Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1907-04-23
OkLAHOaA TURKEY HUNT
TRAILING WILD GOBBlERS ON
THE Usage RESERVATION.

Harbecued Turkey Cooked in the
Open One Of the Delights That Fol
lowed the Hunt.
Hunting the wild turkey in winter
weather in the Usage Indian reserya
ton in Oklahoma is princely sport
writes the Guthrie correspondent OF
the New York Sun The alertness
strategy and swiftness of this magnifi
cent bird of the forest fits it to elude
its most patient pursuers, and well
trained dog is indispensable. The
turkey owned by our leader, Don Sag
ers, the ranchman, was a strange look,
ing mongrel. cross between point
er and bull terrier, but his mixed
pedigree had produced wary ten
acious trailer
The sun was high toward the merid
ian before the hunters had penetrated
the long deep canon where eight big
gobblers were known to make theSl
home. The boulders that had tum
bled down and piled themselves as
barriers to entrance on horsebacb
sorely tried the strength and erdur
ance of the hunters.
Far up toward its head the canon
widened into a narrow meadow land
through which ran spring fed rivu
let, along whose course grew fringe
of elms, oaks and sycamores. The
meadow was deep in brown grass
with growth of green at the roots
On the bills were blackjacks and 9th
er small oaks. Small acorns on
which wild turkeys delight to feed
clattered down in abundance.
A winged shadow rose a quarter Of
a mile ahead and sailed in strong
tight to the craggy wall of the canon
followed by another and another, un
til half dozen turkeys had left the
hunters gazing after them in blank
surprise.
There's your game" said Don, but
getting it is a different thing They
will scatter in the hills, and even il
the dog should strike a trail We'll
have a horse and turkey race and
lots of travelling before we get a
shot. Get out of here and hit the
high places"
The horses, left tied at the mouth
of the canon, were soon mounted, and
an hour later were high in the hills
with their riders. The locality where
the turkeys had gone was marked and
the dog was turned loose.
Bones knew what was expected OF
him and began working the ground
thoroughly. Suddenly he threw UP
his head, stood with his eyes hall
closed, shifting the air, and then trot
ted straight ahead. Putting his nose
to the ground he bounded rapidly
away Fresh turkey tracks in the
moist earth showed that Bones was
on a good trail The turkey was
running hard, his tracks looking as
if they had been made by jabbing
the tines of small rake in the
ground That his unexpected visitors
had frightened him badly could be
seen in his short flights and in his
zigzag course.
The riding was almost as fast and
hard in following Bones as it had
been in climbing the side of the
canon. Bones pointed turkey in the
same manner as his father pointed
quail, and to insure slot it was
necessary to keep close to him.
The turkey hunter will show wis.
dom if he looks on both sides as well
as straight ahead. This precaution
put a twenty-pound gobbler on the
horn of one of the hunters saddles.
The trail followed by Bones led
down into a draw between two high
hills. Bones was ahead, hot in pur-
a "windfall," almost hidden in tall
grass. A sudden rustling and sway
ing of the grass caused the lucky
hunter to lift his gun just as a COB
bier Numbered oIt of his hiding place.
He fell at a distance of twenty-five
yards with a broken wing and a
death wound in his neck.
This gobbler proved not to be the
one that Bones was trailing, bur hear
ing the dog pass. had hidden himself,
only to fiy at the noisy approach of
horsemen.
Bones was far ahead when the
hunters spurred up to overtake him.
He could be seen high UP on a steep
hillside, working gradually downward.
Look Look There it goes!"
shouted Don, as turkey launched
from the hill and alighted III the deep
grass in the little valley below.
Bones bounded down the hill, and
the hunters galloped forward and dis
mounted. The turkey undoubtedly was
very tired after such a long chase
and was hunting cover. Bones crept
forward stealthily, smelling out each
track, and froze suddenly in position.
Step by step the hunters advanced,
but no turkey could be seen, nor did
a blade of grass move suspiciously A
feeling of disappointment was relax
ing the tension when fump! boom!
the turkey-another big gobbler--
sprang up almost under Don's feet
A rear shot pitched the gobbler head
long into the grass, which he thrash
ed down for space of several feet
before making his last kick
Not least of the joys of a turkey
hunt is the barbecued wild turkey
gobbler that follows The bird for
months has been fattening upon
acorns, grasshoppers, succulent herbs
and wild berries. His flesh has grown
richer and richer. upon the choicest
lelicacies of nature.
The carcass of the biggest gobbler
had hung ali night in tree. to re-
ceive the mysterious contributions OF
boar frost and moonlight, and incl
dentally. to protect it from proving
coyotes.
The cook skewered the gobbler on
a green hickory stick, and suspended
it over a pit OF Goals. As it Drowned
and roasted the cook basted it with
mehed butter. vinegar, salt, pepper
ard a little sage. For two hours ne
devoted himself to his task. The