Ben is from Benjamin and one definition in
Hebrew of this name is “Son of the South” and you can’t get much further south
than Lowndes County , Alabama Dixie ’
or singing ‘When Irish Eyes are Smiling’ because of what he was looking at
after he found this buck. But here is his story in his own words.
"I've killed several deer over the past few
years of this caliber. It comes from long hours in the stand and from passing
young bucks. Funny thing is on this deer is I was coming home from working with
dad in the woods and decided I'd stop by and check one of the several game
cameras I run almost year round. I had several minutes of shooting light left so
I decided to park and walk to the first camera spot I was going to check. I
usually don't see many deer in this spot but as I rounded the corner in the
road to where I could see the field and it was in there I saw several doe and a
young basket rack buck. They caught my wind and left the field. I changed the
memory card in my pocket and headed to the next camera location. Upon walking
up to it I spotted this buck standing under an oak tree in the edge of the
field with his head down. Immediately I could tell he was a shooter buck. I
propped my Sako .270 on a corner fence post and centered the crosshairs and
squeezed off on him. A puff of smoke came out of my barrel and I couldn't tell
whether I hit the deer or not but as I looked up out of the scope I caught a
glimpse of him running into the thicket so I knew which way he ran. I walked
back to my truck and drove into the field. I searched around where he was
standing for awhile for blood. Unsuccessful I decided to make a short circle
out through the woods. Luckily I stumbled up on him about 50 yards from where
I'd shot him. He was a great buck. No ground shrinkage at all and one of the
biggest bucks I've ever killed. I actually had this deer on camera last year
also and took a shot with my bow at him and missed. It's funny as many hours as
you put in the woods hunting hard that it always seems to be when you least
expect it when you stumble upon a big buck."
Oh, did I mention that this
seasoned hunter is only in his mid 20s?!
The Mule That Could
Old timers will remember that way back in the
1950s there were mules in the movies and on television, Francis and Ed who
could talk. Now if you believe that, let me tell you about this farmer who had
a mule that could point a covey of quail. A gentleman from the city came to see
his farmer friend and was informed about the unusual ability of this mule. The
friend didn’t believe that any mule could ‘point a covey of quail.’ Well, the
story goes that the farmer got the mule out of the barn and the three headed
for the cover of weeds and tall grass where quail could be found. All of a
sudden the mule stopped and pointed with its long snout. The farmer assured his
friend that the mule had located a covey of quail. The friend still did not
believe that a mule was able to accomplish such a feat. The mule then stomped
with its right hoof and up flew, believe it or not, a covey of quail. The mule
continued to point out birds until they came to a creek. The friend suggested
they cross the creek and look for birds on the other side. The farmer replied
that it was impossible to do so and his friend asked ‘why’? The farmer said
that his mule would never make it across the creek and his friend with a big
question mark on his face again asked, ‘Why’? The farmer replied in no
uncertain terms, ‘because he is a better fisherman than he is a hunter.’
