The Boy Hunters of Kentucky

by Edward Sylvester Ellis

Young George Burton, who was short and stout, carried a blanket done up in a compact bundle, and strapped to his back, that being about the only burden of which he was given charge, the other extras being at the command of his big brother.

You will observe that not one of the boys had a dog with him. Jack Gedney had been the owner of a fine hunter, but that had been killed in a fight with two bears only a month before. Mr. Burton had a good animal, but he preferred to keep him at home, where his intelligence was valuable. He gave notice of the approach of strangers in ample time to take all precaution against surprise. He was especially useful at night, when the most cautious Indian would have found it hard to steal up to the cabin without detection.

Besides, the young hunters were in less need of such an animal than you would think. During these later days, when the instinct of the brutes seem to be necessary to the most skilled sportsman, that man would be foolish who expected much success without one to help him. But a hundred years ago game was so plentiful along the river Ohio that the hunter could do very well without the aid of a dog. In the broad stretches of clearing or prairie roamed droves, numbering many hundreds, of American bison, or buffalo, as they are wrongly called; while the bears who at that season of the year were hunting for food, and the deer, wolves, and other animals, were so numerous that there was no excuse for any one failing to find them.

Such a buoyant party of young hunters are not likely to linger long over their farewells. Within the three minutes following the warning of Mr. Burton of what would follow if they overstayed their time all three were out of sight of the cabin.

The direction taken was almost due south where there were many miles of forest in which some at least of the wild animals had not yet seen a white man; more than likely many of them had not met a redskin for if they had done so they would not have been allowed to live to remember it.

Since there was no path to follow, the boys walked beside each other. This was because they could talk better than in Indian file, and three such lads as those I am telling you about could not have been persuaded to keep still by the offer of several fortunes in gold.

It surely is unsportsman-like to go hunting in that fashion. Not only were they without dogs (for which I have given you a reason), but they kept together, and talked a great deal, whereas professional hunters would have separated whenever in the neighbourhood of game, and taken all pains to steal upon the animals before the latter could find out their danger.

The boys, however, stepped so softly upon the dry leaves that the rustling could be heard but a short distance, and they talked in such low voices that they might have passed close to a camp of Indians without discovery.

And then, too, no matter how great their interest in what they said, they were always on the alert. They glanced from side to side, just as Jack Gedney did when walking along the path between his home and that of his friends.

For a time the wood was quite open, so that they were able to travel with little trouble. Now and then came breaks in their conversation, caused by the big tree trunks around which they had to pass. Then, too, the undergrowth was so dense that they sometimes involuntarily dropped into Indian file, and advanced in silence. In other parts of Kentucky there were long stretches of cane-brake so close that an Indian has passed within four feet of the fugitive for whom he was hunting without seeing him.