The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-03-03
THOSE FLORIDA
RAZORBACKS
Col. r1'Canr1 Tells of Sport
ON the CaIoosahatchee - g
WOULD like to tell you abou

hunting the Caloosahatchee ra-
zorback," said Col. Joe McCann, of the
Iron Mountain route. ITO begin with,
I'll tell you that once saw woman
in Missouri using the side of a razor
oack hog as dashboard, rasping the
clothes on it as on the corrugated sur
face of real store washboard The
rib contour of the razorback was ably
fitted for the purpose.
II thought that hog was about as
thin as anything had right to be,
but / changed my mind when, down in
the Caloosahatchee country, / saw
that to keep razorbacks from getting
into the gardens. between the pickets
of the fences, they had to tie them to-
gether in pairs, side by side, and even
then had sometimes to set the pickets
little closer to one another.
The fattest razorback / ever saw in
the Caloosahatchee country stood four
feet perpendicular. and had horizon
tai spread of five feet ten inches. As
to his thickness, you may judge when
tell you that be fell through four
inch crack in the NOW of a hays7fed.
where he had climbed to rob hens
nest. and never rumpled hair.
That pig subsequently saw killed.
He tipped the scales at AZ pounds and
three ounces-the latest pig, they
said, that had been bagged along the
Caloosahatchee in many a day.
There isn't so much sport. though,
in hunting the Caloosahatchee razor
back. 1t is when they hunt you that
the excitement comes in. They forage
in the woods on the wild oranges, and
the best way to get your razorback
Is to preempt crop of these wild or
anges, as it lies on the ground where
it has fallen from the tree. and squat
there until the razorbaek comes along.
THE minute he sees you he will start
in to replevin that orange crop by
charging on you. He may not chase
you more than half a mile. but if
straightaway run ahead of him seems
monotonous, you may vary it and get
more fun out of 1t by lodging around
among the trees. This winding trail
will keep you within easy distance
of the orange crop. to which the razor
back will return when he concludes
that he has scared you enough to keep
you away.
''If your wind isn't good, or your
heels are not active enough for you to
enjoy that part of the chase, climb q
tree. 1t seems to please Caloosa-
hatchee razorback immensely if he can
tree you, and he viii return to the or
anges granting his unmistakable sat
isfaction. no matter If the tree you
have Skinned up isn't more than 20
yards away.
"As soon as the razorback has chased
you to his satisfaction, or has freed
you, he will go right back and start
in on getting away with that orange
crop, and then you can join him and
bag him, for when he once begins to
eat wild oranges he pays no attention
to anything else or anybody.
You might ask why you don't haul
up and shoot the razorback on the go
in, without letting him hunt you all
over the woods and follow your trail
or tree you. before you make an effort
to gather him in. I'll tell you why:
'Caloosahatchee, you know, is down
in Florida. The way / came to be
thrown into the society of the Caloosa-
hatchee razorback was that when 1
went to Florida one time friend of
mine said to me that of course would
want TO get some alligators.
"'Go to the Caioosahatchee for your
alligators,' said he. And stop with
Capt. Dave Corey
Il did so. The first meal sat down
to at Capt. Dave Corey's l noticed a
heap of thin, ribbon-like strips of
something on dish. They were of a
deep, bright ultramarine blue.
"'Some of the poke. sab p said Capt.
Dave.
IT said / would have some of the
pork, and when he served me with half
a dozen or so of the dark blue ribbons
/ was startled.
els this pork, captain said /.
"'Sho'lyl' he replied. Prime poke.
That poke won't fade. sab. It's fast
color. Yo' see. sab. the razorbacks
they eat the wild oranges to give 'em
the proper shade and flavor, and they
eat the marsh grass roots to give 'em
the fat, sah,'