3IO 



The Ame?'ican Angler. 



years ago by Bungy Gatewood, the toll- 

 gate keeper, who lives within sight of 

 the spot, that Ayleth fired the first shot, 

 Wise, not being hit, fired his pistol into 

 the air. The matter was then adjusted 

 and the party left for the nearest rail- 

 road station. There seems to be some 

 sort of fascination about this locality for 

 duelists, as just beyond this point is 

 the spot on which a duel was fought 

 between two North Carolina gentlemen 

 a number of years ago. 



At the toll gate we asked an old 

 negro man if there were many birds 

 this season. He said " he didn't pay no 

 'tention to the partridges, but he never 

 seed de like uv ole hares since he was 

 bom. " As we were not in that line, we 

 concluded to ask every man, black and 

 white, we met between this point and 

 Travers' about the birds. I think we 

 asked half-a-dozen and in every in- 

 stance their reply was the same as that 

 of the old man at the toll gate. This 

 may seem strange, but Mr. Travers told 

 us while there, that not one native 

 huntsman in fifty ever shot at par- 

 tridges or noticed them, and that he 

 didn't know a man in the country who 

 could kill two in ten shots on the wing. 

 They all hunt old hares, squirrels and 

 turkeys, and would rather kill one 

 turkey than fifty-eight ounce birds. 



In hunting turkeys they find out 

 where a gang is feeding and flush them 

 just before dark, so that they won't get 

 together before that night; a blind is 

 then built and the huntsman leaves, to 

 return before daybreak in the morning. 

 He gets in the blind and waits until the 

 leader, as they call him, commences to 

 call the flock up. Some of them can 

 imitate the turkey so perfectly that 

 they call them right up to the blind, 

 where they have a double-barrel gun. 

 They load one barrel with No. 6 and 



the other with No. i shot. The sixes 

 are used in close quarters at the tur- 

 key's head, the one at forty or fifty 

 yards. At this distance it is necessary 

 to get a side shot or get them going 

 from you, as it is almost impossible to 

 kill them coming directly toward you, 

 unless you strike them in the head. 

 However, as their style of hunting has 

 nothing to do with our getting to 

 Travers', we will continue our journey. 



" Now, Jake, we will sleep in a house 

 to-night which was used by General 

 Washington during the revolutionary 

 war as his head-quarters, on two oc- 

 casions. Of course they will tell you 

 all about it, and you must say you have 

 heard something of it and want to hear 

 the particulars, which have been hand- 

 ed down from generation to generation. 

 If he hasn't died since our last visit to 

 the farm, you will meet old Sam; I 

 suppose he is at least ninety-five years 

 old ; delights in talking about the Gen- 

 eral; will show you a silver coin which 

 he claims was given him by the Gen- 

 eral; of course you must swallow this, 

 as the old man don't like to have his 

 veracity questioned." 



As the carriage drew up in front of 

 the house everybody turned out to 

 welcome us. They were glad we had 

 come at last ; had heard of our coming 

 so often, and always been disappointed, 

 that they had concluded we would never 

 get there; couldn't have selected a 

 better time, but for the rain, the creeks 

 were very much swollen and the water 

 in the low grounds had driven all the 

 birds up on the hill-sides. Within ten 

 minutes after our arrival we had put 

 the dogs, guns and baggage away and 

 were sitting around the dining room 

 fire discussing the weather probabil- 

 ities. 



From the length of time Miss Mary 



