402 BIG GAME OF NORTH AMERICA. 



intended, only crippled him. He set up a great squealing, 

 and, sure enough, here they came! I was just a little 

 excited, and started for a tree, forgetting my coat and tur- 

 key. I had scarcely time to get up when they were around 

 the tree, and instead of twelve, they kept coming until 

 there were at least two hundred. 



I commenced shooting, and killed five with my rifle, 

 that being the number of shells in my gun. It then 

 occurred to me that my rifle-shells were in my coat; so, 

 having no further use for my rifle, and realizing that it 

 would become a burden -to me if compelled to stay in the 

 tree several hours, as seemed likely, I threw it down. 

 Fortunately, I had both revolvers, and a belt full of car- 

 tridges for them; so I went at them. They were chewing the 

 tree, and climbing over each other trying to get at me. 

 Each shot laid one out, and each shot seemed to make them 

 more and more furious, as they would rush at the tree, and 

 gnaw the bark and wood, while the white flakes of froth fell 

 from their mouths. All at once I remembered that my car- 

 tridges would soon run out, so I quit shooting and watched 

 them. When one would rear up and act as if he w^anted to 

 climb the tree, I would give him a load; then they would rush 

 at the tree again, and bite and gnaw. I tried to count them, 

 and found that there were over two hundred left, and I had 

 killed twenty-three. The position I had was not a comfort- 

 able one, but I had to stand it. Then for the first time I 

 thought of the boys. Had they heard my shooting ? If so, 

 would they come? Then I remembered I had not fired the 

 signal agreed on, and that I . had followed the turkeys up 

 the mountain and down again, and by this time the boys 

 must be four miles up the canon, and on the opposite side. 



The Peccaries showed no signs of leaving. It was now 

 noon, and very warm. They would root around, then 

 come back to the tree, and grunt, and j)aw, and bite the 

 tree; then they would cool down a little, would go a short 

 distance away, root around awhile, then come back again. 

 I was getting tired of being treed, but it was just what we 

 had planned the night before, only we were not all together. 



