The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-10-09
A LOUISIANA BEAR HUNT.
BRUINS LAST sATIGB BATTLE IN
THE HEART OF THE SWAMP.

hnnuCIn HORT ENeW-NlOk bNNhhANk ANAs
PrecedeH an Expedition Into tho Big
Caney-Ths Black Bears Tactics Against
Experimentation of Canine Nature.
ALEXANDRA. Ia. Oct. EMANUEL. n negro
OF Cuban extraction. has a reputation that ex-
tends all through central Louisiana for the
euperlatively excellent way In which he cooks
bears meat. Tho heather have been known to
fry BEARS meat. but they mover met Manuel or
taated any OF his stew. Certain parts OF the
benr's carcass. the tenderloin and the shortest
Of the short ribs. are not bad to take when
brolled on the Goals, hut all the other edible
portions OF him should be treated rs Manuel
treats them.
This Ia the way he does Il: Getting n three
legged iron pot. capacity four gallons, he places
It on the IRE. hall nl'ed with water and homlny.
When the water las come to a boil he puts In
two whole pods OF the red bell pepper and n half
dozen Of tho minute chile paths. The chile
patin is the small. round. red berry from which
Tahasco sauce is made. II is n little hotter than
fire. Albeit ofthis pepper. sinEularlye enough. ex-
tends from New iberia. La. TO within fifty miles
OF the City OF Mexico. well defined all the way.
The berries turn red when the frost has fallen on
them and at this stage the wild turkey Ia fond OF
them. The bushes are not moro than three feet
high and turkeys will walk twenty-five miles In
a day going from bush to bush. When killed
on the Nucces River In western Texas. their
flesh is frequently 40 hot that II is unpalntable.
Mexicans dovour chile paths from babyhood.
DIR. Taylor. at one time connected with the
Health Department Of New York city. bought
n ranch in the Devils River country. He
found thirty sick cowboys on 1t when no
took charge. They had been living on
nour-bread. bacon. beef and black coffee.
Ho gave them beans with chilea. goats
flesh with chiles. beef with chiles. corn bread.
vcnison with chiles and chiles straight. to be
taken like small pills. three Of them before
breakfast. In three months every rough rider
in his employ was able to whip his weight in
wildcats. Tho chile patin ia one OF natures
compensntions. II is grown In n troplc coun-
try because It Is the greatest liver medicine
ever found by man. No one who eats 1t ever
suffers from bile.
When Manuel has put in his hominy and bell
pcrrer and chile paths and salt, he dumps into
the bubbling mixture bears meat. cut in cubes
of half inch. There is some lean. but much
of it ia pure fat. When done the mess Is OF the
consistency OF thick soup and is served in bowls.
It Is too good for the gods. 1t Is a singular
quality Of bears meat cooked in this way that
the amount OF it that can he consumed without
I'll effects Is An ordinary man can
put six pounds Of the fat into his stomach and
sleep like an infant. This quality belongs also
to the flesh Of The 'possum. hut to no other
animals. and the doctors have never been able
to account for it.
Manuel goes along as cook with all the bear
hunting expeditions organized hero. Around
camp he is an nutocrat. He orders his white
employers as IL they belonged TO him. reversing
the old condition when he belonged 10 ono Of
them. They bear with him because he Is chief
of his kind and he has his tempers. They dare
not risk spelling the stew. A bear hunt in this
part of the country is like a bear hunt nowhere
else. One occurs not oftener than fourtimes in
a year. and 1t is an affair OF preparation. A
dozen or half dozen planters. or sons OF plant
ers. having agreed to spend ten days in
the woods. begin six weeks beforehand to
steal every dog they can lay hands on. II mat
tiers not whether it be young or old, large or
small, male or female, POINTER. setter. deer
die. spaniel or terrier. 40 that it he a dog. The
object is to get a pack Of size and. not of quail
nose or f~orocity. Every plantation negro owns
from one to six dogs G;tS OF va VARYING yi9 breed :; ard he
o @"s q them 81 The sEteetailnms! S is thus II si neee M.s" any
As fast as the animals are caught they are
the swamp, which runs up 10 the edge Of a
glantn Ito 'n and here aN they Eight T f%6riSasly foT
better than at any ether time in their life and
grEGIw fat; This pen Is is not within y, a ile Of the
ton. because the noise coming. from it is some
t pru%t too S wS5nd for oni TG mdss r It i a sG Etd 2; i@i
than any other pound over was. and n hired hand
Of the hSHr5hqRRtiGG gang guards it evertor fear
;G%ySr their t] PbEf1To,r TT wot Thr pen i in Itself ! is an
anything except dog. Its interior is a solid
mass : e. samIrmjng' ! h9wli9Hg 49,. dogmsati Every
began is shut NJ inside of it. When the start
br f tbF be made E%se tn aSss 3 Msso aEe x ,hTSTP ba Ipto b tTS
across their tops. and everybody in the coun-
tr{EFfIIta T h hGRrs s shsR o Ss tbh s4s iG js = nl sintIict known
as the Big 5n:'t can nSy." Tihr @Sns L the middle middle e Of the
BIZ daSSp. cs and for 5Hn i've g m ElIH1ssIs on s eitEsr s side o. md d
stretches an almost imPenetrable swamp Of
s SggRmsti@s. w va 4 6S SRHS ard OF lo Gsp fsst w Mshv T ToSl.
are, in this swamp, round and dark. staGnant
and fowl o%aa sm nnd tEs,r Green ;, sfnos scum UNI f tSats along
lily pads large enough 10 bear the weight oil
% PTo9anG 2p h ,5ese gS%S their ihs h TRT 9Et S o. Rim Wills ths
deadly water moccnsin. lies curled in sunny
ss nrfIes Go s@4 in On Sun SGiGSdSinRs ,Gs7 the yI RrTGEiSs asil
sRs and i e RI f5s mG] sFI SslI TN q tf lss Sii bsisv TIL H.
%sprface q the outlying lands, but here and
tthRT TGSs6 s'i&tF &! Or Of these asF4 ridge h'T h Fim Ss5 q o7 TSn
now al the animal life ofthS morasses and tho
eoai4 XII as sSrie Ta5'b anS an4 %f i0id y n 80 m MSaag.
he would get bears also and a panther or two.
S Fsf ridges Sss1 ere t Fsy tGc y 4sason T iEsf The e d TstfF1 Is
s Sithoat b 30 he 9 NJ T the Wild d t Sis STH & S&S'nSss
tea t S&un more ' thnn two " h hSndf esYn ye sss,
there are parts Of the big Cnney that a
white man has never seon. Negroes have
in the old days it was the haunt OF rmnhways. fu:
E nitiy Slaves, ,E"s T ;h,' once its dark val had closed
hounds. Sometimes they came back to their
fGwn nerT took S%iy their r. whf MI Ing S s}EIIenlPy X and tEd went TeEt
Loneliness, of the vast tangled lab{rInthlne
place oD 0thSrS 1--WE %ero never again heard OF and It
snyaGery. sleeping in the moss;swathed trees.
as they could trap and SHAY, they psrished. For
this reason the blacks. since the war. have
summed the big Caney, and will not venture
into 1t unless accompanied by white men.
The game in this swamp Is about what it was
In Louisiana three centuries ago. though, as
the territory is restricted, there Is not so much
Of it. 1t Is certainly as wild now rs then and
the predatory fauna are as savage. The
fighters among tho wild beasts. outside Of tho
wild boar, are not many. A panther was tilled
big Caney last spring. the first ono seen In
three years. 1t was not large. measuring only