CRUTCHES IN DEMAND--CURING VENISON--PEMMICAN--SCALDING OFF A PORKER’S
HAIR WITH LEAVES AND WATER--TURKEY TROUGH--SOLITARY WATCHING--FORCE OF
IMAGINATION--FEARFUL RENCOUNTER--DIFFERENT MODES OF REPELLING WILD
BEASTS
Harold’s ankle continued so painful whenever he attempted to move, that
Sam advised him, the morning after the accident, to construct for
himself a pair of crutches. "Make ’em strong and good, Mas Harol," said
he, with a broad grin of satisfaction. "I hope by time you trow ’em
away, I’ll pick ’em up." This work occupied the two invalids, while
Robert and Frank were engaged in their successful deer hunt.
When the venison was brought home, Harold assisted in various ways in
preparing it for use; and also promised that if he was provided with the
necessary means, he would see that all which was thereafter brought in
should be properly cured. His favourite mode was by the process called
_jerking_. The plan was this: A wig-wam was made, about five feet in
diameter at the base, and five feet high, leaving a hole at the top
about two feet wide. A place for fire was scooped in the middle; and
the pieces of venison were hung in the smoke that poured through the
open top. Pieces an inch thick, when exposed at the same time to smoke
and sunshine were perfectly cured in the course of a day. The hams
required, of course, a longer time, and were all the better for a little
salt. The _salting tub_ was made of a fresh deer’s skin, fleshy side
up, supported by stakes so as to sag in the middle. A substitute for a
_pickle barrel_ was also devised in the course of time; this consisted
of a deer’s skin, stripped off whole, and rendered water-tight by
stopping the holes; in this the meat was put, covered with a strong
brine, and drawn up into a tree. When the visits of the flesh-fly were
apprehended, the mouth of the sack was secured by a string. But the
most convenient form in which the meat was cured was that known as
_pemmican_. To prepare this the meat was jerked until perfectly dry,
then pounded fine, and mixed with half its own weight of melted grease;
after which it was packed away in skin bags, having the hair outwards.
The pemmican could be eaten, like bologna sausage, either cooked or raw,
and kept perfectly sweet as long as it was needed.
While describing these several modes of preparing and preserving their
meat, it may not be amiss to mention also a method adopted by Harold for
scalding off an opossum’s hair without any of the usual appliances for
heating the water. The opossum had been killed before it was known that
the utensils for boiling were all in use and could not be spared.
Robert was perplexed, for he knew that the hair "sets" as soon as the
carcass is cold, and refuses to be drawn. But Harold replied with a
smile,
"I have seen hogs scalded by being put into a deep puddle of water
heated with red hot stones. All the water needed for so small an object
as the opossum may be heated in a deer skin, hung like our salting tub
over the fire. But I will show you a still easier plan."
He gathered a pile of dry leaves, with which he covered the body, and
then poured on water until the pile was quite wet; after which he piled
on a much larger quantity of dry leaves, which he set on fire. When the
mass had burnt down, the hair of the opossum was found so thoroughly
_steamed_ by the surrounding heat, that it yielded as easily as if it
had passed through the most approved process of the pork cleaning art.
Towards sunset Robert went to the turkey baits; the birds had returned
to the place they had visited before, and eaten all the parched corn
thrown there the second time. He renewed the bait, with this difference
(made on Harold’s suggestion)--that whereas he had formerly scattered
the corn broad-cast, he now strewed it in a sort of trough, or shallow
trench, made in the ground. This trench was made on a line proceeding
straight from a place of concealment, selected within good shooting
distance. Turkeys are greedy feeders; and when they find a place baited
as that was, they gather on each side of the trench, with their heads
close together, trying each to obtain his share of the prize; and a
person having a gun loaded with duck or squirrel shot, has been known to
kill six or eight at a time, by firing among their interlocking heads.
An additional visit enabled Robert to determine that the hour of their
coming was early in the morning; and this being the only other
circumstance wanting to fix the time of his own coming to meet them, he
used that opportunity to arrange to his fancy the place of his
concealment. The trench was on a line with two short hedges of bamboo
brier, diverging from each other in the shape of the letter V, having a
place of egress at the angle. He closed the mouth of the V by planting
a blind of evergreens, high as his head, and very close at the bottom;
and as it was probable that he should be compelled to remain some hours
in concealment, he made a seat, and opened through the blind a hole for
observation.
On the following morning he was up and moving at the peep of day. Mary
prepared him a cup of coffee, and by the time that there was light
sufficient to follow the blazed track he was on the way. His course lay
eastward, and through the opening branches glowed that beautiful star
which he had often admired, Venus, the gem of the morning, "flaming upon
the forehead of the dawn."
Frank begged hard to be allowed to go too, his confidence in Robert’s
woodsmanship having been greatly increased by the recent success; but
Harold decided against him. He said that in turkey shooting the fewer
persons there were present the better; that Robert himself must keep
still as a mouse, and that well trained as Mum was, it would be better
even for him to be left behind. Robert therefore departed alone,
putting into his pocket a small volume of Shakespeare, to aid in whiling
away the slow hours of his solitary watch.
On arriving at the spot his first act was to see that the bait was yet
untouched. He took his seat, and continued for a long time peeping
through the port hole, and listening with an attention so acute that he
could hear the rush of his own blood along the throbbing arteries. But
as the minutes passed, and no change occurred, not even the chirp of a
bird or the bark of a squirrel enlivening the grim solitude, his
excitement gradually gave way to weariness. He leaned his gun against
the wall of vines, and drew out his book. It was the first volume,
containing that magnificent drama, "The Tempest." He read rapidly the
familiar scenes describing Ariel, the light, invisible spirit, and
Caliban, the hideous son of the old hag, and Prospero, with his
beautiful daughter, and the dripping refugees from the sea, and became
so deeply absorbed as perfectly to forget where he was, until a slight
rustling behind a briery thicket near the bait aroused his attention.
Whatever the animal might have been, its step was very stealthy, and
evidently approaching. Laying down the book, and grasping his gun, he
peeped cautiously around; nothing was visible. Soon he heard a rattling
upon the ground of falling fragments, as if from some animal climbing a
tree, and a grating sound like that of bark which is grasped and
crushed.
"I wonder what that can be?" he mentally soliloquized. "Perhaps a large
fox-squirrel climbing after acorns--but no, there is too much bark
falling for that. It must be a squirrel barking a dead limb for worms.
That’s it! O, yes, that’s it."
But it was no squirrel, and had Robert been more of a woodsman he would
not have returned so quietly to his reading. Indeed, he had become more
deeply interested in his book than in his business, and was glad of any
excuse that allowed him to return to Prospero and the shipwrecked crew.
He read a few pages more, and stopping to connect in his mind the
disjointed parts of the story, his eye rested upon what appeared to be
the bushy tail of a very large squirrel, lying upon a limb of the tree
that overhung the bait.
"I knew it was a squirrel," said he to himself; "but he is a bouncer!
How long his tail is! and how it moves from side to side like a cat’s,
when it sees a bird or a mouse that it is trying to catch. I wish I
could see his body, but it is hidden by that bunch of leaves."
His imagination was so powerfully impressed with the graphic scenery of
"The Tempest," that he could scarcely think of anything else. The idea
in his mind at that moment was the ludicrous scene in which the drunken
Stephano comes upon the queer bundle, made up of Caliban and Trinculo,
lying head to head under the same frock, and appearing to his unsteady
eyes like a monster with two pairs of legs at each end. As Robert
looked into the tree, he almost laughed to catch himself fancying that
he saw Caliban’s head lying on the same limb on which lay the squirrel’s
tail, and staring at him with its two great eyes. Indeed he did see
something. There was a veritable head resting there, and two great
eyeballs were glaring upon him, and nothing but the irresistible
influence of the scenes he had read deceived him for a moment with the
idea that it was Caliban’s.
A second and steady look would probably have revealed the truth; but for
this he had not time. The welcome "twit! twit!" of the expected game
caused him to look through his port hole, and a large turkey cock,
accompanied by four hens, ran directly to the trench, and began to eat
as fast as they could pick up the grains. Robert cautiously slipped his
gun through the port hole, and took deliberate aim, confident that he
could kill the five at one shot. But hesitating a moment whether he
should commit such wholesale destruction, when they were already so well
supplied with fresh meat, his gun made a slight noise against the
leaves, which attracted the attention of the turkeys, and caused the
hens to dart away. The gobbler, being the leader and protector of the
party, stood his ground courageously, stretching his long neck full four
feet high, looking in every direction, and then coming cautiously
towards the blind to reconnoitre.
Robert had gained experience from his still hunting; and in this
conjuncture stood perfectly motionless, keeping his gun as immovable as
the stiff branch of a dry tree. The bird was deceived. It returned
quietly to the trench, and commenced feeding. Robert waited in the hope
that it would be joined by another; but no other coming, he fired while
it was picking up the last few grains, and killed it. The moment of
pulling the trigger, he heard a rustle of leaves in the tree above the
turkey, and the moment after the report of his gun a heavy fall upon the
ground. As he rushed from his concealment to seize the fallen game, he
was horrified to see an enormous beast of the cat kind, crushing the
head of the bird in its mouth, while its paw pinioned the fluttering
wings. It was a panther. It had crawled into the tree while Robert was
reading. It was _its_ tail he had mistaken for a squirrel’s, and _its_
head he had fancied was Caliban’s. For half an hour it had been glaring
upon him with its big eyeballs, waiting until he should pass near enough
to be pounced upon.
The coming of the turkeys had distracted its attention; and being
hungry, it had ceased to watch for its human victim, and resolved upon
that which was surer. When Robert emerged from his concealment it
turned upon him, dropped the mangled head from its bloody mouth,
reversed the hair on both back and tail, showed its enormous fangs, and
growled. Had he retreated from the field he might have escaped the
terrible conflict that awaited him, for the panther, left to the
peaceable possession of its prize, would probably have snatched it up
and ran away. But his horror at the sight was so great that for a
moment he was paralysed. He convulsively clutched his gun, and was on
the point of firing almost without aim, when another fierce growl from
the panther, that appeared to be gathering itself for a leap, brought
him to his senses. He took deliberate aim between its eyes, and fired.
It was a desperate chance, for the gun was loaded only with duck shot.
The howl of rage and pain with which the panther bounded upon him, and
the grinning horrible teeth that it showed, made his blood run cold. He
clubbed his gun, prepared to aim a heavy blow upon its forehead, but, to
his surprise, instead of leaping upon him, it sprang upon the thicket of
briers, about three feet distant, and began furiously to tear on every
side at perfect random.
He needed no better chance to escape from so dangerous a neighbourhood;
and, in the moment of leaving, saw that both eyes of the animal had been
shot away, and that the bloody humour was streaming down its face. He
hurried on for a few steps, but fearing that the frantic beast might
pursue him, he slipped behind a tree, and pouring hastily into his gun a
charge of powder, which he rammed down as he ran, put upon that a heavy
load of deer shot, and then made his way homewards.
Ere he had run one-half the distance, however, his fears began to
subside. The panther, if not mortally wounded, was stone-blind; why
should he not muster courage enough to complete the work, and thus
perform a feat of which he might be proud as long as he lived? In the
midst of this cogitation, he heard before him the tramp of footsteps,
and saw the glimmering of an animal that bounded towards him with rapid
pace. Could this be the panther which had pursued him, and intercepted
his flight! He levelled his piece in readiness for battle, and was
preparing to pull trigger at the first fair sight, when he saw that,
instead of a panther, it was Mum--good faithful Mum, broken loose from
his confinement at home, and come in a moment of need to help his
master. What a relief! Robert called him, patted him, hugged him, and
then said, "Stop, Mum! I’ll give you something to do directly. Just
wait a minute, boy, till I load this other barrel; and with you to help
me, I shall not be afraid of any panther, whether his eyes are in or
out."
Mum had sagacity enough to know that his master was greatly excited, and
he showed his own sympathy by whining, frisking about, and wagging his
short tail. Robert loaded with dispatch, hurried back, keeping Mum
directly before him, and holding his piece ready for instant use; but
the panther had disappeared.
On reaching the field of battle, Mum’s first act was to spring upon the
prostrate bird, but finding it dead he let it lie; then perceiving the
odour of the panther’s track, his hair bristled, he followed the trail
for a few steps, and returned, looking wistfully into his master’s face.
He evidently understood the dangerous character of the beast that had
been there, and was reluctant to follow. Robert, however, put him upon
the trail, and encouraged him to proceed. Mum undertook the business
very warily. He went first to the brier on which the panther had last
been seen; then in a zigzag course, that seemed to be interrupted by
every bush against which the blinded beast had struck; finally he
bristled up again, and gave signs of extreme caution. A few steps
brought them to a fallen log, between two large branches of which Robert
saw his formidable enemy, crouched and panting. He softly called in his
dog. The panther pricked up its ears, and raised its head, as if trying
to pierce through the impenetrable gloom. Robert came noiselessly nearer
and nearer, until within ten paces, then deliberately taking aim, he
discharged the whole load of bullets between the creature’s eyes. It
leaped convulsively forward, and died almost without a struggle.
[Illustration: Deliberately taking aim, he discharged the whole load of
bullets between the creature’s eyes]
Soon as it was indubitably dead, Robert went forward to examine it. He
turned it over, felt its bony legs and compact body; looked at the
terrible fangs from which he had made so narrow an escape, and, having
satisfied his curiosity, attempted to take it upon his shoulder; but
this was far beyond his strength--the panther was heavy as a large deer.
He marked carefully the spot where it lay, and returning to the tree for
his book and bird, hurried home, to tell the others of his perilous
adventure.
Hardly had he come within sight, before Frank’s quick eyes discerned
him. "What!" said he, with a playful taunt, "only one turkey! I
thought you would have had a house full, you staid so long and fired so
often. Cousin Harold hardly knew what to make of it; he said he supposed
you must have _wounded_ a turkey; so I ran and let Mum loose to help
you."
"I am glad you did," replied Robert, drawing a long breath, "for never
in my life was I more in need of help."
"And you didn’t get the other after all?"
"O, yes, all I aimed at. But something came near getting me, too.
Where are Cousin Harold and sister?"
"In the tent."
Harold and Mary smiled with pleasure to see the fine bird on his
shoulder, but could not understand the seriousness of countenance with
which he approached. He related the particulars of his adventure, to
which they listened with breathless attention. Mary turned very pale,
Harold’s eyes flashed fire, and Sam’s white teeth shone in repeated
laughs of admiration.
"How I wish I could have been with you," said Harold, looking mournfully
at his lame foot.
"I wish you had been."
"That was a terrible moment, when you had fired your last barrel, and
the panther was rushing upon you. You must have given up all for lost."
"No," replied Robert, "I felt myself tremendously excited, but had no
idea of giving up."
"That is natural," said Harold. "No one ever gives up while there is
anything to do. But do tell me, what did you think of? People can
think so fast, and so powerfully, when brought to the pinch, that I like
to hear all about their plans and thoughts. Tell me everything."
"From first to last," said Robert, smiling, "I thought of many things,
but of none which I had time to execute, except to fire into his eyes,
and club my gun. I first thought of running away, but not until I had
stood so long that the panther seemed about to spring upon me. Then the
idea occurred to me of trying the power of my eye, as father recommended
about dogs; but I confess there was more power in his eye than mine, for
I was badly frightened. My next thought was to take off my cap and rush
upon him, as if that was some deadly weapon. I heard once of a lady in
India, who saved herself and several others from a Bengal tiger, by
rushing at him with an umbrella which she kept opening and shutting as
she ran. There was another plan still, of a negro in Georgia, who
fought and killed a panther with his knife. But," he continued, "let us
talk a moment of the carcass. What shall I do with it; leave it there
or bring it to the tent?"
"O, bring it, bring it, by all means," Harold replied; "I doubt not
Cousin Mary and Frank will help you."
Mary was not at all pleased with the prospect of such unladylike
business, and in consequence gave Harold a look of disapproval, which he
affected not to see. She went, nevertheless, and the panther was soon
lying before the tent-door. The rest of the forenoon was spent in
flaying it, which they did with the claws, tail and ears attached; for
Robert had remarked, that being compelled to imitate Hercules in
destroying wild beasts, he had a fancy to imitate him also in his couch.
While thus engaged, Harold asked for the story of the negro.
"It is not much of a story," said Robert; "I thought of it merely in
connection with the rest. The negro was going to his wife’s house,
which was some miles distant from the plantation, and which made it
necessary for him to pass through a dark, dismal swamp. Usually he
passed it by daylight, for it was infested by wild beasts; but being a
daring fellow, he sometimes went by night, armed only with a long sharp
knife. The last time he made the attempt he did not reach his wife’s
house, and his master went in search of him. Deep in the swamp he had
met with a panther, and had a terrible fight. Traces of blood were
plentiful, and deep tracks, where first one and then the other had made
some unusual effort. Near at hand lay the panther, stabbed in nine
places, and a little beyond lay the negro, torn almost to pieces. They
had killed each other."
"I wonder," said Harold, "that he did not carry a torch; no wild beast
will attack a person bearing fire."
"Are you sure of that?" Robert inquired.
"As sure as I can be, from having heard of it often, and tried it
twice."
Robert begged for the particulars.
"I went with my father and two other gentlemen, on a hunting excursion
among the mountains, where we camped out, of course. One of the
gentlemen having heard that there were plenty of wolves in that region,
and wishing, as he said, to have some fun that night, had rubbed gum
assafoetida upon the soles of his boots, before leaving the tent for it
is said that wolves are attracted by the smell of this gum, and will
follow it to a great distance. Now, whether it was the smell of the
assafoetida or of our game, I will not pretend to say, but the wolves
came that night in such numbers that we could scarcely rest. They
howled first on this side and then on that, and barked in such short
quick notes, that one sounded like half a dozen. Our horses were
terribly frightened; we could scarcely keep them within bounds; and our
dogs ran slinking into the tent with every sign of fear. The only plan
by which we could sleep with comfort was by building a large fire, and
keeping it burning all night."
"Did not the gentleman who was so fond of wolves go out after them?"
asked Robert.
"O, yes, we all went, again and again, but the cunning creatures kept in
the edge of the darkness, and when we approached on one side, they ran
to the other. It was there I heard the other gentleman, who was
esteemed a great hunter, remark, that all wild beasts are afraid of
fire."
"I wonder why?"
"Night beasts are afraid I suppose, because they prowl in darkness; and
as for the others, if they once feel the pain of fire they will be apt
to keep out of its way."
"The other circumstance is this:--Last year I went on a night hunt, with
some boys of my own age; and not only did we meet with very poor
success, but for some hours were completely lost. About an hour before
day I left the company, and returned home; for I had promised my mother
to return by twelve o’clock. Before parting company, we heard a panther
in the woods directly in my way, crying for all the world like a young
child. The boys tried to frighten me out of my intention; but I told
them that if they would only let me have a good torch, I should safely
pass by a dozen panthers. It was full two miles home. The panther
continued his cry until I came within a furlong, and then ceased. As I
passed the piece of woods from which his voice appeared to come, I heard
afar off the stealthy tread of something retiring, and saw two large
eyes shining in the dark. I have always supposed that these were the
eyes and tread of the panther, and that it was driven off by the torch."