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RACCOON HUNTING—HUNTING FOR BEES—HUNTING AND TRAPPING —FISHING IN THE
RIVER—THE WILD PIGEONS AND WILD GEESE.
IN the fall of the year, when the corn was
beginning to harden in the ear, the
raccoons, which usually inhabited the hollow
trees and logs in the woods and swamps, would make frequent raids on the
corn patch, and if not stopped would destroy large quantities of corn. In
order to prevent these depredations the farmers and farmers'
sons would organize into bands, and on a clear
frosty night in October, with their dogs trained for
the purpose, and, armed with old guns, would go out to the corn
fields. They would quietly remain on the outskirts of the field with their
dogs until they heard the cry or whistle of the coons in the field, or the
noise they made as they broke off the ears of corn, when the dogs, which
had been waiting impatiently for the fray, were allowed to plunge into the
corn patch after the coons. The men would follow with
their guns and sticks, and as the coons and dogs attacked each other, they
would strike and kill the coons with their sticks and clubs. If the coons
were "treed," 'i.e., obliged to flee and climb into a tree for shelter,
the men and boys would remain underneath, so as to prevent the animals
from escaping, until daylight dawned, when they could see to shoot them.
Sometimes they would build a fire underneath the tree, to enable them to
see the coon, and sometimes they would chop the tree down, so that they
could get at him. The raccoon is, like the bear, a hibernating animal, and
lies dormant in the winter time. They were quite numerous in the backwoods
settlements, and were found frequently in the older settled parts They
live chiefly on nuts and green vegetation, such a corn, clover, etc. They
are harmless and rather cowardly animals, unless cornered, when they will
fight desperately, and frequently came out victors in their fights with
the dogs, when the farmer was not close at hand to help his dogs. They are
sharp, cunning, quick-scented, and keen of eye, and will cry to imitate a
child, and whistle sharply, apparently for the purpose of calling or
answering one another. If a number of them happen together and are
pursued, they will take to the nearest tree and get out on the furthest
branches, or hide in the crotches, where they have been found after being
shot. Their fur is handsomely marked, and is valuable for making into
garments and leather. The leather is one of the strongest to be got, and
is very useful for making laces for shoes and belting.
Hunting for Bees.
In the woods were to be found numerous hollow trees
where escaped swarms of bees had taken up their abode. It was quite a
profitable business at one time to locate these wild rustic hives and rob
the bees of their honey. This was usually done in the fall of the year
when the flower season was nearly over, and after the bees had laid in
their winter's supply of food. The bee hunter would place some honey as a
bait in a small box, and perhaps burn some comb to make an odor to attract
the bees. On a bright sunshiny day he would go out to the woods to "course
the bees." A good place to commence from was the vicinity of a stream,
where the bees were generally to be found in large numbers, having come
there in quest of water. The bee hunter would wait patiently until some
bee, flying around in the sunlight, was attracted by the odor of the burnt
comb, and would fly into the trap prepared for it. After it had gorged
itself with honey it was allowed to wend its way homeward, the direction
it took being carefully noted. The trap was then moved a few rods further
on, in which position it was kept until other bees, which had possibly
been informed by bee No. 1 of its find, would fly into the trap. The
direction they took as they were let out of the trap in turn was noticed
and the trap moved further on, as before. This would be repeated until the
bee hunter arrived in the vicinity of the hive. Sometimes cross scents
would enable him to find several bee trees in which the wild honey was
stored at the same time. The spot where the bee tree was located was
marked and the bees allowed to remain unmolested until late in the fall.
On some cold day, when the bees, being chilled. by the cold, were not so
liable to sting, the tree was chopped down and the honey taken away. If
the season was a good one the hunter was often well rewarded for his
labors and took away honey by the pail, and even tubful. It is said that
bears were fond of honey and, when possible, would rob the log bee hives.
Every country school boy has had the experience of
robbing a bumble bee's nest. How diligently lie would work up the sod and
ground where a nest was supposed to be until he came upon the cone-shaped
sacs full of the sweetest honey. What mattered a few stings, so long as he
found a good supply of nature's luscious nectar. It is said the bumble
bees, when they found they were about to be robbed, would at once commence
to fill themselves with honey and would often leave very little for the
boys. It might be well in this connection to mention how the expression
"bee line" originated. When the bees have filled themselves with honey
they fly up into the air to a certain height and then make a straight line
for home.
NOTE. —It must be remembered that it was only in
cleared or partially cleared sections of the country that bee-hunting was
carried on, as all of the wild swarms had a domesticated ancestry. Many of
the farmyards years ago were dotted with bee hives. If not carefully
watched when swarming time came the new swarms were sure to get away and
find a home for themselves in the neighboring woods.
Hunting and Trapping.
Birds and animals of all kinds were very numerous at
the first settlement of the province. Settlers were then experts in the
use of the gun. Part of the day's toil was the search for and killing of
game, which was looked to as a necessary and regular means of replenishing
the larder, which for the first few years after settlement was not always
any too well supplied. Along the lakes, rivers and creeks, wild fowl, such
as ducks, etc., were to be found in great abundance. In some localities
wild turkeys were very plentiful and venison and bear meat frequently took
the place of beef and pork. The wild geese when flying by would stop to
feed and it was common for some of them to be bagged in numbers by the
pioneer hunter. The peculiar drumming sound made by the partridge could be
heard any day in the woods. Snares were set for rabbits and other animals.
Many animals were killed for their fur. When not easily secured by the
rifle-ball and shot they were trapped. The common trap was the steel trap
with jaws, which was of different sizes. A. very large one was called the
deer gin. Muskrats were caught by small traps of this kind. Bears were
often caught by means of a dead-fall, or bear-pen. The bear-pen was built
of logs, about eight feet long, four feet wide, and five feet high. The
cover or log roof was made so that it could be raised at one end high
enough to admit Mr. Bruin. One of the logs was made longer than the rest
and when the roof was raised it extended behind the pen to the ground,
where it was lightly fastened. To this end of the log was attached a cord,
which had a piece of meat fixed to the other end of the cord in the pen.
The bear attracted by the bait would walk around the pen a number of
times, snuffing as he went, and finally, not being able to resist the
temptation any longer, he would make a leap into the pen, and pull at the
bait., when suddenly down comes the roof, making him a prisoner and
placing him at the mercy of the settler, who soon dispatched poor bruin
with his rifle.
The dead-fall for catching bears and large animals was
made in the following manner: An enclosure was built of logs, an opening
being left on one side to admit the animal. In this opening were fixed
several logs, one on the other, the upper one being raised at one end,
leaving space enough for the victim to crawl through. It was so fastened
that when the animal got part way in and when he pulled at the bait the
log came down upon him and held him fast.
Fishing in the River.
The rivers and lakes teemed with fish, chief among
which were the whitefish, trout, salmon trout, pickerel and pike. In the
Niagara River there were large numbers of sturgeon, some of them measuring
as much as five or six feet in length and weighing sixty or seventy
pounds. The larger fish were caught by trolling and spearing as well as by
nets. To catch pike the fishermen would shoot over the water, when the
fish would come to the surface belly upwards, apparently stunned by the
sound. They would remain in this state for a time, when they were picked
out of the water by hand.
On a fine day, a small boat with several men in it
might be seen remaining almost motionless, except for a slight movement of
the oars, out in the middle of the stream, when all at once one of the men
could be seen moving his hands quickly in the act of drawing in a line,
shortly after which a silvery fish would appear at the surface of the
water and be quickly drawn into the boat.
Frequently on a dark night a light could be seen moving
along the river, which might be mistaken for one of the lights on the
opposite bank only for the dropping into the water of the sparks from the
"Jack- light," and the reflection of the light on the faces of the men as
they moved around, spear in hand, ready t thrust it into the body of the
first fish that made its appearance. The Jack-light was made of fat pine
knots (knots full of pitch), or hickory bark placed in a basket made of
hoop iron hung up to a pole at one end of the boat. The fish were
attracted by this light and would quickly come to the surface, when the
fisherman could sight them and speedily gather them in. In the wintertime
the settlers would cut holes in the ice, through which they would catch
the fish. The fish would gather around the opening in the ice, where they
became easy victims of the hook and the spear. In the spring of the year
the sucker (so called from the shape of its mouth) would swim up the
rivers and creeks to spawn in the shallow running water. Being stopped in
their course by the dams, which they could not get over, the people would
set nets for them at this point and catch large quantities, enough to
supply the whole country round. Another arrangement they had for catching
the fish in the small streams was the "weir," a framework made of stakes
placed close together. This was put across the stream from bank to bank so
as to intercept the fish on their way up, when they would catch them in
groat numbers. This was the Indian plan. The throwing into the water of
the sawdust from the mills situated along the banks of the rivers and
lakes has proven most destructive to the fish, so much so that they are
not nearly as plentiful as they were at one time. The sawdust settled to
the bottom and prevented the fish from spawning and procuring their food.
Since the government has prohibited the throwing of the sawdust into the
streams, in places where a few years ago there was scarcely a fish to be
found they are again becoming plentiful, helped on by the present fishery
regulations and the restocking of the denuded waters.
The Wild Pigeons and Wild Geese.
Every spring and fall the country was visited by
immense flocks of wild pigeons and wild geese; in the fall, on their way
to the south, and in the spring, on their way to their breeding places in
the forests of the north, although in the early days, when the country was
nearly all bush, they frequently selected a suitable place for hatching
out their young, and remained in the locality all summer. The wild geese
were headed by a goose called the "leader," and flew so high in the air
that you might not notice them except for the cackling noise they made in
their flight. The wild pigeons were very plentiful, and were then one of
the pests which the farmer had to contend with, for he was obliged to keep
them off his grain fields, as they were very destructive to the crops.
They were so thickly numerous and packed when they were flying by that
sometimes they fairly darkened the air (some may doubt this, but it is
said to be a fact by some of the old settlers). Oftentimes they would
locate their rookeries or breeding places near the settlements; then there
was lots of pigeon pie to be had, for the people would go out to these
breeding places and bring away pigeons by the bagful, which it was the
custom to make into pigeon pie. They were so thick sometimes that
frequently all that was necessary was to knock them down with sticks.
Sometimes the branches on which they rested would break with their weight,
and kill a number of the pigeons.
Different devices were used for catching the pigeons
when they came around the farm. One of the most simple and ingenious of
these was the figure 4 trap. Three sticks were cut the required size and
notched so that when put together they resembled the figure 4. The grain
for bait was placed on the ground underneath the long stick. The cage was
placed over this, with one end resting on the top of the figure 4, and
holding it in position. As the pigeons came underneath and brushed against
the long stick down came the cage, making them prisoners.
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