. Ben Hardin; his times and contemporaries, with selections from his speeches. ification in the course of lifefrom youth to age. In youth, he was fond of manly sports requiringphysical strength, skill, and activity, such as running, jumping, wrest-ling, and throwing, and in these surpassed. He loved hunting andfishing, especially the latter. He always kept himself supplied withfish-gigs, seines, and bird-nets. He was an excellent marksman. Histaste for these sports he retained to the last. It is related that hewould take his negro servants and go seining in the Beech Fork, asmall tributary of
. Ben Hardin; his times and contemporaries, with selections from his speeches. ification in the course of lifefrom youth to age. In youth, he was fond of manly sports requiringphysical strength, skill, and activity, such as running, jumping, wrest-ling, and throwing, and in these surpassed. He loved hunting andfishing, especially the latter. He always kept himself supplied withfish-gigs, seines, and bird-nets. He was an excellent marksman. Histaste for these sports he retained to the last. It is related that hewould take his negro servants and go seining in the Beech Fork, asmall tributary of Salt river that ran through his lands, supplyingnot only himself, but his neighbors, with abundance of the delightfulfish that then stocked those waters. His ardor in pursuits requiring physical exertion was not onlyabated by increasing years, but, also, by an injury to his right hand,received in middle life. He was one day in a clearing on his farm,busily engaged in burning log heaps and brush, with a view of pre- •?Lord Macaulay resembled i\Ir. Hardin in this r62 BEN HARDIN. paring the ground for cultivation. While thus occupied some negrolaborers were felling trees. A tree being about to fall, he was warnedto get out of the way, but, not heeding in time, was caught beneaththe falling branches. For a while he was insensible, and it was fearedhe was killed. On returning to consciousness his first observation wasthat he got out of the way, but the d—d tree turned and followedhim. He was severely bruised, but the most serious injury was abroken hand. The bones of the right hand were so fractured as thathis fingers were stiffened, and, to a great extent, rendered afterward in writing he thrust his pen between his crippledfingers, removing it with his left hand to get ink and replacing itagain. -? He was of wonderful ph)sical endurance. He went in professionalpursuits from county to county, often traveling from forty to fifty milesper day ; and these jou
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1880, bookpublisherlouis, bookyear1887
