The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1910-11-27
Fighting for Life With Wild Pig

When The great navigator and explorer.
Captain Cook madc his historic Noyases
in the southern latitudcs he carrien y
quantity OF live stock for food. AHohS
the animals were some large Gngisli
hogs. and few OF these were landed on
North island OF the New Zealand doniin-
lon and escaped into the forest. IN ono
hundred years the stock has undergone
great change. has reverted To slste
even wilder and fcrNcr than the originhi
one, perhaps, and makes the finest of big
game. The white bushInen OF the Nortn
island call these hogs Captain Cooks
or "rasorbecks." and the Maoris name
them ''rongotutes."
Good luck only kept me from being
ripped to pieces by one OF them IN one
OF the hunts In which participated in
1902 IN the Taranaki district. and ac-
quired very wholesome respect Tor them
game fighters and dangerous oppon-
ents.
Both male and female develop curved
tusks that arc both longer and sharper
than those of the famous wild boars OF
Europe. northern Africa and India and
the beasts are larger more ranSy anu
arc swiftor. have the tusks OF the one
which nearly did for me and my horse.
and they measure seven and onc-haIf
inches on the outside. while | have seen
them mounted on The habiliments OF
Maori tobunga or priests when they
measured nine inches.
While in the shoat age the wild hog
Is compelled to rip up roots, turn over
stones, toss aside small fallen trees and
DO other things that give him access 10
ants, snails nuts. fungi and other food
and this use develops the incisors IN the
lower jaw till even II two-year-old will
have Very prescntable arms Of offense
and defence
The older boars and sows following
some natural instinct. grind out the in
ncr sides of the triangular tips of tho
tusks uIul the points arc as sharp as
the points OF knife blades and the edges
of the ground portion have cutting ca
spacity that is amazing. Put two or three
hundred pounds of .rerocious Drawn be-
hind a pair OF tasks ground on, in This
fashion and The hunter faces q very
dangerous brute
Though little known 10 the outside
world, ihc sporting New Xealandcrs are
very fond or this snort. and now and
then expert pig siiclscrs' from india
or from EsEpt or The Sou6an. for the
New Icaland 10 try the sport. have
never heard one al them Imil ,o admit
that tho Captain Cook al North island is
ihr s, prince OF them ali in a fight.
Fifty years aTo these pigs were found
all over the island. from Latitude u
south To 10 south, but fhc settlers are
urlp'ng them away from the pian;a tious.
The Maoris have been eating great 0tau-
titles OF them for food and every time
big tract Is made the subject of llim-
boring operations the FIRST thing She
pusnrnon arc called upon 10 do is to
drive the rongotutcs away. /, is not
pleasant 10 have "a peaceful gang OF ia-
norers armed only with saws and az cs.
caHeo upon tn iiehi Two or ihrfc beasts
o. donkey engine power armed around
the front with hooked daSgcrs. The
result Is that the pigs have retreated
SLOWLY 10 the vast tracts of virgin bush
in and about Mount Egmont. In the Tar
ahakl district. In the kaimanawa of Inc
IaWh"S nay country, in the Rnukumara
at he Waia Pu district, around the great
Lake 1aupa and in tho region from Mon
gonni in the extreme north. south TO Ota-
l1atea
The hunting which most enjoyed was
In the wilderness OF TarnnaLd. on tho
eastern slopes of Mount GGmont. between
New Plymouth and Stratford. One can
always find 4 Captain Cook there and
one can always set hard ride and
sood fight.
Comrades of the Fray.
TIC first rcuuste is strong. fret
Iorse that IL wilin:. to break hts neck
II you are willing 10 break yours. and
,tfcrage foN dog or hound Will turn tail
before Cnptoin Cook. and The wolf
and deer hounds arc easy victims for The
'psks. Sporting dogs are none too plcn-
tiful IN New Zealand snd il is rather
costly Ia import dogs Ia bc slashcd up
IN thc bush. 80 the mongrci the BUSH
nirn cad IA cattle dog is the host. lie
is tie size OF q collie. hut has a sl,or;
coat and long nusc that Is quite blunt
AT the end. What his origin was ] cam
mot imagine. but His dog is the ono
any other.
The superstition is that firearms are
MOI used against the pigs because that
would be unsporlsmanllke but + think
iI'st the truth Is that III" husimcr dis
covered that firearms were far less er-
ifciifc than the spear that every pig
iiunicr now uses. II would be- a wonderful
shot who could hit I'm Vital spot n
changing boar surrounded by dogs with
such percentage of certainty that he
would not get ripped up in short order.