“When this country was first settling up a good many went into the hog-raising business, as they did not think the Indians would steal them, and further, it required so little capital to start with . . . It is strange now we hardly ever see a good acorn mast. In those days [1850s] the timber was always full of acorns, and we killed our hogs fattened on the mast, which made good bacon . . . We would get up before daylight and have breakfast over by daylight and be in the rough on a hog trail. When the dog would get up with the hogs, if they were not too wild they would rally and fight the dog, and we could kill the whole bunch in a pile.” The current feral hogs in Texas are descended from game animals brought to hunting ranches in the 1970s. F.M. Cross, A Short Sketch-History from Personal Reminiscences of Early Days in Central Texas, Brownwood: Greenwood Printing, 1912.