modom (palindrome guy) wrote:
> On Mon, 23 Jun 2008 06:55:03 -0500, George Shirley
> > wrote:
>
>> modom (palindrome guy) wrote:
>>> NY Times article: http://tinyurl.com/6g24c4
>>>
>>> Money quote: "Though a Marlin .30-30 rested by his knee, Mr. Kennedy
>>> had no intention of firing a shot. Cornering a hog was the job of the
>>> bay dogs, Toby and Buck, the bitch Fire and the pups, Whopper and Nub.
>>> Then the hunters would release the catch dogs, Josie and Roadie, to
>>> hold down their prey. Next it would fall to Mr. Kennedy and Mr. Watson
>>> to restrain the hounds and tie the hog. If all that failed, if a hog
>>> broke loose and went careering toward the road, the older men would
>>> make the kill with the rifles."
>
>> Sounds a whole lot like any hog hunt in the south. Been on many a one
>> when I was a kid. Nothing like a nice fat, acorn fed hog in the fall.
>
> So I have heard. Did you take them alive?
> --
>
> modom
> ** Posted from http://www.teranews.com **
Generally we would hunt them on horseback and load them into a mule
drawn wagon after killing and bleeding them. they were always woods
hogs, just turned loose to run free and eat what they could find. Hogs
are terribly destructive of wildlife and of wild plants so not much of
that is done anymore.

Every year after the piglets were born and about two to three months old
we would go into the woods and run the sows and piglets down but not to
kill them. We would earmark (like a cattle brand but actually a piece(s)
cut out of the ear) the piglets with the same earmark the sow had. All
but one, that one got the earmark of whomever caught them and did the
marking as their reward for doing the work.

This was back in the forties and early fifties prior to "hog laws" being
enacted. Hog law was also called the free range law and meant you could
no longer let your livestock roam free but had to keep them fenced in on
your property. Was a basic safety feature as loose livestock caused lots
of wrecks on highways and some people were even attacked by the stock.

I know there were cattle and hogs still roaming the woods freely in SW
Louisiana in the seventies as I had some property near the Sabine River
and had to fence it off to keep stray cattle out. Nowadays hogs in the
woods in most southern states are considered feral animals and can be
legally harvested any time of the year.

the winter butchering of the hogs and cattle was a big neighborhood
thing with everyone pitching in and sharing the work and the meat. My
Dad had six brothers and sisters and they all had good sized families so
you can imagine what it was like. Lots of food, the occasional music,
everyone smiling and happy with the bounty we got. I don't miss it
though, it was a lot of work, smelly, and went on until well after dark
even starting before sunrise.

George