The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1897-10-01
HAND To HAND TUSSLE
u BEAR WAS HUGGING HIM
WHEN HIS BROTHER KILLED
THE BEAR.
IS HAD MAN OF DURANT ISLAND
Has Charge of the Property of a Wealthy
Philadelphia Who Owns an Island
Fourteen Miles Round.


land. who is on a VISIT to Raleigh, is the
celebrated bear hunter of Dare county.
He has helped to kill over four hundred
in his time "The season for hunting
bears is near at hand" said the cap
tan, "and it will be a good season. |
Judge from the berry crop. 1t is cut
off back IN the woods and there is plen-
ty on the water. The bears will come
out to get the gumberries, and then we
will kill them and have fine sport. We
ship the meat TO Baltimore, after eat
ing all we want, selling it at 1212 cents
a pound; we sell the bears skin for
$40. and bear oil sells well.
How do you kill the bears?" / asked.
81 have a big double barrel muzz,e
loading gun. / use that on account of
shooting big lead. You cannot use such
lead as | want out of a breech loader.
| carry the finest Winchester rifle in the
world. 1t was made expressly to sen1
to the Worlds Fair in Paris where it
took the premium and won two prizes
in shooting at long range. 1t is silver
plated all over. A rich northern man
got it, and brought it to hunt in North
Carolina. He got tired of hunting and
sold it in Elizabeth CITY, and l bought
it there.
What is the biggest bear you ever
killed." / next asked the captain.
81 can't tell you exactly. The largest
/ ever killed l could not weigh. | have
killed bears weighing FIVE hundred
pounds. They average perhaps something
over one hundred pounds.
Are they hard to kill?" l asked.
81 have killed some who fell dead at
first shot. But if bear gets fully mad
before he is killed, you can hardly kill
him by shooting him all to pieces. l
have been in some close places. l had
bear once to grasp me around the
shoulders, and if my brother had not
shot and killed him, the bear would
have killed me. / have never been hurt
except a little squeezing-and no man
ought to mind a proper amount of hug
ging," said the captain.
"Do you love the bear meat as food y
You ought to have seen the good cap
tain's mouth water and his eye brighten
as visions of broiled bear meat came
into his mind.
Eat bear meat" he said why it is
! the best meat in the world. | can eat
two or three messes of bear, and feel
strong enough to jump ten feet high"
And he looked like he could do it. If
boar had appeared on Fayetteville
get about this time | venture that
pt Basnight would have killed him
the spot, and invited all the staff
On this paper to join him in mess" for
supper.
Capt Basnight has charge of Du-
rants Island which is owned by Hon.
John IL. Reyburn, of Philadelphia, who
comes down for hunting and fishing a.
bout twice a year He brings down
many of his friends, men and women,
and entertains them in his comfortable
house on the island. This island contains
4, $50 acres, is fourteen miles around,
and lis located at the mouth of Ali
gator river.
''On the island" said the captain. 1--WE
lave 500 head OF cattle, hogs and sheen.
fine poultry. and an abundance of wild
game, including deer, swan, geese, and
ducks, and many varieties of smaller
birds. We feed the wild fowl, and at
tnres / have as many as seven hundred
wild geese that come regularly to the
camp to get their feed"
Capt. Basnight is the most interesting
visitor who has been in Raleigh this
year. He is a fine looking affable gen
tleman-intelligent, accustomed to min
gle with men in all the walks of life.
and a man who meets any of them any
where on terms of equality How the lit
tie boys in the public schools would
enjoy the captains bear stores! If he
were not so modest and taciturn Pro-
fessor Howell could get him to deliver an
address on "Bear Hunting by Bear
Hunter" that would thrill every boy in
Raleigh.