Wilson was still in charge of the cow house.

One morning, after Dad and I had been out in the Model A marsh buggy, we arrived back to find Wilson dressing a hog that he’d shot with ol’ long tom, Grandfather Cone’s old single shot 12 gauge Iver Johnson with a 32-inch full choke barrel.

Excited, he said, “A big un dun and run out behind the outhouse and on into the hammock.”

About that time Rock and Leige winded him. Still on the buggy, they jumped off and headed for the hammock at a dead run. They bayed the hog for a minute then he broke and ran heading north on his way to Ganet Strand and the race was on.

Dad and I took off in the buggy to cut him off where he had to cross a 100-yard open space. I had my Savage 22 Hornet that I’d bought in Germany. We got there just in time to see the dogs close on his tail at about 100 yards. I took aim and fired.

Dad said, “You hit him. I saw the dust fly off him.” I fired again and Dad yelled out, “you hit him again.” The hog ran into a palmetto patch. The dogs started to bay him and wouldn’t catch unless we yelled, “Catch him.” Lo and behold, I was out of bullets! “He’ll bleed down in a minute with those two bullets in him.” Well, he didn’t bleed down, so the old man said, “Let’s make a plan.”

Now remember, Dad had a broke back and didn’t have much balance, and there I was out of bullets. I couldn’t imagine what plan he’d think up. The hog weighed 400 pounds and had 4-inch tusks.

R.E. Said, “Get the skinning knife off the buggy and pick up that three-foot lighter knot. I’ll go around, climb and crawl through the palmetto, ease up behind him, grab his tail, and snatch his hind feet off the ground. You run in front, past the baying dogs and hit him across the head just above the eye, knock him to the dirt, grab the knife from your pocket, and cut his throat.”

I stood there at 23 years old and this 60 year old was trying to back me down. To tell the truth, I had never had any Army training that measured up to this challenge. I thought I was back on Blackwater Creek catching the boar hog the time William and I were naked! This old hog would make two of that one and was backed up in palmettos where I would have to go straight at him.

“What do I do if the old boar stops making soap and turns on you?”…

One Response to Wilson was still in charge of the cow house.

  1. Pingback: Those that don’t go… | WILD and WOOLEY and FULL OF FLeas!

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