302 



RECREATION 



Channel cat. It was my agreeable 

 duty to fold the turkey's feet, roll the 

 fish in meal, prepare the venison, and 

 curl them all up side by side in a capa- 

 cious Dutch oven, and the aroma when 

 the oven lid was lifted was calculated 

 to arrest an angel in her flight. 



Well, one Sunday afternoon, Tom- 

 my remarked to me : "Frank, all the 

 other fellows have had a hunt, what 

 do you say if we try our luck?" Tom- 

 my was certainly a good fellow, for, 

 after all, the word ''fellow" only means 

 "companion," and I adopted the sug- 

 gestion without the slightest hesita- 

 tion. Tommy shouldered her time- 

 honored "Wells-Fargo" and I appro- 

 priated "Let'r go" Johnson's Savage, 

 and we were soon trudging up the 

 wash. Tommy's laced boots and over- 

 alls invited no more familiarities from 

 the clinging, affectionate cat claws and 

 "cholTas^ than did my corduroy, and 

 very soon we found ourselves a mile 

 from camp, straining our eyes for deer 

 and our ears for the welcome, tumult- 

 uous call of the juvenile turkey pullet. 



We had just left the wash and were 

 making a near cut over a low bar when 

 " Wuh ! wuh ! wuh ! wuh !" came a 

 challenging clatter from the chaparral, 

 followed by a dozen ominous "Buh ! 

 buh's !" and I knew there was pork 

 around there close. 



"Frank," remarked Tommy in the 

 coolest possible frame of mind, "what's 

 that?" "Those are javilinos, Tommy," 

 I replied. "Frank," came back Tom- 

 my, "had we better shoot?" "Tom- 

 my," said I, "do you see that big rock 

 down there in the wash?" "You bet I 

 do," replied Tommy. "Well, then," 

 said I, "you get up that rock just as 

 quick — I hadn't time to add the 'ly' — 

 just as quick as you can and I'll be 

 right after you. Now don't get ex- 

 cited and shoot some of us." 



Tommy was never known to be ex- 

 cited. I was the excited party, partly 

 because I knew the danger and partly 

 because I am built that way, and I was 

 worried at the deliberation with which 



she scaled that rock. The fact is, I was 

 there first, as there was room for two 

 to climb, and we had no more than 

 perched on top of it till out came the 

 javilinos ! 



They are about two and one-half feet 

 long, about eighteen inches high, about 

 two inches thick* and if hung up in 

 the middle the head end would dip 

 like a window weight. Their long bris- 

 tles are as coarse as porcupine quills 

 and they throw them forward when 

 making a charge in a way that would 

 "rattle" almost any hunter. 



Since we were so securely fortified 

 their sudden formidable appearance did 

 not disturb me and I sought to disguise 

 my flurry by a slight pleasantry. "Pick 

 your piece of pork, Tommy," said I. 



"That sugar-coated fellow there in 

 the middle looks good to me," said 

 Tommy, and down went the pig under 

 the fusillade of the Wells-Fargo. The 

 squeal that went up along with the 

 smell of blood made them absolutely 

 ferocious. There were only nine of 

 them and they circled around that rock 

 and the marks of their tusks can be 

 seen upon it to-day unless obliterated 

 by storm and flood. One by one we 

 struck them down until only two were 

 left, when they evidently concluded that 

 it was a lost battle and retired. Going 

 home, Tommy remarked : "Frank that 

 was a pretty lucky boulder, after all, 

 wasn't it?" 



It is unnecessary to state that the 

 boys came to our rescue, imagining that 

 we were surrounded by Yaquis, and 

 Tommy and I went hunting no more, 

 as we thought it best to subside while 

 our reputations were up. Some of the 

 younger ones made very fine eating 

 along with "camotis" sweet potatoes, 

 with which the Yaqui valley abounds. f 



* More accurately speaking, 3 feet long 16 

 inches high, short, slender legs, and tail not 

 worth mentioning. 



t Guess it was the young ones which Frank 

 and Tommy ate, all right ! These "hogs" have a 

 skin opening on their dorsal line, just above 

 the navel, which contains a flavoring almost 

 as fetching as that of ^ skunk. — Hank Hen- 

 nings. 



