Pioneer history of Ingham County, compiled and arranged by Mrs. Franc L. Adams, secretary of the Ingham County pioneer and historical society.

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PIONEER HISTORY OF INGHAM COUNTY

him with the terrible sharp hind hoof, cut its throat. He was
dressing it when the dog gave warning again, and looking up, he
saw a drove of hogs coming at a brisk run. The settlers' hogs
ran wild in the woods all summer. They were savage at any time,
and these were especially so now that they had smelt the deer's
blood. Seizing a heavy stick Mr. Swan stood ready, with the dog,
to fight them off as long as possible, but after gazing at him a
moment the leader, a huge boar, curled his tail, and with a whistling
snort wheeled and trotted off into the woods, followed by the
others. More bees came flying by while Mr. Swan was dressing
the deer, and about that time Chief Johnny Okelnos, a prominent
character in Ingham county history, appeared on the scene, carrying a wild turkey over his shoulder, slung from his gun barrel.
He "lined" the bees for Mr. Swan, and they soon found the bee
tree and cut it, and there were five pails of clear honey and a
deer to show for this day's work.
The settlers' sheep and other stock had to be yarded every
night to keep them from the great timber wolves. Mr. Swan was
coon hunting with a party one night when a wolf followed them
in the underbrush. Their dog finally attacked the animal, and
after a fierce battle the wolf broke away, leaving the dog badly
lamed. One monstrous wolf, which had been killing sheep in the
neighborhood, was finally poisoned and sent to a museum to be
mounted. Bears were numerous but not dangerous, except to
stock. Deer roamed the runways in the woods in herds like
sheep, and were almost as easily killed. Wild turkeys were as
numerous and as easy to shoot as sparrows are now. Mr. Swan
went cooning alone one night in the big swamp west of his farm.
Reaching Dobie's lake, eight miles away, he rolled up in the bark of
a tree and slept there until three in the morning, when he started
home, hunting on his way. On reaching home he found that a fur
buyer from Detroit had been waiting over night for him, and he
sold that night's catch of coon and mink skins for $21.
The Indians were always friendly, and used to trade huckleberries to the settlers for provisions. Mr. Swan often visited
them and fiddled for them at their favorite camping ground, on a
little stream three and a half miles east of Mason, where the
Ingham county seat had been formerly located. Some of the
younger white men and women went there one Sunday, and