men carry flags. which can be seer
above the long grass. and help 10 keeT
| the coolies I'm line. Behind them marches
| on each wing. one Of the shikari's satel-
| lites, and in the centre IS the shikari him
| self on horseback. and these officers. like
| sergeants keep the line straight, and ex
hort often in language more forcible
| than polite. the apathetic coolies 10 siren
! uous exertions. The sportsmen generally
| ride few yards in advance Of the line
| unless from the nature Of the covert the
| pig Is likely to break back
A pig lies usually in a kind OF form
like a hare, and will sometimes let a
man or horse almost tread on him be
| fore moving. and being often covered
with mud or dust. is very difficult L
see In the grass and weeds When. how.
ever. he does jump up. he slips alonl
at an incredible speed for the first thirty
or forty yards. and then settles dowT
TO a very fast galop. / have known
bears at once. on being put up, make
straight for the first man or horse they
see before they have been wounded OF
| touched, and, as all know, the tush Of ths
| wild boar cuts like a razor though luck
lily the wound is usually healthy clear
| cut, very different from a rnauling b,
the fetid claws Of tiger or leopard, Of
the thrust Of stays horn.
Wherever pig gets up, one OF the sec
! lions 20 after IL: and there are yariou.