A hunter's life. 157 



hard task to get him out of the hole, but we succeeded at 

 last, skinned and quartered him, and each carried a quarter 

 to the camp. We went back for the other two the same 

 evening, which we again spent at the camp, returning 

 home the next day. We then sent for our meat, and got 

 it home in fine order. 



This was the last hunt I made in 1804, while I lived at 

 Bear Creek Glades. Having sold all my property to Dr. 

 Brooke, and failing to get one dollar in money from him, 

 he offered me a lot of ground containing fifty acres, which 

 was originally granted to a soldier of the Revolution, Ijut 

 had been sold for the taxes, amounting to two dollars and 

 a few cents. He charged me thirty dollars for it, which I 

 agreed to give, and prepared to move into a little settle- 

 ment, in order that I might be able to procure a horse to 

 bring my bread home, as I could get none nearer than ten 

 miles. 



This lot was entirely under timber, and I had neither 

 property nor money. In a word, I had a wife and four 

 children ; but having neither horse, cow, sheep, nor hog, 

 I was obliged to maintain my family as I best could. In 

 February, 1807, 1 went to work on my lot, cutting timber 

 with which to build a house ; and as I had either to walk 

 five miles to my home, or stay from home, and leave Mary 

 and the children by themselves, she proposed that I should 

 try to procure a house in the neighborhood, and thus save 

 ni}self many a long walk. I went into the settlement, 

 procured a small house ten feet by twelve in size, and soon 

 moved Mary and her four little children into it ; after 

 which I went to grubbing, in order to get some corn 

 planted. 



The time for sugar making having arrived, and every 



family preparing to make their own sugar, Mary asked me 



if I could not get her a camp, and let her make some 



sugar also. 1 'uquired where I could find a small lot of 



14 



