& S 
 
 Francisco. 
 
 University of California Berkeley 
 
 Gift of 
 Mrs. Edwin GraWiorn 
 
THE 
 
 HUNTERS' FE^LST. 
 
HP// 1 /! I 
 
THE 
 
 | HUNTERS' FEAST; | 
 
 OB, 
 
 CONVERSATIONS 
 
 AEOUND THE CAMP-FIRE. 
 
 BY CAPT. MAYNE KEID, 
 
 ATTTHOB OF "THE BIFLE BANGERS," "THE SCALP HTTNTEB8," MO. 
 
 Wtttfb 35tjg)jt rtfitnal ffiwfjjn*, SEnfitaiti ij N. rr 
 
 NEW YOEK: 
 DE WITT & DAVENPORT, PUBLISHERS, 
 
 160 & 162 NASSAU STREET. 
 1856. 
 
~v- / 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER 
 
 I. A HUNTING PARTY . i^ ..f : .% . * 
 
 II. THE CAMP AND CAMP-FIRE . ''.. .^ . _ * . < . . 20 
 
 iii. BESAN^ON'S ADVENTURES IN THE SWAMPS . . .26 
 
 IV. THE PASSENGER PIGEONS . . . . .41 
 
 V. HUNT "WITH A HOWITZER .. * . ' ' . . .48 
 
 VI. KILLING A COUGAK C . > -" . . - 67 
 
 VH. THE COUGAR . V. . > ' r . . . 61 
 
 vra. OLD IKE'S ADVENTURE i . ^" * .65 
 
 IX. THE MUSQUASH . ^ . ' "> ..'*,, . . . *76 
 
 X. A RAT-HUNT * ; . . . . . .83 
 
 XI. MOSQUITOES AND THEIR ANTIDOTE . . .89 
 
 XII. THE 'COON, AND HIS HABITS . '..-"* .95 
 
 xm. A 'COON CHASE y'*; . ' , . . 100 
 
 XTV. WILD HOGS OF THE WOODS . . V . . 109 
 
 XV. TREED BY PECCARIES . . . . . .113 
 
 XVI. A DUCK-SHOOTING ADVENTURE . . . . .126 
 
 XVTL HUNTING THE VICUNA . . . ' '"-". . .139 
 
 XVm. A CHACU OF VICUNAS . . ' > . . . 151 
 
 XIX. SQUIRREL SHOOTING . . . . . .162 
 
 XX. TREEING A BEAR ...... 169 
 
 XXL THE BLACK BEAR OF AMERICA. . . 173 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 THE TKAPPEE TRAPPED ..... 179 
 
 XXm. THE AMERICAN DEER . . . .187 
 
 XXIV. DEER-HUNT IN A " DUG-OUT" . . . . .198 
 
 XXV. OLD IKE AND THE GRIZZLY . . . .216 
 
 XXVL A BATTLE WITH GRIZZLY BEARS . . . .227 
 
 XXVIL THE SWANS OF AMERICA * 238 
 
 XXVm. HUNTING THE MOOSE "'V* - V ' . . . 249 
 
 THE PRAIRIE WOLF AND WOLF KILLER . .' .266 
 
 HUNTING THE TAPIR . . . . . 278 
 
 ADVENTURE WITH A BUFFALO .... 289 
 
 THE BISON . * / , 305 
 
 XXXIIL TRAILING THE BUFFALO . . . . . . 315 
 
 XXXIV. APPROACHING THE BUFFALO . % .*' "* -' ' ^ ggg 
 
 XXXV. UNEXPECTED GUESTS . ! :*" ~ ~ t f ' "" = :"" . .331 
 
 XXX VL A SUPPER OF WOLF-MUTTON . . . . .339 
 
 XXXVIL HARE HUNTING AND CRICKET DRIVING . . . 844 
 
 XXXVm. A GRAND BATTUE ...... 851 
 
 THE ROUTE HOME . . . . . . 857 
 
PKEFACE. 
 
 I HAVE spent some years in the " Far West," I have ridden 
 wildly with the hunter, and strolled quietly with the naturalist. 
 I excel not in the chase, I excel not in a knowledge of natural 
 history but both I love. In my memory of prairie life, these 
 two things are intimately connected with each other ; for the 
 reason, perhaps, that both were followed at the same time. In 
 the same excursion I was hunter and naturalist. 
 
 And now, from the world's metropolis, as I look back upon 
 these wild scenes, my mind yields itself up to sweet remem 
 brances sweeter than the retrospect of war a fresher memory 
 sweeter even than the recollections of school and college 
 days, or the days of childhood. I love to paint those scenes 
 with words ; for, while so occupied, I feel as if they were again 
 passing before me. 
 
 For this reason the " Hunters' Feast" has been written. On 
 the score of its literary merit the author neither claims nor 
 expects credit. It is addressed to men of tastes similar to his 
 own ; and if such derive from it an hour's gratification, he will 
 be quite satisfied with his task. 
 
THE HMTEBS' FEAST. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 A HUNTING PARTY. 
 
 ON the western bank of the Mississippi, twelve miles below 
 the embouchure of the Missouri, stands the large town of St. 
 Louis, poetically known as the " Mound City." Although there 
 are many other large towns throughout the Mississippi Valley, 
 St. Louis is the true metropolis of the " far west" of that semi- 
 civilised, ever-changing belt of territory known as the " Fron 
 tier." 
 
 St. Louis 'is one of those American cities in the history of 
 which there is something of peculiar interest. It is one of the 
 oldest of North- American settlements, having been a French 
 trading port at an early period. 
 
 Though not so successful as their rivals the English, there was 
 a degree of picturesqueness about French colonisation, that, in 
 the present day, strongly claims the attention of the American 
 poet, novelist, and historian. Their dealings with the Indian 
 aborigines the facile manner in which they glided into the 
 habits of the latter meeting them more than halfway between 
 civilisation ajid savage life the handsome nomenclature which 
 they have scattered freely, and which still holds over the trans- 
 territories the introduction of a new race (the 
 
10 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 half blood peculiarly French) the heroic and ad?t irons 
 character of their earliest pioneers, De Salle Marquette, Father 
 Hennepin, &c. their romantic explorations and melancholy fate 
 all these circumstances have rendered extremely interesting 
 the early history of the French in America. Even the Quixo 
 tism of some of their attempts at colonisation cannot fail to inter 
 est us, as at Gallipolis on the Ohio, a colony composed of expa 
 triated people of the French court ; perruquiers, coachbuilders, 
 tailors, modistes, and the like. Here, in the face of hostile In 
 dians, before an acre of ground was cleared, before the slightest 
 provision was made for their future subsistence, the first house 
 erected was a large log structure, to serve as the salon du bal ! 
 
 Besides its French origin, St. Louis possesses many other 
 points of interest. It has long been the entrepot and depot of 
 commerce with the wild tribes of the prairie-land. There the 
 trader is supplied with his stock for the Indian market his red 
 and green blankets his beads and trinkets his rifles, and pow 
 der, and lead ; and there, in return, he disposes of the spoils of 
 the prairie collected in many a far and perilous wandering. 
 There the emigrant rests on his way to his wilderness home ; and 
 the hunter equips himself before starting forth on some new ex 
 pedition. 
 
 To the traveller, St. Louis is a place of peculiar interest. He 
 will hear around him the language of every nation in the civil 
 ised world. He will behold faces of every hue and variety 
 of expression. He will meet with men of every possible calling. 
 
 All this is peculiarly true in the latter part of the summer 
 season. Then the motley population of New Orleans fly from 
 the annual scourge of the yellow fever, and seek safety in the 
 cities that lie farther north. Of these St Louis is a favourite 
 " city of refuge," the Creole element of its population being re 
 lated to that kindred race in the South, and keeping up with ii 
 this annual correspondence. 
 
 In one of these streams of migration I had found my way to 
 
A HUNTING PARTY. 11 
 
 St. Louis, in the autumn of 18 . The place was at the time 
 filled with loungers, who seemed to have nothing else to do but 
 kill time. Every hotel has its quota, and in every verandah and 
 at the corners of the streets you might see small knots of well- 
 dressed gentlemen trying to entertain each other, and laugh away 
 the hours. Most of them were the annual birds of passage 
 from New Orleans, who had fled from the " yellow Jack," and 
 were sojourning here till the cold frosty winds of November should 
 drive that intruder from the " crescent city ;" but there were 
 many other flaneurs as well. There were travellers from Europe 
 men of wealth and rank who had left behind them the luxu 
 ries of civilised society, to rough it for a season in the wild West 
 painters in search of the picturesque naturalists whose love 
 of their favourite study had drawn them from their comfortable 
 closets to search for knowledge under circumstance of extremest 
 difficulty and sportsmen, who tired of chasing small game, 
 were on their way to the great plains to take part in the noble 
 sport of hunting the buffalo. I was myself one of the last named 
 fraternity. 
 
 There is no country in the world so addicted to the table (Thole 
 as America, and that very custom soon makes idle people 
 acquainted with each other. I was not very long in the place 
 before I was upon terms of intimacy with a large number of 
 these loungers, and I found several, like myself, desirous of mak 
 ing a hunting expedition to the prairies. This chimed in with 
 my plans to a nicety, and I at once set about getting up the 
 expedition. I found five others who were willing to join me. 
 
 After several conversaziones, with much discussion, we suc 
 ceeded at length in "fixing" our plan. Each was to "equip" 
 according to his own fancy, though it was necessary for each 
 to provide himself with a riding horse or mule. After that, 
 a general fund was to be " raised," to be appropriated to the 
 purchase of a waggon and team, with tents, stores, and cook 
 ing utensils. A couple of professional hunters were to be 
 
12 THE HUNTEP.3 1 FEAST. 
 
 engaged ; men who knew the ground to be traversed, and who 
 were to act as guides to the expedition. 
 
 About a week was consumed, in making the necessary pre 
 parations, and at the end of that time, under the sunrise of a 
 lovely morning, a small cavalcade was seen to issue from the 
 back suburbs of St. Louis, and, climbing the undulating slopes 
 in its rear, head for the far-stretching wilderness of the prairies. 
 It was our hunting expedition. 
 
 The cavalcade consisted of eight mounted men, and a waggon 
 with its full team of six tough mules. These last were under the 
 manege of " Jake " a free negro, with a shining black face, 
 a thick full mop, and a set of the best " ivories," which were 
 almost always uncovered in a smile. 
 
 Peeping from under the tilt of the waggon might be seen 
 another face strongly contrasting with that of Jake. 'This had 
 been originally of a reddish hue, bat sun-tan, and a thick sprink 
 ling of freckles, had changed the red to golden yellow. A 
 shock of fiery hair surmounted this visage, which was partially 
 concealed under a badly-battered hat. Though the face of the 
 black expressed good-humour, it might have been called sad when 
 brought into comparison with that of the little red man, which 
 peeped out beside it. Upon the latter, there was an expression 
 irresistibly comic the expression of an actor in broad farce. 
 One eye was continually on the wink, while the other looked 
 knowingly enough for both. A short clay-pipe, stuck jauntily 
 between the lips, added to the comical expression of the face, 
 which was- that of Mike Lanty from Limerick, No one ever 
 mistook the nationality of Michael. 
 
 Who were the eight cavaliers that accompanied the waggotf ? 
 Six of them were gentlemen by birth and education. At least 
 half that number were scholars. The other two laid no claim 
 either to gentleness or scholarship they were rude trappers 
 the hunters and guides of the expedition. 
 
 A word about each one of the eight, for there was not one of 
 
A. HUNTING PARTI. 13 
 
 them without his peculiarity. First, there was an Englishman 
 a genuine type of his countrymen full six feet high, well pro 
 portioned, with broad chest and shoulders, and massive limbs. 
 Hair of a light brown, complexion florid, moustache and whis 
 kers full and haycoloured, but suiting well the complexion and 
 features. The last were regular, and if not handsome, at least 
 good humored and noble in their expression. The owner was in 
 reality a nobleman a true nobleman one of that class who, 
 while travelling the " States/ 7 have the good sense to carry their 
 umbrella along, and leave their title behind them. To us he 
 was known as Mr. Thompson, and, after some time, when we 
 had all become familiar with each other as plain " Thompson." 
 It was enly long after, and by accident, that I became acquaint 
 ed with his rank and title ; some of our companions do not know 
 it to this day. but that is of no consequence. I mention the cir 
 cumstance here to aid me in illustrating the character of our 
 travelling companion, who was " close" and modest almost to a 
 fault. 
 
 His costume was characteristic. A " tweed " shooting jacket, 
 of course, with eight pockets a vest of the same material with 
 four tweed trowsers, and a tweed cap. In the waggon was 
 the hat-box, of strong yellow leather, with straps and padlock. 
 This was supposed to contain the dress hat ; and some of the 
 party were merry about it. But no Mr. Thompson was a more 
 experienced traveller than his companions thought him at first. 
 The contents of the hat-case were sundry brushes including 
 one for the teeth combs, razors, and pieces of soap. The hat 
 had been left at St. Louis. 
 
 But the umbrella had not. It was then under Thompson's 
 arm, with its full proportions of whalebone and gingham. Under 
 that umbrella he had hunted tigers in the jungles of India 
 under that umbrella he had chased the lion upon the plains of 
 Africa under that umbrella he had pursued the ostrich and the 
 vicuna over the pampas of South America ; and now under that 
 
14 THE HUNTERS 7 FEAbl. 
 
 same hemisphere of blue gingham he was about to carry terror 
 and destruction among the wild buffaloes of the prairies. 
 
 Besides the umbrella strictly a weapon of defence Mr. 
 Thompson carried another, a heavy double-barrelled gun, marked 
 " Bishop, of Bond Street," no bad weapon with a loading of 
 buck shot, and with this both barrels were habitually loaded. 
 
 So much for Mr. Thompson, who may pass for No. 1 of the 
 hunting party. He was mounted on a strong bay cob, with 
 tail cut short, and English saddle, both of which objects the 
 short tail and the saddle were curiosities to all the party except 
 Mr. Thompson and myself. 
 
 No. 2 was as unlike No. 1 as two animal^ of the same species 
 could possibly be. He was a Kentuckian, full six inches taller 
 than Thompson, or indeed than any of the party. Hia features 
 were marked, prominent and irregular, and this irregularity was 
 increased by a " cheekful" of half-chewed tobacco. His com 
 plexion was dark, almost olive, and the face quite naked, without 
 either moustache or whisker ; but long straight hair, black as 
 an Indian's, hung down to his shoulders. In fact, there was a 
 good deal of the Indian look about him, except in his figure 
 That was somewhat slouched, with arms and limbs of over-length, 
 loosely hung about it. Both, however, though not modelled 
 after the Apollo, were evidently full of muscle and tough strength, 
 and looked as though their owner could return the hug of a 
 bear with interest. There was a gravity in his look, but that 
 was not from any gravity of spirits ; it was his swarth complex 
 ion that gave him this appearance, aided, no doubt, by several 
 lines of " ambeer " proceeding from the corners of his mouth iu 
 the direction of the chin. So far from being grave, this dark 
 Kentuckian was as gay and buoyant as any of the party. 
 Indeed, a light and boyish spirit is a characteristic of the Ken 
 tuckian as well as of all the natives of the Mississippi Valley 
 at least such has been my observation. 
 
 Our Kentuckian was costumed just as he would have been 
 
THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 16 
 
 upon a cool morning riding about the " woodlawn" on his own 
 plantation, for a " planter " he was. He wore a " Jeans fro ck 
 and over that a long-tailed overcoat of the best green blanket, 
 with side pockets and flaps. His jeans pantaloons were stuck 
 into a pair of heavy horse-leather pegged boots, sometimes known 
 as " nigger " boots ; but over these were " wrappers " of green 
 baize, fastened with a string above the knees. His hat was a 
 " broad-brimmed felt/' costly enough, but somewhat crushed by 
 being sat upon and slept in. He bestrode a tall raw-boned 
 steed that possessed many of the characteristics of the rider ; 
 and in the samo proportion that the latter overtopped his com 
 panions, so did the steed outsize all the other horses of the cav 
 alcade. Over the shoulders of the Kentuckian were suspended, 
 by several straps, pouch, horn, and haversack, and resting upon 
 his toe was the butt of a heavy rifle, the muzzle of which reached 
 to a level with his shoulder. 
 
 He was a rich Kentucky planter, and known in his native 
 state as a great deer-hunter. Some business or pleasure had 
 brought him to St. Louis. It was hinted that Kentucky was 
 becoming too thickly settled for him deer becoming scarce, and 
 bear hardly to be found and that his visit to St. Louis had 
 something to do with seeking a new " location" where these ani 
 mals were still to be met with in greater plenty. The idea of 
 buffalo-hunting was just to his liking. The expedition would 
 carry him through the frontier country, where he might after 
 wards choose his " location " at all events the sport would 
 repay him, and he was one of the most enthusiastic in regard 
 to 'it. 
 
 He that looms up on the retrospect of my memory as No. 3 
 was as unlike the Kentuckian, as the latter was to Thompson. 
 He was a disciple of Esculapius not thin and pale, as these 
 usually are, but fat, red, and jolly. I think he was originally 
 a " Yankee," though his long residence in the Western States 
 had rubbed the Yankee out of him to a great extent. At all 
 
16 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 events he had few of their characteristics about him. Hvj was 
 neither staid, sober, nor, what is usually alleged as a trait of the 
 true bred Yankee, " stingy." On the contrary, our doctor was 
 full of talk and joviality generous to a fault. A fault, indeed : 
 for, although many years in practice in various parts of the 
 United States, and having earned large sums of money, at the 
 date of our expedition we found him in St. Louis almost with 
 out a dollar, and with no great stock of patients. The truth 
 must be told ; the doctor was of a restless disposition, and 
 liked ir glass too well. He was a singer too, a fine amateur 
 singer, with a voice equal to Mario's. That may partly account 
 for his failure in securing a fortune. He was a favourite with 
 all ladies included and so fond of good company, that he 
 preferred the edge of the jovial board to the bed-side of a 
 patient. 
 
 Not from any fondness for buffalo-hunting, but rather through 
 an attachment to some of the company, had the doctor volun 
 teered'. Indeed, he was solicited by all to make one of us 
 partly on account of his excellent society, and partly that his 
 professional services might be called into requisition before our 
 return. 
 
 The doctor still preserved his professional costume of black 
 somewhat russet by long wear but this was modified by a 
 close-fitting fur cap, and wrappers of brown cloth, which he 
 wore around his short thick legs. -He was not over-well mounted 
 a very spare little horse was all he had, as his funds would not 
 stretch to a better It was quite a quiet one, however, and 
 carried the doctor and his " medical saddle bags/' steadily 
 enough, though not without a good deal of spurring and whip 
 ping. The doctor's name was " Jopper" Dr. John Jopper 
 
 A very elegant youth, with fine features, rolling black eyes, 
 and luxuriant curled hair, was one of us. The hands were well 
 formed and delicate ; the complexion silky, and of nearly an 
 olive tint ; but the purplish-red broke through upon his cheeks, 
 
A HUNTING PARTY. 17 
 
 giving the earnest of health, as well as adding to the picturesque 
 beauty of his face. The form was perfect, and full of manly 
 expression,_and the pretty sky-blue plaited pantaloons and close- 
 fitting jacket of the same material, sat gracefully on his well- 
 turned limbs and arms. These garments were of " cottonade," 
 that beautiful and durable fabric peculiar to Louisiana, and so 
 well suited to the southern climate. A costly Panama hat cast 
 its shadow over the wavy curls and pictured cheek of this youth, 
 and a cloak of fine broadcloth, with velvet facings, hung 
 loosely from his shoulders. A slight moustache and imperial 
 lent a manlier expression to his chiselled features. 
 
 This young fellow was a creole of Louisiana a student of 
 one of the Jesuit Colleges of that State and although very 
 unlike what would be expected from such a dashing personage, 
 he was an ardent, even passionate, lover of nature. Though 
 still young, he was the most accomplished botanist in his State, 
 and had already published several discoveries in the Flora of 
 the South. 
 
 Of course the expedition was to him a delightful anticipation. 
 It would afford the finest opportunity for prosecuting his 
 favourite study in a new field ; one as yet almost unvisited by 
 the scientific traveller. The young Creole was known as Jules 
 Besancon. 
 
 He was not the only naturalist of the party. Another was 
 with us ; one who had already acquired a world-wide fame ; 
 whose name was as familiar to the savans of Europe as to his 
 own countrymen. He was already an old man, almost venera 
 ble in his aspect, but his tread was firm, and his arm still strong 
 enough to steady his long, heavy, double-barrelled rifle. An 
 ample coat of dark blue covered hisr- body ; his limbs were 
 enveloped in long buttoned leggings of drab cloth, and a cap of 
 sable surmounted his high, broad forehead. Under this his 
 bluish grey eye glanced with a calm but clear intelligence, and 
 a single look from it satisfied you that you were in the presence 
 
18 
 
 of a superior mind. Were I to give the name of this person, 
 this would readily be acknowledged. For certain reasons I 
 cannot do this. Suffice it to say, he was one of the most dis 
 tinguished of modern zoologists, and to his love for the study 
 we were indebted for his companionship upon our hunting 
 expedition. He was known to us as Mr. A the "hunter- 
 naturalist." There was no jealousy between him and the young 
 Besan^on. On the contrary, a similarity of tastes soon brought 
 about a mutual friendship, and the Creole was observed to treat 
 the other with marked deference and regard. 
 
 I may set myself down as No. 6 of the party. Let a short 
 description of me suffice. I was then but a young fellow* 
 educated somewhat better than common ; fond of wild sports ; 
 not indifferent to a knowledge of nature ; fond almost to folly 
 of a good horse, and possessing one of the very best ; not 
 ill-looking in the face, and of middle stature ; costumed in a 
 light hunting-shirt of embroidered buckskin, with fringed cape 
 and skirt ; leggings of scarlet cloth, and cloth forage-cap, cover 
 ing a flock of dark hair. Powder-flask and pouch of tasty 
 patterns ; belt around the waist, with hunting-knife and pistols 
 revolvers. A light rifle in one hand, and in the other a 
 bridle-rein, which guided a steed of coal blackness; one that 
 would have been celebrated in song by a troubadour of the 
 olden time. A deep Spanish saddle of stamped leather; 
 holsters with bearskin covers in front ; a scarlet blanket, folded 
 and strapped on the croup ; lasso and haversack hanging from 
 the " horn " voild tout ! 
 
 There are two characters still undescribed. Characters of no 
 mean importance were they the " guides." They were called 
 respectively, Isaac Bradley and Mark Redwood. A brace of 
 trappers they were, but as different from each other in personal 
 appearance as two men could well be. Redwood was a man of 
 large dimensions, and apparently as strong as a buffalo, while his 
 confrere was a thin, wiry, sinewy mortal, with a tough, weazel- 
 
A HUNTING PARTY. 19 
 
 like look and gait. The expression of Redwood's countenance 
 was open and manly, his eyes were grey, his hair light- coloured, 
 and huge brown whiskers covered Jiis cheeks. Bradley, on the 
 other hand, was dark his eyes small, black, and piercing his 
 face as hairless as an Indian's, and bronzed almost to the 
 Indian hue, with the black hair of his head closely cropped 
 around it. 
 
 Both these men were dressed in leather from head to foot, 
 yet they were very differently dressed. Redwood wore the 
 usual buckskin hunting-shirt, leggings and moccasins, but all of 
 full proportions and well cut, while his large coon-skin cap, with 
 the plume-like tail, had an imposing appearance. Bradley's 
 garments, on the contrary, were tight-fitting and "skimped.' 7 
 His hunting-shirt was without cape, and adhered so closely to 
 his body that it appeared only an outer skin of the man himself 
 His leggings were pinched and tight. Shirt, leggings, and 
 moccasins were evidently of the oldest kind, and as dirty as a 
 cobbler's apron. A close-fitting otter cap, with a Mackinaw 
 blanket, completed the wardrobe of Isaac Bradley. He was 
 equipped with a pouch of greasy leather hanging by an old 
 black strap, a small .buffalo-horn suspended by a thong, and a 
 belt of buffalo-leather, in which was stuck a strong blade, with 
 its handle of buckhorn. His rifle was of the "tallest" kind 
 being full six feet in height in fact, taller than he was, and at 
 least four-fifths of the weapon consisted of barrel. The straight 
 narrow stock was a piece of manufacture that had proceeded 
 from the hands of the trapper himself. 
 
 Redwood's rifle was also a long one, but of more modern 
 build and fashion, and his equipments pouch, powder-horn, and 
 belt were of a more tasty design and finish. 
 
 Such were our guides, Redwood and Bradley. They were 
 no imaginary characters these. Mark Redwood was a cele 
 brated "mountain man" at that time, and Isaac Bradley 
 will be recognized by many when I give him the name and 
 
20 THE HUNTER'S FEAST. 
 
 title by which he was then known viz. " Old Ike, the wolf- 
 killer." 
 
 Redwood rode a strong horse, of the half-hunter breed, while 
 the "wolf-killer" was mounted upon one of the scraggiest- 
 looking quadrupeds it would be possible to imagine an old 
 mare " mustang." 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 THE CAMP AND CAMP-FIRE. 
 
 OUR route was west by south. The nearest point with which 
 we expected to fall in with the buffalo was two hundred miles 
 distant. We might travel three hundred without seeing one, 
 and even much farther at the present day ; but a report had 
 reached St. Louis that the buffalo had been seen that year 
 upon the Osage River, west of the Ozark Hills, and towards 
 that point we steered our course. We expected in about 
 twenty days to fall in with the game. Fancy a cavalcade of 
 hunters making a journey of twenty days to get upon the field ! 
 The reader will, no doubt, say we were in earnest. 
 
 At the time of which I am writing, a single day's journey 
 from St. Louis carried the traveller clear of civilized life. 
 There were settlements beyond ; but these were sparse and 
 isolated a few small towns and plantations upon the main 
 watercourses and the whole country between them was an 
 uninhabited wilderness. We had no hope of being sheltered by 
 a roof until our return to the mound city itself, but we had 
 provided ourselves with a couple of tents, part of the freight of 
 our waggon. 
 
 There are but few parts of the American wilderness where 
 
THE CAMP AND CAMP-FIRE. 21 
 
 the traveller can depend upon wild game for a subsistence. 
 Even the skilled hunter when stationary is sometimes put to his 
 wits' end for "daily bread." Upon the "route" no great 
 opportunity is found of killing game, which always requires 
 time to approach it with caution. Although we passed through 
 what appeared to be excellent cover for various species of wild 
 animals, we reached our first camp without having ruffled either 
 hair or feathers. In fact, neither bird nor quadruped had been 
 seen, although almost every one of the party had been on the 
 lookout for game during most of the journey. 
 
 This was rather discouraging, and we reasoned that if such 
 was to be our luck*until we got into the buffalo range we should 
 have a very dull time of it. We were well provisioned, however, 
 and we regretted the absence of game only on account of the 
 sport. A large bag of biscuit, and one of flour, several pieces 
 of " hung bacon," some dry ox-tongues, a stock of green coffee, 
 sugar, and salt, were the principal and necessary stores. There 
 were " luxuries," too, which each had provided according to his 
 fancy, though not much of these, as every one of the party had 
 had some time or other in his life a little experience in the way 
 of " roughing it." Most of the loading of the waggon consisted 
 of provender for our horses and mules. 
 
 We made full thirty miles on the first day. Our road was a 
 good one. We passed over easy undulations, most of them 
 covered with " black jack." This is a species of dwarf oak, so 
 called from the very dark color of its wrinkled bark. It is 
 almost worthless as timber, being too small for most purposes. 
 It is ornamental, however, forming copse-like groves upon the 
 swells of the prairie, while its dark green foliage contrasts plea 
 santly with the lighter green of the grasses beneath its shade. 
 The young botanist, Besan^on, had least cause to complain. 
 His time had been sufficiently pleasant during the day. New 
 foliage fell under his observation new flowers opened their 
 corollas to his delighted gaze. He was aided in making 
 
22 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 his collections by the hunter-naturalist, who of course was tole 
 rably well versed in this kindred science. 
 
 "We encamped by the edge of a small creek of clear water. 
 Our camp was laid out in due form, and every thing arranged 
 in the order we designed habitually to follow. 
 
 Every man unsaddled his own horse. There are no servants 
 in prairie-land. Even Lanty's services extended not beyond the 
 cuisine, and for this department he had had his training as the 
 cook of a New Orleans trading ship. Jake had enough to do 
 with his mules ; and to have asked one of our hunter-guides to 
 perform the task of unsaddling your horse, would have been a 
 hazardous experiment. Menial service to a fre'e trapper ! There 
 are no servants in prairie-land. 
 
 Our horses and mules were picketed on a piece of open ground, 
 each having his " trail-rope, 1 " which allowed a circuit of several 
 yards. The two tents were pitched side by side, facing the 
 stream, and the waggon drawn up some twenty feet in the rear. 
 In the triangle between the waggon and the tents was kindled a 
 large fire, upon each side of which two stakes, forked at the top, 
 were driven into the ground. A long sapling resting in the 
 forks traversed the blaze from side to side. This was Lanty's 
 " crane," the fire was his kitchen. 
 
 Let me sketch the camp more minutely, for our first camp was 
 a type of all the others in its general features. Sometimes 
 indeed the tents did not front the same way, when these open 
 ings were set to " oblige the wind," but they were always placed 
 side by side in front of the waggon. They were small tents of 
 the old-fashioned conical kind, requiring only one pole each. 
 They were of sufficient size for our purpose, as there were only 
 three of us to each the guides, with Jake and Lanty, finding 
 their lodgment under the tilt of the wagon. With thir grace 
 ful shape, and snowy-white color against the dark green foliage 
 of the trees, they formed an agreeable contrast ; and a coup (Tail 
 of the camp would have been no mean picture to the eye of an 
 
THE CAMP AND CAMP-FIRE. 23 
 
 artist. The human figures may be arranged in the following 
 manner. 
 
 Supper is getting ready, and Lanty is decidedly at this time, 
 the most important personage on the ground. He is stooping 
 over the fire, with a small, but long-handled frying-pan, in 
 which he is parching the coffee. It is already browned, and 
 Lanty stirs it about with an iron spoon. The crane carries 
 the large coffee-kettle of sheet-iron, full of water upon the boil ; 
 and a second frying-pan, larger than the first, is filled with sliced 
 ham, ready to be placed upon the hot cinders. 
 
 Our English friend Thompson is seated upon a log, with the 
 hat-box before him. It is open, and he has drawn out from it 
 his stock of combs and brushes. He has already made his ablu 
 tions, and is now giving the finish to his toilet, by putting his 
 hair, whiskers, moustache, teeth, and even his nails, in order. 
 Your Englishman is the most comfortable traveller in the 
 world. 
 
 The Kentuckian is differently engaged. He is upon his feet ; 
 in one hand gleams a knife with ivory handle and long shining 
 blade. It is a " bowie," of that kind known as an ." Arkansas 
 toothpick." In the other hand you see an object about eight 
 inches in length, of the form of a parallelogram, and of a dark 
 brown color. It is a " plug " of real " James's River tobacco.'' 
 With his knife the Kentuckian cuts off a piece a " chunk," as 
 he terms it which is immediately transferred to his mouth, and 
 chewed to a pulp. This is his occupation for ths moment. 
 
 The doctor, what of him ? Doctor Jopper may be seen close 
 to the water's edge. In his hand is a pewter flask, of the kind 
 known as a " pocket pistol." That pistol is loaded with brandy, 
 and Dr. Jopper is just in the act of drawing part of the charge, 
 which, with a slight admixture of cool creek water, is carried 
 aloft and poured into a very droughty vessel. The effect, how 
 ever, is instantly apparent in the lively twinkle of the doctor's 
 round and prominent eyes. 
 
24 THE HUNTERS FEAST. 
 
 Besancon is seated near the tent, and the old naturalist beside 
 him. The former is busy with the few plants he has collected. 
 A large portfolio-looking book rests upon his knees, and between 
 its leaves he is depositing his stores in a scientific manner. His 
 companion, who understands the business well, is kindly assist 
 ing him. Their conversation is interesting, but every one else 
 is too busy with his affairs to listen to it just now. 
 
 The guides are lounging about the waggon. Old Ike fixes a 
 new flint, in his rifle, and Redwood, of a more mirthful disposi 
 tion, is tccasionally cracking a joke with Mike or the " darkey." 
 
 Jake is still busy with his mules, and I with my favourite steed, 
 whose feet I have washed in the stream, and anointed with a 
 little spare grease. I shall not always have the opportunity of 
 being so kind to him, but he will need it the less, as his hoofs 
 become more hardened by the journey. 
 
 Around the camp are strewed our saddles, bridles, blankets, 
 weapons and utensils. These will all be collected and stowed 
 under cover before we go to rest. Such is a picture of our 
 camp before supper. 
 
 When that meal is cooked, the scene somewhat changes. 
 
 The atmosphere, even at that season, was cool enough, and 
 this, with Mike's announcement that the coffee was ready, 
 brought all the party guides as well around the blazing pile 
 of logs. Each found his own platter, knife, and cup ; and help 
 ing himself from the general stock, set to eating on his own 
 account/ Of course there were no fragments, as a strict regard 
 to economy was one of the laws of our camp. 
 
 Notwithstanding the fatigue, always incidental to a first day's 
 march, we enjoyed this al fresco supper exceedingly. The 
 novelty had much to do with our enjoyment of it, and also the 
 fine appetites which we had acquired since our luncheon at 
 noon halt. 
 
 When supper was over, smoking followed, for there was not 
 one of the party who was not an inveterate burner of the 
 
THE CAMP AND CAMP-FIRE. 25 
 
 " noxious weed." Some chose segars, of which we had brought 
 a good stock, but several were pipe- smokers. The zoologist 
 carried a meerschaum ; the guides smoked out of Indian calu 
 mets of the celebrated steatite, or red claystone. Mike had his 
 dark-looking " dudeen," find Jake his pipe" of corn "cob" and 
 cane-joint shank. 
 
 Our English friend Thompson had a store of the finest 
 Havannahs, which he smoked with a grace peculiar to the Eng 
 lish cigar-smoker : holding his cigar impaled upon the point of 
 his knife-blade. Kentucky also smoked cigars, but his was half 
 buried within his mouth, slanted obliquely towards the right 
 cheek. Besancon preferred the paper cigarette, which he made 
 extempore, as he required them, out of a stock of loose tobacco. 
 This is Creole fashion now also the mode de Paris. 
 
 A song from the doctor enlivened the conversation, and 
 certainly so melodious a human voice had never echoed near the 
 spot. One and all agreed that the grand opera had missed a 
 capital " first tenor " in not securing the services of our com 
 panion. 
 
 The fatigue of our long ride caused us to creep into our tents 
 at an early hour, and rolling ourselves in our blankets we went 
 to sleep. Of course everything had been carefully gathered in 
 lest rain might fall in the night. The trail ropes of our animals 
 were looked to ; we did not fear their being stolen, but horses 
 on their first few days' journey are easily "stampeded," and will 
 sometimes stray home again. This would have been a great 
 misfortune, but most of us were old travellers, and every caution 
 was observed in securing against such a result. There was no 
 guard kept, though we knew the time would come when that 
 would be a necessary duty. 
 
26 THE HUNTER'S FEAST. 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 BESAN^ON'S ADVENTURE IN THE SWAMPS. 
 
 THE prairie traveller never sleeps after daybreak. He is 
 usually astir before that time. He has many " chores " to per 
 form, unknown to the ordinary traveller who rests in the road 
 side inn. He has to pack up his tent and bed, cook his own 
 breakfast, and saddle his horse. All this requires time, there 
 fore an early start is necessary. 
 
 We were on our feet before the sun had shown his disc above 
 the black-jacks. Lanty had the start of us, and had freshened 
 up his fire. Already the coffee-kettle was bubbling audibly, 
 and the great trying-pan perfumed the camp with an incense 
 more agreeable than the odours of Araby. 
 
 The raw air of the morning had brought everybody around 
 the fire. Thompson was pruning and cleansing his nails ; the 
 Kentuckian was cutting a fresh "chunk" from his plug of 
 " James's River ;" the doctor had just returned from the stream, 
 where he had refreshed himself by a " nip " from his pewter 
 flask; Besancon was packing up his portfolios; the zoologist 
 was lighting his long pipe, and the " Captain " was looking to 
 his favourite horse, while inhaling the fragrance of an " Havan- 
 nah." The guides stood with their blankets hanging from their 
 shoulders, silent and thoughtful. 
 
 In half an hour breakfast was over, the tents and utensils 
 were restored to the wasrgon, the horses were brought in and 
 saddled, the mules " hitched up," and the expedition once more 
 on its way. 
 
 This day we made not quite so good a journey. The roads 
 were heavier, the country more thickly timbered, and the ground 
 
BESAN90N'S ADVENTURE IN THE SWAMPS. 27 
 
 more hilly. We had several small streams to ford, and this 
 retarded our progress. Twenty miles was the extent of our 
 journey. 
 
 We encamped again without any of us having killed or seen 
 game. Although we had beaten the bushes on both sides of our 
 course, nothing bigger than the red-bird (scarlet tanager, Pyranya 
 rubru), a screaming jay, or an occasional flight of finches, gra 
 tified our sight. 
 
 We reached our camp somewhat disappointed. Even old Ike 
 and Redwood came into camp without game, alleging also that 
 they had not met with the sign of a living quadruped. 
 
 Our second camp was also on the bank of a small stream. 
 Shortly after our arrival on the ground, Thompson started out 
 afoot, taking with him his gun. He had noticed a tract of 
 marsh at no reat distance off. He thought it promised well 
 for snipe. 
 
 He had not been long gone, when two reports echoed back, 
 and then shortly after another and another. He had found 
 something to empty his gun at. 
 
 Presently we saw him returning with a brace arid a half of 
 birds that looked very much like large snipe. So he thought 
 them, but that' question was set at rest by the zoologist, who 
 pronounced them at once to be the American "Curlew" of 
 Wilson (Numemus longirostris). Curlew or snipe, they were 
 soon divested of the feathery coat, and placed in LantyV fry ing- 
 pan. Excellent eating they proved, having only the fault that 
 there was not enough of them. 
 
 These birds formed the topic of our after-supper conversation, 
 and then it generalised to the different species of wading birds 
 of America, and at length that singular creature, the "ibis," 
 became the theme. This came round by Besancon remarking 
 that a species of ibis was brought by the Indians to the markets 
 of New Orleans, and sold there under the name of "Spanish 
 Curlew." This was the white ibis (Tantalus albus), which the 
 
28 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 zoologist stated was found in plenty along the whole southern 
 coast of the United States. There were two other species, he 
 said, natives of the warm parts of North America, the " wood 
 ibis " (Tantalus loculator), which more nearly resembles the 
 sacred ibis of Egypt, and the beautiful "sacred ibis" (Tantalus 
 ruber}, which last is rarer than the others. 
 
 Our venerable companion, who had the ornithology of Ame 
 rica, if I may use the expression, at his fingers' ends, imparted 
 many curious details of the habits of these rare birds. All 
 listened with interest to his statements even the hunter-guides, 
 for with all their apparent rudeness of demeanour, there was a 
 dash of the naturalist in these fellows. 
 
 When the zoologist became silent, the young Creole took up 
 the conversation. Talking of the ibis, he said, reminded him of 
 an adventure he had met with while in pursuit ojf these birds 
 among the swamps of his native state. lie would relate it to 
 us. Of course we were rejoiced at the proposal. We were just 
 the audience for an " adventure," and after rolling a fresh ciga 
 rette, the botanist began his narration. 
 
 "During one of my college vacations I made a botanical 
 excursion to the south-western part of Louisiana. Before leav 
 ing home I had promised a dear friend to bring him the skins 
 of such rare birds as were known to frequent the swampy region 
 I was about to traverse, but he was especially desirous I should 
 obtain for him some specimens of the red ibis, which he intended 
 to have 'mounted.' I gave my word that no opportunity 
 should be lost of obtaining these birds, and I was very anxious 
 to make good my promise. 
 
 " Tjje southern part of the State of Louisiana is one vast 
 labyrinth of swamps, bayous, and lagoons. The bayous are 
 sluggish streams that glide sleepily along, sometimes running 
 one way, and sometimes the very opposite, according to the 
 season of the year. Many of them are outlets of the Mississippi, 
 which begins to shed off its waters more than 300 miles from 
 
BESAN50N'S ADVENTURE IN THE SWAMPS. 29 
 
 its mouth. These bayous are deep, sometimes narrow, some 
 times wide, with islets in their midst. They and their con 
 tiguous swamps are the great habitat of the alligator and the 
 fresh-water shark the gar. Numerous species of water and 
 wading fowl fly over them and plunge through their dark tide. 
 Here you may see the red flamingo, the egret, the trumpeter- 
 swan, the blue heron, the wild goose, the crane, the snake-bird, 
 the pelican, and the ibis ; you may likewise see the osprey, and 
 the white-headed eagle robbing him of his prey. Both swamps 
 and bayous produce abundantly fish, reptile, and insect, and are, 
 consequently, the favourite resort of hundreds of birds which 
 prey upon these creatures. In some places their waters form a 
 complete net-work ov^r the country, which you may traverse 
 with a small boat in almost any direction ; indeed, this is the 
 means by whjch many settlements communicate with each other. 
 As you approach southward towards the Gulf, you get clear of 
 the timber; and within some fifty miles of the sea, there is not 
 a tree to be seen. 
 
 "In the first day or two that I was out, I had succeeded in 
 getting all the specimens I wanted, with the exception of the ibis. 
 This shy creature avoided me ; in fact I had only seen one or two 
 in my excursions, and these at a great distance. I still, how 
 ever, had hopes of finding them before my return to my friend. 
 
 "About the third or fotirth day I set out from a small settle 
 inent on the edge of one of the larger bayous. I had no othei 
 company than my gun. I was even unattended by a dog, as my 
 favourite spaniel had the day before been bitten by an alligator 
 while swimming across the bayou, and I was compelled to leave 
 him at the settlement. Of course the object of my excursion 
 was a search after new flora, but I had become by this time very 
 desirous of getting the rare ibis, and I was determined half to 
 neglect my botanising for that purpose. I went of course in- a 
 boat, a light skiff", such as is commonly used by the inhabitants 
 of those parts. 
 
30 
 
 "Occasionally using the paddles, I allowed myself to float 
 some four or five miles down the main bayou ; but as the birds I 
 was in search of did not appear, I struck into a ' branch,' and 
 sculled myself up stream. This carried me through a solitary 
 region, with marshes stretching as far as the eye could see, 
 covered with tall reeds. There was no habitation, nor aught 
 that betokened the presence of man. It was just possible that 
 I was the first human being who had ever found a motive for 
 propelling a boat through the dark waters of this solitary 
 stream. 
 
 " As I advanced, I fell in with game ; and I succeeded in bag 
 ging several, both of the great wood-ibis and the white species. 
 I also shot a fine white-headed eagle (Falco leucocephalus)^ 
 which came soaring over my boat, unconscious of danger. But 
 the bird which I most wanted seemed that which could not be 
 obtained. I wanted the scarlet ibis. 
 
 "I think I had rowed some three miles up-stream, and was 
 about to take in my oars and leave my boat to float back again, 
 when I perceived that, a little farther up, the bayou widened. 
 Curiosity prompted me to continue ; and after pulling a few 
 hundred strokes, I found myself at the end of an oblong lake, 
 a mile or so in length. It was deep, dark, marshy around the 
 shores, and full of alligators. I saw their ugly forms and long 
 serrated backs, as they floated about in all parts of it, hungrily 
 hunting for fish and eating one another ; but all this was 
 nothing new, for I had witnessed similar scenes during the whole 
 of my excursion. What drew my attention most, was a small 
 islet near the middle of the lake, upon one end of which stood 
 a row of upright forms of a bright scarlet colour. These red 
 creatures were the very objects I was in search of. They might 
 be flamingoes: I could not tell at that distance. So much the 
 better, if I could only succeed in getting a shot at them ; but 
 these creatures are even more wary than the ibis ; and as the 
 islet was low, and altogether without cover, it was not likely they 
 
BESANON'S ADVENTURE IN THE SWAMPS. 31 
 
 would allow me to come within range ; nevertheless, I was 
 determined to make the attempt. I rowed up the lake, occa 
 sionally turning my head to see if the game had taken the alarm. 
 The sun was hot and dazzling ; and as the bright scarlet was 
 magnified by refraction, I fancied for a long time they were fla 
 mingoes. This fancy was dissipated as I drew near. The out 
 lines of the bills, like the blade of a sabre, convinced me they 
 were the ibis ; besides, I now saw that they were less than three 
 feet in height, while the flamingoes stand five. There were a 
 dozen of them in all. These were balancing themselves, as is 
 their usual habit, on one leg, apparently asleep, or buried in 
 deep thought. They were on the upper extremity of the islet, 
 while I was approaching it from below. It was not above sixtv 
 yards across ; and could I only reach the point nearest me, I 
 knew my gun would throw shot to kill at that distance. I feared 
 the stroke of the sculls would start them, and I pulled slowly 
 and cautiously. Perhaps the great heat for it was as hot a 
 day as I can remember had rendered them torpid or lazy. 
 Whether or not, they sat still until the cut-water of my skiff 
 touched the bank of the islet. I drew my gun up cautiously, 
 took aim, and fired both barrels almost simultaneously. When 
 the smoke cleared out of my eyes, I saw that all the birds had 
 flown off except one, that lay stretched out by the edge of the 
 water. 
 
 " Gun in hand, I leaped out of the boat, and ran across the 
 islet to bag my game. This occupied but a few minutes ; and I 
 was turning to go back to the skiff, when, to my consternation, 
 I saw it out upon the lake, and rapidly floating downward ! 
 
 " In my haste I had left it unfastened, and the bayou current 
 had carried it oft'. It was still but a hundred yards distant, but 
 it might as well be a hundred miles, for at that time I could not 
 swim a stroke. 
 
 " My first impulse was to rush down to the lake, and after 
 the boat. This impulse was checked on arriving at the water's 
 
32 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 edge, which I saw at a glance was fathoms in depth. Quick 
 reflection told me that the boat was gone irrecoverably gone 1 
 
 " I did not at first comprehend the full peril of my situation, 
 nor will you, gentlemen. I was on an islet, in a lake, only half 
 a mile from its shores alone, it is true, and without a boat ; 
 but what of that? Many a man had been so before, with not an 
 idea of danger. 
 
 " These were first thoughts, natural enough ; but they rapidly 
 gave place to others of a far different character. When I gazed 
 after my boat, now beyond recovery when I looked around, and 
 saw that the lake lay in the middle of an interminable swamp, 
 the shores of which, even could I have reached them, did not 
 seem to promise me footing when I reflected that, being unable 
 to swim, I could not reach them that upon the islet there was 
 neither tree, nor log, nor bush ; not a stick out of which I might 
 make a raft I say, when I reflected upon all these things, there 
 arose in my mind a feeling of well-defined and absolute horror. 
 
 " It is true I was only in a lake, a mile or so in width ; but so 
 far as the peril and helplessness of my situation were concerned, 
 I might as well have been on a rock in the middle of the Atlan 
 tic. I knew that there was no settlement within miles miles 
 of pathless swamp. I knew that no one could either see or hear 
 me no one was at all likely to come near the lake ; indeed, I 
 felt satisfied that my faithless boat was the first keel that had 
 ever cut its waters. The very tameness of the birds wheeling 
 round my head was evidence of this. I felt satisfied, too, that 
 without some one to help me, I should never go out of that 
 lake : I must die on the islet, or drown in attempting to 
 leave it ! 
 
 "These reflections rolled rapidly over my startled soul. The 
 facts were clear, the hypothesis definite, the sequence certain ; 
 there was no ambiguity, no supposititious hinge upon which I 
 could hang a hope ; no, not one. I could not even expect that 
 I should be missed and sought for ; there was no one to search 
 
BESANgON's ADVENTURE IN THE SWAMPS. 33 
 
 for me. The simple habitans of the village I had left knew me 
 not I was a stranger among them ; they only knew me as a 
 stranger, and fancied me a strange individual ; one who made 
 lonely excursions, and brought home bunches of weeds, with 
 birds, insects, and reptiles, which they had never before seen, 
 although gathered at their own doors. My absence, besides, 
 would be nothing new to them, even though it lasted for days : I 
 had often been absent before, a week at a time. There was no 
 hope of my being missed. 
 
 " I have said that these reflections came and passed quickly. 
 In less than a minute, my affrighted soul was in full possession 
 of them, and almost yielded itself to despair. I shouted, but 
 rather involuntarily than with any hope that I should be heard ; 
 I shouted loudly and fiercely : my answer the echoes of my 
 own voice, the shriek of the osprey, and the maniac laugh of the 
 white-headed eagle. 
 
 " I ceased to shout, threw my gun to the earth, and tottered 
 down beside it. I can imagine the feelings of a man shut up in 
 a gloomy prison they are not pleasant. I have been lost upon 
 the wild prairie the land^sea without bush, break, or star to 
 guide me that was worse. There you look around ; you 'see * 
 nothing ; you hear nothing ; you are alone with God, and you 
 tremble in his presence ; your senses swim ; your brain reels ; 
 you are afraid of yourself ; you are afraid of your own mind. 
 Deserted by everything else, you dread lest it, too, may forsake 
 you. There is horror in this it is very horrible it is hard to 
 bear ; but I have borne it all, and would bear it again twenty 
 times over rather than endure once more the first hour I spent 
 on that lonely islet in that lonely lake. Your prison may be dark 
 and silent, -but you feel that you are not utterly alone ; being:; 
 like yourself are near, though they be your jailers. Lost on the 
 prairie, you are alone ; but you are free. In the islet, I felt 
 that I was alone ; that I was not free ; in the islet I experi 
 enced the feelings of the prairie and the prison combined. 
 
 2* 
 
34 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 
 
 " I lay in a state of stupor almost unconscious ; how long I 
 know not, but many hours I am certain ; I knew this by the 
 sun it was going down when I awoke, if I. may so term the 
 recovery of my stricken senses. I was aroused by a strange 
 circumstance : I was surrounded by dark objects of hideous 
 shape and hue reptiles they were. They had been before my 
 eyes for some time, but I had not seen them. I had only a sort 
 of dreamy consciousness of their presence ; but I heard them at 
 length ; my ear was in better tune, and the strange noises they 
 uttered reached my intellect. It sounded like the blowing of 
 great bellows, with now and then a note harsher and louder, 
 like the roaring of a bull. This startled me, and I looked up 
 and bent my eyes upon the objects : they were forms of the 
 crocodilidce, the giant lizards they were alligators. 
 
 " Huge ones they were, many of them ; and many were they 
 in number a hundred at least were crawling over the islet, 
 before, behind, and on all sides around me. Their long, gaunt 
 jaws and channelled snouts projected forward so as almost to 
 touch my body ; and their eyes, usually leaden, seemed now to 
 glare. 
 
 " Impelled by this new danger, I sprang to my feet, when, 
 recognizing the upright form of man, the reptiles scuttled off, 
 and plunging hurriedly into the lake, hid their hideous bodies 
 under the water. 
 
 "The incident in some measure revived me. I saw that I 
 was not alone ; there was company even in the crocodiles. I 
 gradually became more myself; and began to reflect with some 
 degree of coolness on the circumstances that surrounded me. 
 My eyes wandered over the islet ; every inch of it came under 
 my glance ; every object upon it was scrutinized the moulted 
 feathers of wild-fowl, the pieces of mud, the fresh-water mussels 
 (union] strewed upon its beach all were examined. Still the 
 barren answer no means of escape. 
 
 "The islet was but the head of a sand-bar, formed by the 
 
ADVENTURE IN THE SWAMPS. 35 
 
 eddy, perhaps gathered together within the year. It was bare 
 of herbage, with the exception of a few tufts of grass. There 
 was neither tree nor bush upon it : not a stick. A raft, 
 indeed ! There was not wood enough to make a raft that 
 would have floated a frog. The idea of a raft was but briefly 
 entertained ; such a thought had certainly crossed my mind, but 
 a single glance round the islet dispelled it before it had taken 
 shape. 
 
 "I paced my prison from end to end; from side to side I 
 walked it over. I tried the water's depth ; on all sides I 
 sounded it, wading recklessly in ; everywhere it deepened 
 rapidly as I advanced. Three lengths of myself from the islet's 
 edge, and I was up to the neck. The huge reptiles swam 
 around, snorting and blowing; they were bolder in this element. 
 I could not have waded safely ashore, even had the water been 
 shallow. To swim it no even though I swam like a duck, 
 they would have closed upon and quartered me before I could 
 have made a dozen strokes. Horrified by their demonstrations, 
 I hurried back upon dry ground, and paced the islet with drip 
 ping garments. 
 
 " I continued walking until night, which gathered around me 
 dark and dismal. With night came new voices the hideous 
 voices of the nocturnal swamp ; the qua-qua of the night-heron, 
 the screech of the swamp-owl, the cry of the bittern, the el-l-luk 
 of the great water-toad, the tinkling of the bell-frog, and the 
 chirp of the savanna-cricket all fell upon my ear. Sounds still 
 harsher and more hideous were heard around me the plashing 
 of the alligator, and the roaring of his voice ; these reminded 
 me that I must not go to sleep. To sleep ! I durst not have 
 slept for a single instant. Even when I lay for a few minutes 
 motionless, the dark reptiles came crawling round me so close 
 that I could have put forth my hand and touched them. 
 
 " At intervals, I sprang to my feet, shouted, swept my guP 
 around, and chased them back to the water, into which they 
 
36 
 
 betook themselves with a sullen plunge, but with little sem 
 blance of fear. At each fresh demonstration on my part they 
 showed less alarm, until I could no longer drive them either 
 with shouts or threatening gestures. They only retreated a 
 few feet, forming an irregular circle round me. 
 
 " Thus hemmed in, I became frightened in turn. I loaded my 
 gun and fired ; I killed none. They are impervious to a bullet, 
 except in the eye, or under the forearm. It was too dark to 
 aim at these parts ; and my shots glanced harmlessly from the 
 pyramidal scales of their bodies. The loud report, however, 
 and the blaze frightened them, and they fled, to return again 
 after a long interval. I was asleep when they returned : I had 
 gone to sleep in spite of my efforts to keep awake. I was 
 startled by the touch of something cold ; and half-stifled by the 
 strong musky odour that filled the air. I threw out my arms; 
 my fingers rested upon an object slippery and clammy : it was 
 one of these monsters one of gigantic size. He had crawled 
 close alongside me, and was preparing to make his attack ; as I 
 saw that he was bent in the form of a bow, and I knew that 
 these creatures assume that attitude when about to strike their 
 victim. I was just in time to spring aside, and avoid the stroke 
 of his powerful tail, that the next moment swept the ground 
 where I had lain. Again I fired, and he with the rest once 
 more retreated to the lake. 
 
 " All thoughts of going to sleep were at an end. Not that 
 I felt wakeful ; on the contrary, wearied with my day's exertion 
 for I had had a long pull under a hot tropical sun I could 
 have lain down upon the earth, in the mud, anywhere, and slept 
 in an instant. Nothing but the dread certainty of my peril 
 kept me awake. Once again before morning, I was compelled 
 to battle with the hideous reptiles, and chase them away with t 
 shot from my gun. 
 
 "Morning came at length, but with it no change in my 
 perilous position. The light only showed me my island prison, 
 
40 
 
 alleged, would render our camp conversation instructive as well 
 as entertaining. 
 
 The idea originated with the old hunter-naturalist, who very 
 wisely reasoned that among so many gentlemen of large hunting 
 experience he might collect new facts for his favorite science 
 for to just such men, and not to the closet-dreamer, is natural 
 history indebted for its most interesting chapters. Of course 
 every one of us, guides and all, warmly applauded the proposal, 
 for there was no one among us averse to receiving a little know 
 ledge of so entertaining a character. No doubt to the naturalist 
 himself we should be indebted for most part of it ; and his mode 
 of communicating was so pleasant, that even the rude trappers 
 listened to him with wonder and attention. They saw that he 
 was no "greenhorn," either in wood-craft or prairie knowledge, 
 and that was a sufficient claim to- their consideration. 
 
 There is no character less esteemed by the regular " mountain 
 man " than a " greenhorn," that is, one who is new to the ways 
 of their wilderness life. 
 
 With the design of an early start, we once more crept into 
 our several quarters, and went to sleep. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 THE PASSENGER PJGEOKS. 
 
 AFTER an early breakfast we lit our pipes and cigars, and 
 took to the road. The sun was very bright, and in less than two 
 hours after starting we were sweltering under a heat that was 
 almost tropical. It was one of those autumn days peculiar to 
 America, where even a high latitude seems to be no protection 
 against the sun, and his beams fall upon one with as much fer 
 vour as they would under the line itself. The first part of our 
 
THE PASSENGER PIGEONS. 41 
 
 journey was through open woods of black-jack, whose stunted 
 forms afforded no shade, but only shut off the breeze which 
 might otherwise have fanned us. 
 
 While fording a shallow stream, the doctor's scraggy, ill-tem 
 pered horse took a fit of kicking quite frantical. For some time 
 it seemed likely that either the doctor himself or his saddle-bags, 
 would be deposited in the bottom of the creek, but after a severe 
 spell of whipping and kicking on the part of the rider, the animal 
 moved on again. What had set it dancing? That was the 
 question. It had the disposition to be "frisky," but usually 
 appeared to be lacking in strength. The buzz of a horse-fly 
 sounding in our ears explained all. It was one of those large 
 insects the "horse-bug," peculiar to the Mississippi country, 
 and usually found near watercourses. They are more terrible to 
 horses than a fierce dog would be. I have known horses gallop 
 away from them as if pursued by a beast of prey. 
 
 There is a belief among western people that these insects are 
 propagated by the horses themselves; that is, that the eggs of 
 the female are deposited upon the grass so that the horses may 
 swallow them ; that incubation goes on within the stomach of 
 the animal, and that the chrysalis is afterwards voided. I have 
 met with others who believe in a still stranger theory ; that the 
 insect itself actually sought and found a passage into the sto 
 mach of the horse, some said by passing down his throat, others 
 by boring a hole through his abdomen ; and that in such cases 
 the horse usually sickened, and was in danger of dying. 
 
 After the doctor's mustang had returned to proper behaviour, 
 these odd theories became the subject of discussion. The Ken- 
 tuckian believed in them the Englishman doubted them the 
 hunter-naturalist could not endorse them and Besanon ignor 
 ed them entirely. 
 
 Shortly after the incident we entered the bottom lands of a 
 considerable stream. These were heavily timbered, and the 
 shadow of the great forest trees afforded us a pleasant relief 
 
42 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 from the hot sun. Our guides told us we had several miles of 
 such woods to pass through, and we were glad of the informa 
 tion. We noticed that most of the trees were heech, and their 
 smooth straight trunks rose like columns around us. 
 
 The beech (Fagus sylvatica) is one of the most beautiful of 
 American forest trees. Unlike most of the others, its bark is 
 smooth, without fissures, and often of a silvery hue. Large 
 beech trees standing by the path, or near a cross road, are often 
 seen covered with names, initials, and dates. Even the Indian 
 often takes advantage of the bark of a beech tree to signalise 
 his presence to his friends, or commemorate some savage exploit. 
 Indeed, the beautiful column-like trunk seems to invite the knife, 
 and many a souvenir is carved upon it by the loitering wayfarer. 
 It does not, however, invite the axe of the settler. On the con 
 trary, the beechen woods often remain untouched, while others 
 fall around them partly because these trees are not unusually 
 the indices of the richest soil, but more from the fact that clear 
 ing a piece of beech forest is no easy matter. The green logs 
 do not burn so readily as those of the oak, the elm, the maple, 
 or poplar, and hence the necessity of "rolling" them off the 
 ground to be cleared a serious thing where labour is scarce 
 and dear. 
 
 We were riding silently along when all at once our ears were 
 assailed by a strange noise. It resembled the clapping of a 
 thousand pairs of hands, followed by a whistling sound, as if a 
 strong wind had set suddenly in among the trees. We all knew 
 well enough what it meant, and the simultaneous cry of 
 "pigeons," was followed by half a dozen simultaneous cracks 
 from the guns of the party, and several bluish birds fell to the 
 ground. We had stumbled upon a feeding-place of the passen 
 ger-pigeon ( Columba migratoria). 
 
 Our route was immediately abandoned, and in a few minutes 
 we were in the thick of the flock cracking away at them -both 
 with shot-gun and rifle. It was not so easy, however, to bring 
 
THE PASSENGER PIGEONS. 43 
 
 them down in any considerable numbers. In following them up 
 we soon strayed from each other, until our party was completely 
 scattered, and nearly two hours elapsed before we got back to 
 the road. Our game-bag, however, made a fine show, and about 
 forty brace were deposited in the waggon. With the anticipa 
 tion of roast pigeon and " pot pie," we rode on more cheerily to 
 our night camp. All along the route the pigeons were seen, and 
 occasionally large flocks whirled over our heads under the 
 canopy of the trees. Satiated with the sport, and not caring to 
 waste our ammunition, we did not heed them farther. 
 
 In order to give Lanty due time for the duties of the cuisine, 
 we halted a little earlier than usual. Our day's march had been 
 a short one, but the excitement and sport of the pigeon-hunt 
 repaid us for the loss of time. Our dinner-supper for it was a 
 combination of both was the dish known in America as 
 " pot pie," in which the principal ingredients were the pigeons, 
 some soft flour paste, with a few slices of bacon to^give it a 
 flavour. Properly speaking, the " pot pie " is not a pie, but a 
 stew. Ours was excellent, and as our appetites were in a similar 
 condition, a goodly quantity was used up in appeasing them. 
 
 Of course the conversation of the evening was the "wild 
 pigeon of America," and the following facts regarding its natu 
 ral history although many of them are by no means new may 
 prove interesting to the reader, as they did to those who listen 
 ed to the relation of them around our camp fire. 
 
 The " passenger " is less in size than the house pigeon. In 
 the air it looks not unlike the kite, wanting the forked or " swal 
 low " tail. That of the pigeon is cuneiform. Its colour is best 
 described by calling it a nearly uniform slate. In the male the 
 colours are deeper, and the neck-feathers present the same 
 changeable hues of green, gold, and purple-crimson, generally 
 observe.d in birds of this species. It is only in the woods, and 
 when freshly caught or killed, that these brilliant tints can be 
 seen to perfection. They fade in captivity, and immediately after 
 
44 
 
 the bird has been shot. They seem to form part of its life ana 
 liberty, and disappear when it is robbed of either. I have often, 
 thrust the wild pigeon, freshly killed, into my game-bag, glit 
 tering like an opal. I have drawn it forth a few hours after of 
 a dull leaden hue, and altogether unlike the same bird. 
 
 As with all birds of this tribe, the female is inferior to the 
 male, both in size and plumage. The eye is less vivid. In the 
 male it is of the most brilliant fiery orange, inclosed in a well- 
 defined circle of red. The eye is in truth its finest feature, and 
 never fails to strike the beholder with admiration. 
 
 The most singular fact in the natural history of the " passen 
 ger," is their countless numbers. Audubon saw a flock that 
 contained " one billion one hundred and sixteen millions of 
 birds !" Wilson counted, or rather computed another flock of 
 *'two thousand two hundred and thirty millions!" These num 
 bers seem incredible. I have no doubt of their truth. I have 
 no doubt that they are under rather than over the numbers 
 actually seen by both these naturalists, for both made most 
 liberal allowances in their calculations. 
 
 Where do these immense flocks come from ? 
 
 The wild pigeons breed in all parts of America. Their breed 
 ing-places are found as far north as the Hudson's Bay, and they 
 have been seen in the southern forests of Louisiana and Texas. 
 The nests are built upon high trees, and resemble immense rook 
 eries. In Kentucky, one of their breeding places was forty miles 
 iu length, by several in breadth ! One hundred nests will often 
 be found upon a single tree, and in each nest there is but one 
 " squab." The eggs are pure white, like those of the common 
 kind, and, like them, they breed several times during the year 
 but principally when food is plenty. They establish themselves 
 in great " roosts," sometimes for years together, to which each 
 night they return from their distant excursions hundreds of 
 miles, perhaps ; for this is but a short fly for travellers who can 
 pass over a mile in a single minute, and some of whom have even 
 
THE PASSENGER PIGEONS. 45 
 
 strayed across the Atlantic to England ! They, however, as I 
 myself have observed, remain in the same woods where they 
 have been feeding for several days together. I have also 
 noticed that they prefer roosting in the low underwood, even 
 when tall trees are close at hand. If near water, or hanging 
 over a stream, the place is still more to their liking ; and in 
 the morning they may be seen alighting on the bank to drink, 
 before taking to their daily occupation. 
 
 The great " roosts n and breeding-places are favourite resorts 
 for numerous birds of prey. The small vultures ( Cathartes aura, 
 Atratus"), or, as they are called in the west, " turkey buzzard," 
 and " carrion crow," do not confine themselves to carrion alone. 
 They are fond of live " squabs," which they drag out of their 
 nests at pleasure. Numerous hawks and kites prey upon them ; 
 and even the great white-headed eagle ( Falco leucocephalus) may 
 be seen soaring above, and occasionally swooping down for a 
 dainty morsel. On the ground beneath move enemies of a differ 
 ent kind, both biped and quadruped. Fowlers with their guns and 
 long poles ; farmers with waggons to carry off the dead birds ; 
 and even droves of hogs to devour them. Trees fall under the 
 axe, and huge branches break down by the weight of the birds 
 themselves, killing numbers in their descent. Torches are used 
 for it is usually a night scene, after the return of the birds from 
 feeding, pots of burning sulphur, and other engines of destruc 
 tion. A noisy scene it is. The clapping of a million pair of 
 wings, like the roaring of thunder ; the shots ; the shouts ; 
 men hoarsely calling to each other ; women and children scream 
 ing their delight ; the barking of dogs ; the neighing of horses ; 
 the "crash" of breaking branches ; and the "chuck" of the 
 woodman's axe, all mingled together. 
 
 When the men satiated with slaughter, and white with 
 ordure have retired beyond the borders of the roost to rest 
 themselves for the night, their ground is occupied by the prowl- 
 
46 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 ing wolf and the fox ; the racoon and the cougar ; the lynx and 
 the great black bear. 
 
 With so many enemies, one would think that the "passengers" 
 would soon be exterminated. Not so. They are too prolific for 
 that. Indeed, were it not for these enemies, they themselves 
 would perish for want of food. Fancy what it takes to feed 
 them ! The flock seen by Wilson would require eighteen mil 
 lion bushels of grain every day! and it, most likely, was only 
 one of many such that at the time were traversing the vast con 
 tinent of America. Upon what do they feed ? it will be asked. 
 Upon the fruits of the great forest upon the acorns, the nuts 
 of the beech, upon buck-wheat, and Indian corn ; upon many 
 species of berries, such as the huckleberry (whortleberry), the 
 hackberry (Celtis crassifolia), and the fruit of the holly. In the 
 northern regions, where these are scarce, the berries*of the juni 
 per tree (Juniperus communis) form the principle food. On the 
 other hand, among the southern plantations, they devour greedily 
 the rice, as well as the nuts of the chestnut-tree and several spe 
 cies of oaks. But their staple food is the beechnut, or " mast" 
 as it is called. Of this the pigeons are fond, and fortunately it 
 exists in great plenty. In the forests of Western America there 
 are vast tracts covered almost entirely with the beech-tree. 
 
 As already stated, these beechen forests of America remain 
 almost intact, and so long as they shower down their millions 
 of bushels of " mast," so long will the passenger pigeons flutter 
 in countless numbers amidst their branches. 
 
 Their migration is semi-annual ; but unlike most other migra 
 tory birds, it is far from being regular. The flight is, in fact, 
 not a periodical migration, but a sort of nomadic existence 
 food being the object which keeps them in motion and directs 
 their course. The scarcity in one part determines their move 
 ment to another. When there is more than the usual fall of 
 snow in the northern regions, vast flocks make their appearance 
 
THE PASSENGER PIGEONS. 47 
 
 in the middle States, as in Ohio and Kentucky. This may in 
 some measure account for the overcrowded " roosts " which have 
 been occasionally seen, but which are by no means common. 
 You may live in the west for many years without witnessing a 
 scene such as those described by Wilson and Audubon, though 
 once or twice every year you may see pigeons enough to 
 astonish you. 
 
 It must not be imagined that the wild pigeons of America are 
 so " tame " as they are sometimes represented. That is their 
 character only while young at the breeding-places, or at the 
 great roosts when confused by crowding upon each other, and 
 mystified by torchlight. 
 
 Far different are they when wandering through the open 
 woods in search of food. It is then both difficult to approach 
 and hard to kill them. Odd birds you may easily reach ; you 
 may see them perched upon the branches on all sides of you, and 
 within shot-range ; but the thick of the flock, somehow or other, 
 always keeps from one to two hundred yards off. The sports 
 man cannot bring himself to fire at single birds. No. There is 
 a tree near at hand literally black with pigeons. Its branches 
 creak under the weight. What a fine havoc he will make if he 
 can but get near enough ! But that is the difficulty ; there is 
 no cover, and he must approach as he best can without it. He 
 continues to advance; the birds sit silent, watching his move 
 ments. He treads lightly and with caution ; he inwardly ana 
 thematises the dead leaves and twigs that make a loud rustling 
 under his feet. The birds appear restless ; several stretch out 
 their necks as if to spring off. 
 
 At length he deems himself fairly within range, and raises his 
 gun to take aim ; but this is a signal for the shy game, and before 
 he can draw trigger they are off to another tree ! 
 
 Some stragglers still remain ; and at them he levels his piece 
 and fires. The shot is a random one ; for our sportsman, hav 
 ing failed to "cover" the flock, has become irritated and care- 
 
48 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 less, and in all such cases the pigeons fly off with the loss of a 
 few feathers. 
 
 The gun is reloaded, and our amateur hunter, seeing the thick 
 flock upon another tree, again endeavours to approach it, but 
 with like success. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 HUNT WITH A HOWITZER. 
 
 WHEN the conversation about the haunts and habits of these 
 birds began to flag, some one called for a " pigeon story." Who 
 could tell a pigeon story ? To our surprise the doctor volun 
 teered one, and all gathered round to listen. 
 
 u Yes, gentlemen," began the doctor, " I have a pigeon adven 
 ture, which occurred to me some years ago. I was then living 
 in Cincinnati, following my respectable calling, when I had the 
 good fortune to set a broken leg for one Colonel P , a weal 
 thy planter who lived upon the bank of the river some sixty 
 miles from the city. I made a handsome set of it, and won the 
 colonel's friendship for ever. Shortly after, I was invited to his 
 house, to be present at the great pigeon-hunt which was to come 
 off in the fall. The colonel's plantation stood among beech 
 woods, and he had therefore an annual visitation of the pigeons^ 
 and could tell almost to a day when they would appear. The 
 hunt he had arranged for the gratification of his numerous 
 friends. 
 
 "As you all know, gentlemen, sixty miles in our western 
 travel is a mere bagatelle ; and tired of pills and prescriptions^ 
 I flung myself into a boat, and in a few hours arrived at the 
 colonel's stately home. A word or two about this stately home 
 and its proprietor. 
 
HUNT WITH A HOWITZER. 49 
 
 " Colonel P was a splendid specimen of a back-woods' 
 
 gentleman you will admit there are gentlemen in the back 
 woods." (Here the doctor glanced goodhumouredly, first at 
 our English friend Thompson, and then at the Kentuckian, both 
 of whom answered him with' a laugh.) "His house was the 
 type of a backwoods mansion ; a wooden structure, both walls 
 and roof. No matter. It has distributed as much hospitality in 
 its time as many a marble palace ; that was one of its back 
 woods characteristics. It stood, and I hope still stands, on the 
 north bank of the Ohio that beautiful stream ' La Idle riviere? 
 as the French colonists, and before their time the Indians, used 
 to call it. It was in the midst of the woods, though around it 
 were a thousand acres of ' clearing/ where you might distinguish 
 fields of golden wheat, and groves of shining maize plants waving- 
 aloft their yellow-flower tassels-. You might note, too; the 
 broad green leaf of the Nicotian * weed,' or the bursting pod of 
 the snow-white cotton. In the garden you might observe the 
 sweet potato, the common one, the refreshing tomato, the huge 
 water-melon, cantelopes, and musk melons, with many other 
 delicious vegetables. You could see pods of red and green pep 
 per growing upon trailing plants ; and beside them several 
 species of peas and beans all valuable for the colonel's cuisine. 
 There was an orchard, too, of several acres in extent. It was 
 filled with fruit-trees, the finest peaches in the world, and the 
 finest apples the Newton pippins. Besides, there were luscious 
 pears and plums, and upon the espaliers, vines bearing bushels 
 
 of sweet grapes. If Colonel P lived in the woods, it cannot 
 
 be said that he was surrounded by a desert. 
 
 " There were several substantial log-houses near the main 
 building or mansion. They were the stable and good horses 
 there were in that stable ; the cow-house, for milk cattle ; the 
 barn, to hold the wheat and maize-corn ; the smoke-house, for 
 curing bacon ; a large building for the dry tobacco ; a cotton- 
 gin, with its shed of clap-boards ; bins for the husk fodder, and 
 
 3 
 
50 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 several smaller structures. In one corner you saw a low-walled 
 erection that reminded you of a kennel, and the rich music that 
 from time to time issued from its apertures would convince you 
 that it was a kennel. If you had peeped into it, you would 
 have seen a dozen of as fine stag-hounds as ever lifted a trail. 
 The colonel was somewhat partial to these pets, for he was a 
 ' mighty hunter.' You might see a number of young colts in an 
 adjoining lot ; a pet-deer, a buffalo-calf, that had been brought 
 from the far prairies, pea-fowl, guinea-hens, turkeys, geese, 
 ducks, and the usual proportion of common fowls. Rail-fences, 
 zigzagged off in all directions towards the edge of the woods. 
 Huge trees, dead and divested of their leaves, stood up in the 
 cleared fields. Turkey-buzzards and carrion-crows might be 
 seen perched upon their grey naked limbs ; upon their summit 
 you might observe the great rough-legged falcon ; and above 
 all, cutting sharply against the blue sky, the fork-tailed kite 
 sailing gently about." 
 
 Here the doctor's auditory interrupted him with a murmur 
 of applause. The doctor was in fine spirits, and in a poetical 
 mood. He continued. 
 
 " Such, gentlemen, was the sort of place I had come to visit ; 
 and I saw at a glance that I could spend a few days there plea 
 santly enough even without the additional attractions of a 
 pigeon-hunt. 
 
 " On my arrival I found the party assembled. It consisted 
 of a score and a half of ladies and gentlemen, nearly all young 
 people. The pigeons had not yet made their appearance, but 
 were looked for every hour. The woods had assumed the 
 gorgeous tints of autumn, that loveliest of seasons in the 'far 
 west.' Already the ripe nuts and berries were scattered pro 
 fusely over the earth, offering their annual banquet to God's 
 wild creatures. The ' mast' of the beech-tree, of which the wild 
 pigeon is so fond, was showering down among the dead leaves. 
 It was the very season at which the birds were accustomed to 
 
HUNT WITH A HOWITZER. 51 
 
 visit the beechen woods that girdled the colonel's plantation. 
 They would no doubt soon appear. With this expectation 
 everything was made ready ; each of the gentlemen was pro 
 vided with a fowling-piece, or rifle if he preferred it ; and even 
 some of the ladies insisted upon being armed. 
 
 " To render the sport more exciting, our host had established 
 certain regulations. They were as follows : The gentlemen 
 were divided into two parties, of equal numbers. These were 
 to go in opposite directions, the ladies upon the first day of the 
 hunt accompanying whichever they chose. Upon all succeeding 
 days, however, the case would be different. The ladies were 
 to accompany that party which upon the day previous had 
 bagged the greatest number of birds. The victorious gentle 
 men, moreover, were endowed with other privileges, which 
 lasted throughout the evening ; such as the choice of partners 
 for the dinner-table and the dance. 
 
 " I need not tell you, gentlemen, that in these conditions 
 existed powerful motives for exertion. The colonel's guests 
 were the elite of western society. Most of the gentlemen were 
 young men or bachelors ; and among the ladies there were 
 belles ; three or four 'of them rich and beautiful. On my arri 
 val I could perceive signs of incipient flirtations. Attachments 
 had already arisen ; and by many it would have been esteemed 
 anything but pleasant to be separated in the manner prescribed. 
 A strong esprit du corps was thus established ; and, by the time 
 the pigeons arrived, both parties had determined to do their 
 utmost. In fact, I had never known so strong a feeling of 
 rivalry to exist between two parties of amateur sportsmen. 
 
 '.' The pigeons at length arrived. It was a bright sunny 
 morning, and yet the atmosphere was darkened, as the vast 
 flock, a mile in breadth by several in length, passed across the 
 canopy. The sound of their wings resembled a strong wind 
 whistling among tree- tops, or through the rigging of a ship 
 
52 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 We saw that they hovered over the woods, and settled among 
 the tall beeches. 
 
 " The beginning of the hunt was announced, and we set forth, 
 each party taking the direction allotted to it. With each went 
 a number of ladies, and even some of these were armed with 
 light fowling-pieces, determined that the party of their choice 
 should be the victorious one. After a short ride, we found our 
 selves fairly ' in the woods,' and in the presence of the birds, 
 and then the cracking commenced. 
 
 " In our party we had eight guns, exclusive of the small fowl 
 ing-pieces (two of these), with which a brace of our heroines 
 were armed, and which, truth compels me to confess, were less 
 dangerous to the pigeons than to ourselves. Some of our guns 
 were double-barrelled shot-guns, others were rifles. You will 
 wonder at rifles being used in such a sport, and yet it is a fact 
 that the gentlemen who carried rifles managed to do more exe 
 cution than those who were armed with the other species. This 
 arose from the circumstance that they were contented to aim at 
 single birds, and, being good shots, they were almost sure to 
 bring these down. The woods were filled with straggling 
 pigeons. Odd birds were always within rifle range ; and thus, 
 instead of wasting their time in endeavouring to approach the 
 great flocks, our riflemen did nothing but load and fire. In this 
 way they soon counted their game by dozens. 
 
 " Early in the evening, the pigeons, having filled their crops 
 with the mast, disappeared. They flew off to some distant 
 ' roost.' This of course concluded our sport for the day. We 
 got* together and counted our numbers. We had 640 birds. 
 We returned home full of hope ; we felt certain that we had 
 won "for that day. Our antagonists had arrived before us. 
 They showed us 726 dead pigeons. We were beaten. 
 
 " I really cannot explain the chagrin which this defeat occa 
 sioned to most of our party. They felt humiliated in the eyes 
 
HUNT WITH A HOWITZER. 53 
 
 of the ladies, whose company they were to lose on the morrow. 
 To some there was extreme bitterness in the idea for, as I 
 have already stated, attachments had sprung up, and jealous 
 thoughts were naturally their concomitants. It was quite tan 
 talising, as we parted next morning, to see the galaxy of lovely 
 women ride off with our antagonists, while we sought the woods 
 in the opposite direction, dispirited and in silence. 
 
 11 We went, however, determined to do our best, and win the 
 ladies for the morrow. A council was held, and each imparted 
 his advice and encouragement ; and then we all set to work 
 with shot-gun and rifle. 
 
 "On this day an incident occurred that aided our 'count' 
 materially. As you know, gentlemen, the wild pigeons, while 
 feeding, sometimes cover the ground so thickly that they crowd 
 upon each other. They all advance in the same direction, those 
 behind continually rising up and fluttering to the front, so that 
 the surface presents a series of undulations like sea-waves. Fre 
 quently the birds light upon each other's backs, for want of 
 room upon the ground, and a confused mass of winged creatures 
 is seen rolling through the woods. At such times, if the sports 
 man can only ' head ' the flock, he is sure of a good shot. 
 Almost every pellet tells, and dozens may be brought down at 
 a single discharge. ..y 
 
 " In my progress through the wood, I had got separated 
 from my companions, when I observed an immense flock 
 approaching me after the manner described. I saw from their 
 plumage that they were young birds, and therefore not likely t<t 
 be easily alarmed. I drew my horse (I was mounted) behind a 
 tree, and awaited their approach. This I did more from 
 curiosity than any other motive, as, unfortunately, I carried a 
 rifle, and could only have killed one or two at the best. The 
 crowd came 'swirling' forward, and when they were within 
 some ten or fifteen paces distant, I fired into their midst. To 
 my surprise, the flock did not take flight, but continued to 
 
54 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 advance as before, until they were almost among 'the horse's 
 feet. I could stand it no longer. I drove the spurs deeply, 
 and galloped into their midst, striking right and left as they 
 fluttered up round me. Of course they were soon off ; but of 
 those that had been trodden upon by my horse, and others I 
 had knocked down, I counted no less than twenty-seven ! 
 Proud of my exploit, I gathered the birds into my bag, and 
 rode in search of my companions. 
 
 " Our party on this day numbered over 800 head killed ; but, 
 to our surprise and chagrin, our antagonists had beaten us by 
 more than a hundred ! 
 
 "The gentlemen of 'ours 7 were wretched. The belles were 
 monopolised by our antagonists ; we were scouted, and debarred 
 every privilege. 
 
 "It was not to be endured ; something must be done. What 
 was to be done ? counselled we. If fair means will not answer, 
 we must try the opposite. It was evident that our antagonists 
 were better shots than we. 
 
 " The colonel, too, was one of them, and he was sure to kill 
 every time he pulled trigger. The odds were against us ; some 
 plan must be devised ; some ruse must be adopted, and the idea 
 of one had been passing through my mind during the whole of 
 that day. It was this : I had noticed, what has been just 
 remarked, that, although the pigeons will not allow the sports 
 man to come within range of a fowling-piece, yet at a distance 
 of little over a hundred yards they neither fear man nor beast. 
 At that distance they sit unconcerned, thousands of them upon 
 a single tree. It struck me that a gun large enough to throw 
 shot among them would be certain of killing hundreds at each 
 discharge : but where was such a gun to be had ? As I 
 reflected thus, 'mountain howitzers' came into my mind. I 
 remembered the small mountain howitzers I had seen at Coving- 
 ton. One of these loaded with shot would be the very weapon. 
 I knew there was a battery of them at the Barracks. I knew 
 
HUNT WITH A HOWITZER. 55 
 
 that a friend of mine commanded the battery. By steamer, 
 should one pass, it was but a few hours to Covington. I pro 
 posed sending for a ' mountain howitzer. 7 
 
 " I need hardly say that my proposal was hailed with a 
 universal welcome on the part of my companions ; and without 
 dropping a hint to the other party, it was at once resolved that 
 the design should be carried into execution. It was carried into 
 execution. An ' up-river ' boat chanced to pass in the nick of 
 time. A messenger was forthwith despatched to Covington, 
 and before twelve o'clock upon the following day another boat 
 on her down trip brought the howitzer, and we had it secretly 
 landed and conveyed to a place in the woods previously agreed 
 
 upon. My friend, Captain C , had sent a * live corporal ' 
 
 along with it, and we had no difficulty in its management. 
 
 " As I had anticipated, it answered our purpose as though it 
 had been made for it. Every shot brought down a shower of 
 dead birds, and after one discharge alone the number obtained 
 was 123 ! At night our ' game-bag ' counted three thousand 
 birds ! We were sure of the ladies for the morrow. 
 
 " Before returning home to our certain triumph, however, 
 there were some considerations. To-morrow we should have 
 the ladies in our company ; some of the fair creatures would be 
 as good as sure to ' split ; upon the howitzer. What was to be 
 done to prevent this ? 
 
 " We eight had sworn to be staunch to each other. We had 
 taken every precaution ; we had only used our ' great gun ' 
 when far off, so that its report might not reach the ears of our 
 antagonists ; but how about to-morrow ? Could we trust our 
 fair companions with a secret ? Decidedly not. This was the 
 unanimous conclusion. A new idea came to our aid. We saw 
 that we might dispense with the howitzer, and still manage to 
 out-count our opponents. We would make a depository of 
 birds in a safe place. There was a squatter's house near by : 
 that would do. So we took the squatter into our council, and 
 
56 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 left some 1500 birds in his charge, the remainder being deemed 
 sufficient for that day. From the 1500 thus left, we might each 
 day take a few hundred to make up our game-bag just enough 
 to out-number the other party. We did not send home the 
 corporal and his howitzer. We might require him again : so 
 we quartered him upon the squatter. 
 
 " On returning home, we found that our opponents had also 
 made a ' big day's work of it ;' but they were beaten by hun 
 dreds. The ladies were ours I 
 
 " And we kept them until the end of the hunt, to the no 
 little mortification of the gentlemen in the ' minority :' to their 
 surprise as well ; for most of them being crack-shots, and 
 several of us not at all so, they could not comprehend why they 
 were every day beaten so outrageously. We had hundreds to 
 spare, and barrels of the birds were cured for winter use. 
 
 " Another thing quite puzzled our opponents, as well as many 
 good people in the neighbourhood. That was the loud reports 
 that had been heard in the woods. Some argued they were' 
 thunder, while others declared they must have proceeded from 
 an earthquake. This last seemed the - most probable, as the 
 events I am narrating occurred but a few years after the great 
 earthquake in the Mississippi Valley, and the people's minds 
 were prepared for such a thing. 
 
 " I need not tell you how the knowing ones enjoyed the laugh 
 for several days, and it was not until the colonel's reunion was 
 about to break up, that our secret was let out, to the no small 
 chagrin of our opponents, but to the infinite amusement of our 
 host himself, who, although one of the defeated party, often 
 narrates to his friends the story of the " Hunt with a How 
 itzer." 
 
KILLING A COUGAR. 5t 
 
 ,_ : , CHAPTER YI. 
 
 KILLING A COUGAR. 
 
 ALTHOUGH we had made a five miles' march from the place 
 where we had halted to shoot the pigeons, our night-camp was 
 still within the boundaries of the flock. During the night \ve 
 could hear them at intervals at no great distance off, A branch 
 occasionally cracked, and then a fluttering of wings told of thou 
 sands dislodged or frightened by its fall. Sometimes the flut 
 tering commenced without any apparent cause. No doubt the 
 great-horned owl (Strix virginiana) , the wild cat (Felis rufa), 
 and the raccoon, were 'busy among them, and the silent attacks 
 of these were causing the repeated alarms. 
 
 Before going to rest, a torch-hunt was proposed by way of 
 variety, but no material for making good torches could be found, 
 and the idea was abandoned. Torches should be made of dry 
 pine knots, and carried in some shallow vessel. The common 
 frying-pan, with a long handle, is best for the purpose. Link- 
 torches, unless of the best pitch-pine (Pinus resinosa), do not 
 burn with sufficient brightness to stultify the pigeons. They 
 will flutter off before the hunter can get his long pole within 
 reach, whereas with a very brilliant light, he may approach 
 almost near enough to lay his hands upon them. As there were 
 no pitch-pine trees in the neighbourhood, nor any good torch- 
 wood, we were forced to give up the idea of a night hunt. 
 
 During the night strange noises were heard by several who 
 chanced to be awake. Some said they resembled the howling 
 of dogs, while others compared them to the screaming of angry 
 cats. One party said they were produced by wolves ; another, 
 that the wild cats (lynxes) made them. But there was one that 
 
 3* 
 
58 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 differed from all the rest. It was a sort of prolonged hiss, that 
 all except Ike believed it to be the snort of the black bear. Ike, 
 however, declared that it was not the bear, but the "sniff," as 
 he termed it, of the " painter" (cougar). This was probable 
 enough, considering the nature of the place. The cougar is well 
 known to frequent the great roosts of the passenger-pigeon, and 
 is fond of the flesh of these birds. 
 
 In the morning our camp was still surrounded by the pigeons, 
 sweeping about among the tree-trunks, and gathering the mast 
 as they went. A few shots were fired, not from any inclination 
 to continue the sport of killing them, but to lay in a fresh stock 
 for the day's dinner. The surplus from yesterday's feast was 
 thrown away, and left by the deserted camp a banquet for the 
 preying creatures that would soon visit the spot. 
 
 We moved on, still surrounded by masses upon the wing. A 
 singular incident occurred as we were passing through a sort of 
 avenue in the forest. It was a narrow aisle, on both sides walled 
 in by a thick foliage of the beeches. We were fairly within this 
 hall-like passage, when it suddenly darkened at the opposite end. 
 We saw that a cloud of pigeons had entered it, flying towards 
 us. They were around our heads before they had noticed us. 
 Seeing our party, they suddenly attempted to diverge from their 
 course, but there was no other open to them, except to rise 
 upward in a vertical direction. This they did on the instant 
 the clatter of their wings producing a noise like the continued 
 roar of thunder. Some had approached so near that the men on 
 horseback, striking with their guns, knocked several to the 
 ground ; and the Kentuckian stretching upward his long arm, 
 actually caught one of them on the wing. In an instant they 
 were out of sight ; but at that instant two great birds appeared 
 before us at the opening of tke forest, which were at once recog 
 nized as a brace of white-headed eagles (Falco leucocepkalus) . 
 This accounted for the rash flight of the pigeons ; for the eagles 
 had evidently been in pursuit of them, and had driven them to 
 
KILLING A COUGAR. 59 
 
 seek shelter under the trees. We were desirous of emptying 
 our guns at the great birds of prey, and there was a simulta 
 neous spurring of horses and cocking of guns : to no purpose, 
 however. The eagles were on the alert. They had already 
 espied us ; and, uttering their maniac screams, they wheeled 
 suddenly, and disappeared over the tree-tops. 
 
 We had hardly recovered from this pleasant little bit of 
 excitement, when the guide Ike, who rode in the advance, was 
 seen suddenly to jerk up, exclaiming, 
 
 " Painter, by G d ! I know'd I heerd a painter.' 7 
 
 " Where ? where ?" was hurriedly uttered by several voices, 
 while all pressed forward to the guide. 
 
 " Yonder !" replied Ike, pointing to a thicket of young 
 beeches. " He's tuk to the brush : ride round fellers. Mark, 
 boy, round 1 quick, d n you 1" 
 
 There was a scramble of horsemen, with excited anxious 
 looks and gestures. Every one had his gun cocked and ready, 
 and in a few seconds the small copse of beeches, with their 
 golden-yellow leaves, was inclosed by a ring of hunters. Had 
 the cougar got away, or was he still within the thicket ? 
 Several large trees grew out of its midst. Had he taken to one ? 
 The eyes of the party were turned upwards. The fierce creature 
 was nowhere visible. 
 
 It was impossible to see into every part of the jungle from the 
 outside, as .we sat in our saddles. The game might be crouch 
 ing among the grass and brambles. What was to be done ? 
 We had no dogs. How was the cougar to be started ? It 
 would be no small peril to penetrate the thicket a-foot. Who 
 was to do it ? 
 
 The question was answered by Redwood, who was now seen 
 dismounting from his horse. 
 
 "Keep your eyes about you," cried he. "I'll make the var 
 mint show if he's thur. Look sharp then I" 
 
 We saw Redwood enter fearlessly, leaving his horse hitched 
 
60 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 over a branch. We heard him no longer, as he proceeded with 
 that stealthy silence known only to the Indian fighter. We 
 listened, and waited in profound suspense. Not even the crack 
 ling of a branch broke the stillness. Full five minutes we 
 waited, and then the sharp crack of a rifle near the centre of the 
 copsewood relieved us. The next moment was heard Redwood's 
 voice crying aloud, 
 
 " Look out thur ! By G d I've missed him." 
 Before we had time to change our attitudes another rifle 
 cracked, and another voice was heard crying in answer to 
 Redwood, 
 
 " But by G d I I haint." 
 
 " He's hyur," continued the voice ; " dead as mutton. Come 
 this way, and you'll see the beauty." 
 
 Ike's voice was recognised, and we all galloped to the spot 
 where it proceeded from. At his feet lay the body of the pan 
 ther quite dead. There was a red spot running blood between 
 the ribs, where Ike's bullet had penetrated. In trying to escape 
 from the thicket, the cougar had halted a moment, in a crouch 
 ing attitude, directly before Ike's face, and that moment was 
 enough to give the trapper time to glance through his sights, and 
 send the fatal bullet. 
 
 Of course the guide received the congratulations of all, and 
 though he pretended not to regard the thing in the light of a 
 feat, he knew well that killing a " painter " was no every-day 
 adventure. 
 
 The skin of the animal was stripped off in a trice, and carried 
 to the waggon. Such a trophy is rarely left in the woods. 
 
 The hunter-naturalist performed some further operations upon 
 the body for the purpose of examining the contents of the sto 
 mach. These consisted entirely of the half-digested remains of 
 passenger-pigeons, an enormous quantity of which the beast had 
 devoured during the previous night having captured them no 
 dou^t upon the trees. 
 
THE COUGAR. 61 
 
 This adventure formed a pleasant theme for conversation 
 during the rest of our journey, and of course the cougar was the 
 subject. His habits and history were fully discussed, and the 
 information elicited is given below. 
 
 CHAPTER YII. 
 
 THE COUGAR. 
 
 THE cougar (Felis concolor) is the only indigenous long-tailed 
 cat in America north of the parallel of 30 degrees. The " wild 
 cats" so called, are lynxes with short tails ; and of these there 
 are three distinct species. But there is only one true represen 
 tative of the genus Felis, and that is the animal in question. 
 
 This has received many trivial appellations. Among Anglo- 
 American hunters, it is called the panther in their patois, 
 " painter." In most parts of South America, as well as in 
 Mexico, it receives the grandiloquent title of " lion," (Leon), 
 and in the Peruvian countries is called the "puma," or "poma." 
 The absence of stripes, such as those of the tiger or spots, as 
 upon the leopard or rosettes, as upon the jaguar, have sug 
 gested the name of the naturalists, concolor. Discolor was for 
 merly in use ; but the other has been generally adopted. 
 
 There are few wild animals so regular in their colour as the 
 cougar : very little variety has been observed among different 
 specimens. Some naturalists speak of spotted cougars -"that is, 
 having spots that may be seen in a certain light. Upon young 
 cubs, such markings do appear ; but they are no longer visible 
 on the full-grown animal. The cougar of mature age is of a 
 tawny red colour, almost uniform over the whole body, though 
 somewhat paler about the face and the parts underneath. This 
 
62 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 colour is not exactly the tawny of the lion ; it is more of a red 
 dish hue nearer to what is termed calf-colour. 
 
 The cougar is far from being a well-shaped creature : it 
 appears disproportioned. Its back is long and hollow ; and its 
 tail does not taper so gracefully as in some other animals of the 
 cat-kind. Its legs are short and stout ; and although far from 
 clumsy in appearance, it does not possess the graceful tournure 
 of body so characteristic of some of its congeners. Though con 
 sidered the representative of the lion in the New W orld, its 
 resemblance to the royal beast is but slight ; its colour seems to 
 be the only title it has to such an honour. For the rest, it is 
 much more akin to the tigers, jaguars, and true panthers. Cou 
 gars are rarely more than six feet in length, including the tail, 
 which is usually about a third of that measurement. 
 
 The range of the animal is very extensive. It is known from 
 Paraguay to the Great Lakes of North America. In no part 
 of either continent is it to be seen every day, because it is for 
 the most part not only nocturnal in its activity, but one of those 
 fierce creatures that, fortunately, do not exist in large num 
 bers. Like others of the genus, it is solitary in its habits, and 
 at the approach of civilization betakes itself to the remoter 
 parts of the forest. Hence the cougar, although found in all 
 of the United States, is a rare animal everywhere, and seen 
 only at long intervals in the mountain valleys, or in other diffi 
 cult places of the forest. The appearance of a cougar is suffi 
 cient to throw any neighbourhood into an excitement similar to 
 that which would be produced by the chase of a mad-dog. 
 
 It is a splendid tree-climber. It can mount a tree with the 
 agility of a cat ; and although so large an animal, it climbs by 
 means of its claws not by hugging, after the manner of the 
 bears arid opossums. While climbing a tree its claws can be 
 heard crackling along the bark as it mounts upward. It some 
 times lies "-squatted " along a horizontal branch, a lower one, 
 for the purpose of springing upon deer, or such other animals 
 
THE COUGAR. 63 
 
 as it wishes to prey upon. The ledge of a cliff is also a favourite 
 haunt, and such are known among the hunters as "panther- 
 ledges." It selects such a position in the neighbourhood of 
 some watering-place, or, if possible, one of the salt or soda 
 springs (licks) so numerous in America. Here it is more cer 
 tain that its vigil will not be a protracted one. Its prey elk, 
 deer, antelope, or buffalo soon appears beneath, unconscious of 
 the dangerous enemy that cowers over them. When fairly 
 within reach, the cougar springs, and pouncing down upon the 
 shoulders of the victim, buries its claws in the flesh. The terri 
 fied animal starts forward, leaps from side to side, dashes into 
 the papaw thickets, or breasts the dense cane-break, in hopes of 
 brushing off its relentless rider. All in vain ! Closely clasping 
 its neck, the cougar clings on, tearing its victim in the throat, 
 and drinking its blood thoughout the wild gallop. Faint and 
 feeble, the ruminant at length totters and falls, and the fierce 
 destroyer squats itself along the body, and finishes its red repast. 
 If the cougar can overcome several animals at a time, it will kill 
 them all, although but the twentieth part may be required to 
 satiate its hunger. Unlike the lion in this, even in repletion it 
 will kill. With it, destruction of life seems to be an instinct. 
 There is a very small animal, and apparently a very helpless 
 one, with which the cougar occasionally quarrels, but often with 
 ill success this is the Canada porcupine. Whether the cougar 
 ever succeeds in killing one of these creatures is not known, but 
 that it attacks them is beyond question, and its own death is 
 often the result. The quills of the Canada porcupine are slightly 
 barbed at their extremities ; and when stuck into the flesh of a 
 living animal, this arrangement causes them to~penetrate mecha 
 nically deeper and deeper as the animal moves. That the por 
 cupine can itself discharge them to some distance, is not true, 
 but it is true that it can cause them to be easily detached ; and 
 this it does when rashly seized by any of the predatory animals. 
 The result is, that these remarkable spines become fast in the 
 
64 THE PUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 tongue, jaws, and lips of the cougar, or any other creature 
 which may make an attack on that seemingly unprotected. little 
 animal. The fisher (Mustella Canadensis) is said to be the only 
 animal that can kill the porcupine with impunity. It fights the 
 latter by first throwing it upon its back, and then springing 
 upon its upturned belly, where the spines are almost entirely 
 wanting. 
 
 The cougar is called a cowardly animal : some naturalists 
 even assert that it will not venture to attack man. This is, to 
 say the least, a singular declaration, after the numerous well- 
 attested instances in which men have been attacked, and eveu 
 killed by cougars. There are many such in the history of early 
 settlement in America. To say that cougars are cowardly now 
 when found in the United States to say they are stiy of man, 
 and will not attack him, may be true enough. Strange if the 
 experience of 200 years hunting, and by such hunters too, did 
 not bring them to that. We may safely believe, that if the 
 lions of Africa were placed in the same circumstances, a very 
 similar shyness and dread of the upright biped would soon 
 exhibit itself. What all these creatures bears, cougars, lynxes, 
 wolves, and even alligators are now, is no criterion of their 
 past. Authentic history proves that their courage, at least so 
 far as regards man, has changed altogether since they first heard 
 the sharp detonation of the deadly rifle. Even contempora 
 neous history demonstrates this. In many parts of South America, 
 both jaguar and cougar attack man, and numerous are the 
 deadly encounters there. In Peru, on the eastern declivity of 
 the Andes, large settlements and even villages have been aban 
 doned solely on account of the perilous proximity of those fierce 
 animals. 
 
 In the United States, the cougar is hunted by dog and gun. 
 He will run from the hounds, because he knows they are backed 
 by the unerring rifle of the hunter ; but should one of the yelp 
 ing pack approach too near, a single blow of the cougar's paw 
 
OLD IKE'S ADVENTURE. 65 
 
 is sufficient to stretch him out. When closely pushed, the cou 
 gar takes to a tree, and, halting in one of its forks, humps his 
 back, bristles his hair, looks downwards with gleaming eyes, and 
 utters a sound somewhat like the purring of a cat, though far 
 louder. The crack of the hunter's rifle usually puts an end to 
 these demonstrations, and the cougar drops to the ground either 
 dead or wounded. If only the latter, a desperate fight ensues 
 between him and the dogs, with several of whom he usually 
 leaves a mark that distinguishes ^hem for the rest of their lives. 
 The scream of the cougar is a common phrase. It is not 
 very certain that the creature is addicted to the habit of scream 
 ing, although noises of this kind heard in the nocturnal forests 
 have been attributed to him. Hunters, however, have certainly 
 never heard him, and they believe that the scream talked about 
 proceeds from one of the numerous species of owls that inhabit 
 the deep forests of America. At short intervals, the cougar 
 does make himself heard in a note which resembles somewhat a 
 deep-drawn sigh, or as if one were to utter with an extremely 
 guttural expression the syllables " Co-oa," or " Cougar." Is it 
 from that that he derives his trivial name ? 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 OLD IKE J S ADVENTURE. 
 
 Now a panther story was the natural winding-up of this day, 
 and it had been already hinted that old Ike had "rubbed out-'' 
 several of these creatures in his time, and no doubt could tell 
 more than one "painter" story. 
 
 "Wai, strengers," began he, "it's true thet this hyur ain't 
 the fust painter I've corned acrosst. About fifteen yeern ago I 
 
66 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 moved to Loozyanny, an' thur I met a painter, an' a queer story 
 it are." 
 
 " Let us have it, by all means," said several of the party, 
 drawing closer up, and seating themselves to listen attentively. 
 We all knew that a story from Ike could not be otherwise than 
 " queer," and our curiosity was on the qui vive. 
 
 " Wai, then," continued he, " they have floods down thur in 
 Loozyanny, sich as, I guess, you've never seed the like o' in 
 England." Here Ike addressed himself especially to our 
 English comrade. *' England ain't big enough to hev sich 
 floods. One o' 'm ud kiver yur hul country, I hev heern said. 
 I won't say that ar's true, as I ain't acquainted with yur jogra- 
 phy. I know, howsomdever, they're mighty big freshets thur, 
 as I hev sailed a skift more 'n a hundred mile acrosst one o' 'm, 
 whur thur wan't nothin' to be seen but cypress tops peepin' out 
 o' the water. The floods, as ye know, come every year, but 
 them ar big ones only oncest in a while. 
 
 "Wai, as I've said, 'about fifteen yeern ago, I located in the 
 Red River bottom, about fifty mile or tharabout below Nacke- 
 tosh, whur I built me a shanty. I hed left my wife an' two 
 young critters in Mississippi state, intendin' to go back for 'em 
 in the spring ; so, ye see, I wur all alone by myself, exceptin' 
 my ole mar, a Collins's axe, an' of coorse my rifle. 
 
 " I hed finished the shanty all but the chinkin' an' the buildin' 
 o' a chimbly, when what shed come on but one o' 'm tarnation 
 floods. It wur at night when it begun to make its appearance. 
 I wur asleep on the floor o' the shanty, an' the first warnin' I 
 hed o' it wur the feel o' the water soakin' through my ole blan 
 ket. I hed been a-dreamin' and thort it wur rainin', an' then 
 agin I thort that I wur bein' drowned in the Mississippi ; but I 
 wan't many seconds awake, till I guessed what it wur in raality, 
 so I jumped to my feet like a started buck, an' groped my way 
 to the door. 
 
 "A sight that wur when I got thur. I had chirred a piece 
 
OLD IKE'S ADVENTURE. 6t 
 
 o' ground around the shanty a kupple o' acres or better I hed 
 left the stumps a good three feet high ; thur wan't a stump to 
 be seen. My clearin', stumps an' all wur under water, an' I 
 could see it shinin' among the trees all round the shanty. 
 
 " Of coorse, my fust thoughts wur about my rifle ; an' I 
 turned back into the shanty, an' laid my claws upon that quick 
 enough. 
 
 "I next went in search o' my ole mar. She wan't hard to 
 find ; for if ever a critter made a noise, she did. She wur tied 
 to a tree close by the shanty, an' the way she wur a-squealin' 
 wur a caution to cats. I found her up to the belly in water, 
 pitchin' and flounderin' all round the tree. She hed nothin' on 
 but the rope that she wur hitched by. Both saddle an' bridle 
 hed been washed away ; so I made the rope into a sort o' 
 halter, an' mounted her bare-backed. 
 
 " Jest then I begun to think whur I wur a-goin'. The hul 
 country appeared to be under water ; an' the nearest neighbor 
 I hed, lived acrosst the parairy ten miles off. I knew that his 
 shanty sot on high ground, but how wur I to get thur ? It 
 wur night ; I inout lose my way, an' ride chuck into the river. 
 
 " When I thort o' this, I concluded it mout be better to stay 
 by my own shanty till mornin'. I could hitch the mar inside to 
 keep her from bein' floated away ; an' for meself, I could climb 
 on the roof. 
 
 " While I wur thinkin' on this, I noticed that the water wur 
 a-deepenin', an' it jest kim into my head that it ud soon be deep 
 enough to dround my ole mar. For meself, I wan't frightened. 
 I mout a clomb a tree, an' stayed thur till the flood fell ; but I 
 shed a lost the mar, an' that critter wur too valleyble to think 
 o' such a sacryfize ; so I made up my mind to chance crossin' 
 the parairy. Thur wan't no time to be wasted ne'er a 
 mhmit, so I gin the mar a kick or two in the ribs, an' started. 
 
 " I found the path out to the edge of the parairy easy enough. 
 I hed blazed it when I first come to the place, an' as the night 
 
68 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 wur not a very dark one, I could see the blazes as I passed 
 atween the trees. My mar knew the track as well as meself, 
 an' swaltered through at a sharp rate, for she knew, too, thur 
 wan't no time to be wasted. In five minnites we kirn out on the 
 edge o' the parairy, an', jest as I expected, the hul thing wur 
 kivered with water, an' lookin' like a big pond. I could see it 
 shinin' clur acrosst to the other side o' the opeuin'. 
 
 " As luck ud hev it, I could jest git a glimp o' the trees on 
 the fur side o' the parairy. Thur wur a big clump o' cypress, 
 that I could see plain enough ; I knew this wur clost to my 
 neighbor's shanty ; so I gin my critter the switch, an' struck 
 right for it. 
 
 " As I left the timmer, the mar wur up to her hips. Of 
 coorse, I expected a good grist o' heavy wadin'; but I hed no 
 idee that the water wur a-gwine to git much higher ; thur's 
 whur I made my mistake. 
 
 " I hedn't got more'n a kupple o' miles out, when I diskivered 
 that the thing wur a-risin' rapidly, for I seed the mar wur 
 a-gettin' deeper an' deeper. 
 
 " 'T wan't no use turnin' back now. I ud lose the mar to a 
 dead sartinty, if I didn't make the high ground ; so I spoke to 
 the critter to do her best, an' keep on. The poor beest didn't 
 need any whippin' she knew as well's I did meself thur. wur 
 danger, an' she wur a-doin' her darndest, an' no mistake. Still 
 the water riz, an' kep' a-risin', until it come clur up to her 
 shoulders. 
 
 " I begun to git skeart in airnest. We wan't more'n half 
 acrosst, an' I seed if it riz much more we ud have to swim for it. 
 I wan't far astray about that. The minnit arter it seemed to 
 deepen suddintly, as if thur wur a hollow in the parairy : I 
 heerd the mar give a loud gourf, an' then go down, till I wur up 
 to the waist. She riz agin the next minnit, but I could tell from 
 the smooth ridin' that she wur off o' the bottom. She wur 
 swimmin' an' no mistake. 
 
OLD IKE'S ADVENTURE. 69 
 
 " At fust I thort o' headin' her back to the shanty ; an' I 
 drew her round with that intent ; but turn her which way I 
 would, I found she could no longer touch bottom. 
 
 " I guess, strengers, I wur in a quandairy about then. I 'gun 
 to think that both my own an' my mar's time wur come in 
 airnest, for I had no idee that the critter could iver swim to the 
 other side, 'specially with me on her back, an' purticklarly as 
 at that time these hyur ribs had a sight more griskin upon 'em 
 than they hev now. 
 
 " Wai, I wur about reckinnin' up. I hed got to thinkin' o' 
 Mary an' the childer, and the old shanty in Mississippi, an' a 
 heap o' things that I hed left unsettled^ an' that now come into 
 my mind to trouble me. The mar wur still plungin' ahead ; but 
 I seed she wur sinkin' deeper an' deeper an' fast loosin' her 
 strength, an' I knew she couldn't hold out much longer. 
 
 " I thort at this time that if I got off o' her back, an' tuk 
 hold o' the tail, she mout manage a leetle better. So I slipped 
 backwards over her hips, an' grupped the long hair. It did do 
 some good, for she swum higher ; but we got mighty slow 
 through the water, an' I hed but leetle hopes we should reach 
 land. 
 
 " I wur towed in this way about a quarter o' a mile, when I 
 spied somethin' floatin' on the water a leetle a-head. It hed 
 growed considerably darker ; but thur wur still light enough to 
 show me that the thing wur a log. 
 
 " An idee now entered my brain-pan, that I mout save meself 
 by takin' to the log. The. mar ud then have a better chance for 
 herself ; an' maybe, when eased o' draggin' my carcass, that 
 wur a-keepin' her back she mout make footin' somewhur. So I 
 waited till she got a leetle closter ; an' then, lettin' go o' her 
 tail, I clasped the log, an' crawled on to it. 
 
 " The mar swum on, appeerintly 'ithout missin' me. I seed 
 her disappear through the darkness ; but I didn't as much as 
 say good-by to her, for I wur afraid that my voice mout bring 
 
70 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 her bo,ck agin', an' she mout strike the log with her hoofs, an' 
 whammel it about. So I lay quite, an' let her hey her own 
 way. 
 
 "I wan't long on the log till I seed it wur a-driftin', for thur 
 war a current in the water that set tol'able sharp acrosst the 
 parairy. I bed crawled up to one eend, an' got stridelegs ; but 
 as the log dipped considerable, I wur still over the hams in the 
 water. 
 
 '* I thort I mout be more comfortable towards the middle, an' 
 wur about to pull the thing more under me, when all at once I 
 seed thur wur somethin' clumped up on t'ther eend o' the log. 
 
 "'Twan't very clur at the time, for it had been a-growin' 
 cloudier ever since I left the shanty, but 'twar clur enough to 
 show me that the thing wur a varmint : what sort, I couldn't 
 tell. It mout be a bar, an' it mout not 4 but I had my suspects 
 it wur eyther a bar or a painter. 
 
 " I wan't left long in doubt about the thing's gender. The 
 log kep makin' circles as if drifted, an' when the varmint kirn 
 round into a different light, I caught a glirnp o' its eyes. I 
 knew them eyes to be no bar's eyes : they wur painter's eyes, 
 an' no mistake. 
 
 " I reckin, strengers, I felt very queery just about then. I 
 didn't try to go any nearer the middle o' the log : but instead 
 of that, I wriggled back until I wur right plum on the eend of 
 it, an' could git no further. 
 
 " Thur I sot for a good long spell 'ithout movin' hand or foot. 
 I dasen't make a motion, as I wur afraid it mout tempt the 
 varmint to attack me. 
 
 " I hed no weepun but my knife ; I hed let go o' my rifle 
 when I slid from the mar's back, an' it hed gone to the bottom 
 long since. I wan't in any condition to stand a tussle with the 
 painter nohow ; so I was detarmined to let him alone as long's 
 he ud me. 
 
 " Wai, we drifted on for a good hour, I guess, 'ithout eyther 
 
OLD IKE'S ADVENTURE. 11 
 
 o' us stirriri'. We sot face to face ; an' now an' then the current 
 ud set the log in a sort o' up-an'-down motion, an' then the 
 painter an' I kep bow.in' to each other like a pair o' bob-sawyers. 
 I could see all the while that the varmint's eyes wur fixed upon 
 mine, an' I never tuk mine from hisn ; I kuow'd ? twur the only 
 way to keep him still. 
 
 " I wur jest prospectin' what ud be the eendin' o' the business, 
 when I seed we wur a-gettin' closter to the timmer ; 'twan't 
 more 'u two miles off, but 'twur all under water 'ceptin' the tops 
 o' the trees. I wur thinkin' that when the log shed float in 
 among the branches, I mout slip off, an' git my claws upon a 
 tree, 'ithout sayin anythin' to my travellin' companion. 
 
 " Jest at that minnit somethm' appeared dead ahead o' the 
 log. It wur like an island ; but what could hev brought a 
 island thur ? Then I recollects that I hed seed a piece o' high 
 ground about that part o' the parairy a sort o' mound that hed 
 been made by Injuns, I s'spose. This, then, that looked like a 
 island, wur the top o' this mound, sure enough. 
 
 " The log wur a-driftin' in sich a way that I seed it must pass 
 within twenty yards o' the mound. I detarmined then, as soon 
 we shed git alongside, to put out for it, an' leave the painter to 
 continue his voyage 'ithout me. 
 
 " When I fust sighted the island I seed somethin' that I hed 
 tuk for bushes. But thur wan't no bushes on the mound that 
 I know'd. 
 
 " Howsomdever, when we got a leetle closter, I diskivered 
 that the bushes were beests. They wur deer ; for I spied a part 
 o' buck's horns atween me an' the sky. But thur wur a some- 
 thin' still bigger than a deer. It mout be a hoss, or it mout be 
 an Opelousa ox, but I thort it wur a hoss. 
 
 " I wur right about that, for a horse it wur, sure enough, or 
 rayther I shed say, a mar, an' that mar no other than my ole 
 critter I 
 
 " Arter partin' company, she hed turned with the current ; 
 
72 THEL HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 an' as good-luck ud hev it, bed swum iii a bee-line for the island, 
 an' thur she stood lookin' as slick as if she hed been greased. 
 
 " The log hed by this got nigh enough, as I kalklated ; an' 
 with as little rumpus as possible, I slipped over the eend an' 
 lot go my hold o' it. I wan't right spread in the water, afore I 
 heerd a plump, an' lookin' round a bit, I seed the painter hed 
 left the log too, an' tuk to the water. 
 
 " At fust, I thort he wur arter me ; -an' I drawed my knife 
 with one hand, while I swum with the other. But the painter 
 didn't mean fight that time. He made but poor swimmin' him 
 self, an' appeared glad enough to get upon dry groun' 'ithout 
 molestin' me ; so we swum on side by side, an' not a word 
 passed atween us. 
 
 " I didn't want to make a race o' it ; so I let him pass me, 
 rayther than that he should fall behind, an' get among my legs. 
 
 " Of coorse, he landed fust ; an' I could hear by the stompin' 
 o' hoofs, that his suddint appearance hed kicked up a jolly stam 
 pede among the critters upon the island. I could see both deer 
 and mar dancing all over the groun', as if Old Nick himself hed 
 got among 'em. 
 
 " None o' 'em, howsomdever, thort o' takin' to the water. 
 They hed all hed enough o' that, I guess. 
 
 41 1 kep a leetle round, so as not to land near the painter ; an' 
 then, touchin' bottom, I climbed quietly up on the mound. I 
 hed hardly drawed my drippin' carcass out o' the water, 
 when I heerd a loud squeal, which I knew to be the whigher o 7 
 my old mar ; an' jest at the minnit the critter kim runnin' up, 
 an' rubbed her nose again my shoulder. I tuk the halter in my 
 hand, an' sidling round a leetle, I jumped upon her back, for I 
 still wur in fear o' the painter ; an' the mar's back appeared to 
 me the safest place about, an' that wan't very safe, eyther. 
 
 " I now looked all round to see what new company I hed got 
 into. The day wur just breakin', an' I could distinguish a leetle 
 better every minnit. The top o' the mound which wur above 
 

 OLD IKE'S ADVENTURE. 73 
 
 water wau't over half an acre in size, an' it wur as clur o' tim- 
 mer as any other part o' the parairy, so that I could see every 
 inch o' it, an' every thin' on it as big as a tumble-bug. 
 
 " I reckin, strengers, that you'll hardly believe me when I 
 tell you the concatenation o 7 varmints that wur then an 7 thur 
 caucused together. I could hardly believe my own eyes when I 
 seed sich a gathering an' I thort I hed got aboard o' Noah's 
 Ark. Thur wur listen, strengers fust my ole mar an' meself, 
 an' I wished both o' us anywhur else, I reckin then thur wur 
 the painter, yur old acquaintance then thur wur four deer, a 
 buck an' three does. Then kim a catamount ; an 7 arter him a 
 black bar, a'most as big as a buffalo. Then thur wur a 'coon 
 an' a 'possum, an 7 a kupple o' gray wolves, Un 7 a swamp rabbit, 
 an 7 , darn the thing ! a stinkiu 7 skunk. Perhaps the last wan't 
 the most dangerous varmint on the grouu', but it sartintly wur 
 the most disagreeableest o' the hul lot, for it smelt only as a 
 cussed polecat kin smell. 
 
 " I've said, strengers, that I wur mightily tuk by surprise 
 when I first seed this curious elanjamfrey o'critters ; but I kin 
 tell you I wur still more dumfounded when I seed thur beha- 
 veyur to one another, knowin' thur different naturs as I did. 
 Thur wur the painter lyin 7 clost up to the deer its uat'ral 
 prey ; an' thur wur the wolves too ; an' thur wur the catamount 
 standin' within three feet o' the 'possum an 7 the swamp rabbit ; 
 an' thur wur the bar an 7 the cunnin 7 old 7 coon ; an 7 thur they 
 all wur, no more mindiu 7 one another than if they had spent all 
 thur days together in the same pen. 
 
 " 'Twur the oddest sight I ever seed, an' it remembered me o' 
 bit o' Scripter my ole mother had often read from a book called 
 the Bible, or some sich name about a lion that wur so tame he 
 used to squat down beside a lamb, 'ithout layki' a claw upon the 
 innocent critter. 
 
 " Wall, strangers, as I'm sayin 7 , the hul party behaved in 
 this very way. They all appeared down in the mouth, an' badly 
 
 4 
 
74 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 skeart about the water ; but for all that, I lied my fears that 
 the painter or the bar I wan't afeard o' any o' the others 
 mout git over thur fright afore the flood fell ; an' thurfore I 
 kept as quiet as any one o' them during the hul time I wur in. 
 thur company, an' stay in' all the time clost by the mar. But 
 neyther bar nor painter showed any savage sign the hul o' the 
 next day, nor the night that follered it. 
 
 " Strengers, it ud tire you wur I to tell you all the movements 
 that tuk place among these critters durin' that long day an' 
 night. Ne'er a one o' 'em laid tooth or claw on the other. I 
 wur hungry enough meself, and ud a liked to hev taken a steak 
 from the buttocks o' one o' the deer, but I dasen't do it. I wur 
 afeard to break the peace, which inout a led to a general 
 shindy. 
 
 " When day broke, next inornin' arter, I seed that the flood 
 wur a fajlin' ; and as soon as it were shallow enough, I led my 
 mar quietly into the water, an' climbin' upon her back, tuk a 
 ^leut leave o' my companions. The water still tuk my mar up 
 to the flanks, so that I knew none o' the varmint could follow 
 'ithout swimmin', an' ne ? r a one seemed inclined to try a swim. 
 
 " I struck direct for my neighbour's shanty, which I could see 
 about three mile off, an', in a hour or so, I wur at his door. 
 Thur I didn't stay long, but borrowin' an extra gun which he 
 happened to hev, an' takin' him along with his own rifle, I 
 waded my mar back to the island. 
 
 " We found the game not exactly as I had left it. The fall 
 o' the flood had given the painter, the cat, an' the wolves 
 courage. The swamp rabbit an' the 'possum wur clean gone 
 all but bits o' thur wool an' one o' the does wur better 'u half 
 devoured. 
 
 " My neighbour tuk one side, an' I the other, an' ridin' clost 
 np, we surrounded the island. 
 
 " I plugged the painter at the fust shot, an' he did the same 
 for the bar. We next layed out the wolves, an' arter that 
 
OLD IKE'g ADVENTURE. 15 
 
 cooney, an' then we tuk our time about the deer these last and 
 the bar bein' the only valley'ble things on the island. The 
 skunk we kilt last, as we didn't want the thing to stink us off 
 the place while we wur a-skinnin' the deer. 
 
 " Arter killin' the skunk, we mounted an' left, of coorse 
 loaded with our bar-meat an' venison. 
 
 " I got my rifle arter all. When the flood went down, I 
 found it near the middle of the parairy, half buried in the 
 sludge. 
 
 " I saw I hed built my shanty in the wrong place ; but I 
 soon looked out a better location, an' put up another. I hed 
 all ready in the spring, when I went back to Mississippi, an' 
 brought out Mary and the two young uns." 
 
 The singular adventure of old Ike illustrates a point in natu 
 ral history that, as soon as the trapper had euded^ became the 
 subject of conversation. It was that singular trait in the cha 
 racter of predatory animals, as the cougar, when under circum 
 stances of danger. On such occasions fear seems to influence 
 them so much as to completely subdue their ferocity, and they 
 will not molest other animals sharing the common danger, even 
 when the latter are their natural and habitual prey. Nearly 
 every one of us had observed this at some time or other ; and 
 the old naturalist, as well as the hunter-guides, related many 
 incidents confirming the strange fact. Humboldt speaks of an 
 instance observed by him on the Orinoco, where the fierce 
 jaguar and some other creatures were seen quietly and peace 
 fully floating together on the same log all more or less fright 
 ened at their situation ! 
 
 Ike's story had very much interested the doctor, who 
 rewarded him with a "nip" from the pewter flask ; and, indeed, 
 on this occasion the flask was passed round, as the day had 
 been one of unusual interest. The killing of a cougar is a rare 
 adventure, even in the wildest haunts of the backwoods' 
 country. 
 
76 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 THE MUSQUASH. 
 
 OUR next day's march was unenlivened by any particular 
 incident. We had left behind us the heavy timber, and again 
 travelled through the " oak openings." Not an animal was 
 started during the whole day, and the only one seen was a 
 muskrat that took to the water of a small creek and escaped. 
 This occurred at the spot where we had halted for our night 
 camp, and after the tents were pitched, several of the party 
 went "rat hunting." The burrow of a family of these curious 
 little animals was discovered in the bank, and an attempt was 
 made to dig them out, but without success. The family proved 
 to be " not at home." 
 
 The incident, however, brought the muskrat on the tapis. 
 
 The " muskrat" of the States is the musquash of the fur-trad 
 ers (Fiber zibethicus). He is called muskrat, from his resem 
 blance to the common rat, combined with the musky odour 
 which he emits from glands situated near the anus. Musquash 
 is said to be an Indian appellative a strange coincidence, as 
 the word "musk" is of Arabic origin, and "musquash" would 
 seem a compound of the French musque, as the early Canadian 
 fur-traders were French, or of French descent, and fixed the 
 nomenclature of most of the fur-bearing animals of that region. 
 Naturalists have used the name of " Musk Beaver," on account 
 of the many points of resemblance which this animal bears to 
 the true beaver (Castor fiber). Indeed, they seem to be of the 
 same genus, and so Linnaeus classed them ; but the later sys- 
 tematists have separated them, for the purpose, I should fancy, 
 
THE MUSQUASH. . 
 
 not of simplifying science, but of creating the impression that 
 they themselves were very profound observers. 
 
 The teeth those great friends of the closet naturalist, which 
 help him to whole pages of speculation have enabled him to 
 separate the beaver from the musquash, although the whole his 
 tory and habits of these creatures prove them to be congeners, 
 as much as a mastiff is the congener of a greyhound indeed far 
 more. So like are they in a general sense, that the Indians call 
 them " cousins." 
 
 In form the muskrat differs but little from the beaver. It is 
 a thick, rounded, and flat-looking animal, with blunt nose, short 
 ears almost buried in the fur, stiff whiskers like a cat, short legs 
 and neck, small dark eyes, and sharply-clawed feet. The hinder 
 ones are longest, aud are half-webbed. Those of the beaver are 
 full-webbed. 
 
 There is a curious fact in connection with the tails of these 
 animals. Both are almost naked of hair, and covered with 
 " scales," and both are flat. The tail of the beaver, and the uses 
 it makes of this appendage, are things known to every one. 
 Every one has read of its trowel-shape and use, its great breadth, 
 thickness, and weight, and its resemblance to a cricket-bat. The 
 tail of the muskrat is also naked, covered with scales, and com 
 pressed or flattened ; but instead of being horizontally so, as 
 with the beaver, it is the reverse ; and the thin edges are in a 
 vertical plane. The tail of the former, moreover, is not of the 
 trowel-shape, but.Japers like that of the common rat. Indeed, 
 its resemblance to- the house-rat is so great as to render it a 
 somewhat disagreeable object to look upon. 
 
 Tail and all, the muskrat is about twenty inches in length ; 
 f.i.a its body is about half as big as that of a beaver. It pos 
 sesses a strange power of contracting its body, so as to make it 
 appear about half its natural size, and to enable it to pass through 
 a chink that animals of much smaller dimensions could not enter. 
 
 Its colour is reddish-brown above, and light-ash underneath. 
 
18 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 There are eccentricities, however, in this respect. Specimens 
 have been found quite black, as also mixed and pure white. 
 The fur is a soft, thick down, resembling that of the beaver, but 
 not quite so fine There are long rigid hairs, red-coloured, that 
 over-top the fur ; and these are also sparely scattered over the 
 tail. 
 
 The habits of the muskrat are singular perhaps not less so 
 than those of his " cousin" the beaver, when you strip the his 
 tory of the latter of its many exaggerations. Indeed the 
 former animal, in the domesticated state, exhibits much greater 
 intelligence than the latter. 
 
 Like the beaver, it is a water animal, and is only found where 
 water exists ; never among the dry hills. Its " range " extends 
 over the whole continent of North America, " wherever grass 
 grows or water runs." It is most probable it is an inhabitant of 
 the Southern Continent, but the natural history of that country 
 is still but half told. 
 
 Unlike the beaver, the race of the muskrat is not likely soon 
 to become extinct. The beaver is now found in America, only 
 in the remotest parts of the uninhabited wilderness. Although 
 formerly an inhabitant of the Atlantic States, his presence 
 there is now unknown ; or, if occasionally met with, it is no 
 longer in the beaver dam, with its cluster of social domes, but 
 only as a solitary creature, a " terrier beaver," ill-featured, 
 shaggy in coat, and stunted in growth. 
 
 The muskrat, on the contrary, still frequents the settlements. 
 There is hardly a creek, pond, or watercourse, without one or 
 more families having an abode upon its banks. Part of the 
 year the muskrat is a social animal at other seasons it is soli 
 tary. The male differs but little from the female, though he is 
 somewhat larger, and better furred. 
 
 In early spring commences the season of his loves. His 
 musky odour is then strongest, and quite perceptible in the 
 neighbourhood of his haunt. He takes a wife, to whom he is 
 
THE MUSQUASH. 79 
 
 for ever after, faithful ; and it is believed the connection con 
 tinues during life. After the "honeymoon" a. burrow is made 
 in the bank of a stream or pond ; usually in some solitary and 
 secure spot by the roots of a tree, and always in such a situation 
 that the rising of the water cannot reach the nest which is con 
 structed within. The entrance to this burrow is frequently 
 under water, so that it is difficult to discover it. The nest 
 within is a bed of moss or soft grasses. In this the female brings 
 forth five or six "cubs/' which she nourishes with great care, 
 training them to her own habits. The male takes no part in 
 their education ; but during this period absents himself, and 
 wanders about alone. In autumn the cubs are nearly full grown, 
 and able to " take care of themselves.' 7 The " old father " now 
 joins the family party, and all together proceed to the erection 
 of winter quarters. They forsake the " home of their nati 
 vity," and build a very different sort of a habitation. The favo 
 rite site for their new house, is a swamp not likely to freeze to 
 the bottom, and if with a stream running through it, all the better. 
 By the side of this stream, or often on a little islet in the midst, 
 they construct a dome-shaped pile, hollow within, and very 
 much like the house of the beaver. The materials used are grass 
 and mud, the latter being obtained at the bottom of the swamp 
 or stream. The entrance to this house is subterranean, and con 
 sists of one or more galleries debouching under the water. In 
 situations where there is danger of inundation, the floor of the 
 interior is raised higher, and frequently terraces are made to 
 admit of a dry seat, in case the ground-floor should get flooded. 
 Of course there is free egress and ingress at all Jmes, to permit 
 the animal to go after its food, which consists of plants that 
 grow in the water close at hand. 
 
 The house being completed, and the cold weather having set 
 in, the whole family, parents and all, enter it, and remain there 
 during the winter, going out only at intervals for necessary pur 
 poses. In spring they desert this habitation and never return to it. 
 
80 THE HUNTERS' FEAST, 
 
 Of course they are warm enough during winter while thus housed, 
 even in the very coldest weather. The heat of their own bodies 
 would make them so, lying as they do, huddled together, and 
 sometimes on the top of one another, but the mud walls of their 
 habitations are a foot or more in thickness, and neither frost nor 
 rain can penetrate within. 
 
 Now, a curious fact has been observed in connection with the 
 houses of these creatures. It shows how nature has adapted 
 them to the circumstances in which they may be placed. By 
 philosophers it is termed " instinct ;" but in our opinion it is the 
 same sort of instinct which enables Mr. Hobbs to pick a 
 " Chubb " lock. It is this : 
 
 In southern climates in Louisiana, for instance the swamps 
 and rivers do not freeze over in winter. There the muskrat 
 does not construct such houses as that described, but is con 
 tented all the year with his burrow in the banks. He can go 
 forth freely and seek his food at all seasons. 
 
 In the north it is different. There for months the rivers are 
 frozen over with thick ice. The muskrat could only come out under 
 the ice, or above it. If the latter, the entrance of his burrow 
 would betray him, and men with their traps and dogs, or other 
 enemies would easily get at him. Even if he had also a water 
 entrance, by which he might escape upon the invasion of his 
 burrow, he would drown for want of air. Although an amphi 
 bious animal, like the beaver and otter, he cannot live altogether 
 under water, and must rise at intervals* to take breath. The 
 running stream in winter does not perhaps furnish him with his 
 favorite food the roots and stems of water-plants. These the 
 swamp affords to his satisfaction ; besides, it gives him security 
 from the attacks of men and preying animals, as the wolverene 
 and fisher. Moreover, his house in the swamp cannot be easily 
 approached by the hunter man except when the ice becomes 
 very thick and strong. Then, indeed is the season of peril for 
 the muskrat, but even then he has loopholes of escape. ^ .- 
 
THE MUSQUASH. 81 
 
 How cunningly this creature adapts itself to its geographical 
 situation ! In the extreme north in the hyperborean regions 
 of the Hudson's Bay Company lakes, rivers, and even springs 
 freeze up in winter. The shallow marshes become solid ice, con 
 gealed to their very bottoms. How is the muskrat to get under 
 water there ? Thus, then, he manages the matter : 
 
 Upon deep lakes, as soon as the ice becomes strong enough to 
 bear his weight, he makes a hole in it, and over this he constructs 
 his dome-shaped habitation, bringing the materials up through 
 the hole, from the bottom of the lake. The house thus formed 
 sits prominently upon the ice. Its entrance is in the floor the 
 hole which has already been made and thus is kept open during 
 the whole season of frost, by the care and watchfulness of the 
 inmates, and by their passing constantly out and in to seek their 
 food the water-plants of the lake. 
 
 This peculiar construction of the muskrat's dwelling, with its 
 water-passage, would afford all the means of escape from its 
 ordinary enemies the beasts of prey and, perhaps, against 
 these alone nature has instructed it to provide. But with all its 
 cunning it is. of course, outwitted by the superior ingenuity of 
 its enemy man. 
 
 The food of the muskrat is varied. It loves the roots of seve 
 ral species of nymphce, but its favourite is calamus root (calamus 
 or acorus aromaticus} . It is known to eat shellfish, and heaps of 
 the shells of fresh-water muscles (unios] are often found near its 
 retreat. Some assert that it eats fish, x but the same assertion 
 is made with regard to the beaver. This point is by no means 
 clearly made out ; and the closest naturalists deny it, founding 
 their opposing theory, as usual, upon the teeth. For my part, 
 I have but little faith in the " teeth," since I have known horses, 
 hogs, and cattle greedily devour both fish, flesh, and fowl. 
 
 The muskrat is easily tamed, and becomes familiar and docile. 
 It is very intelligent, and will f fondly caress the hand of its 
 master. Indians and Canadian settlers often have them in their 
 
 4* 
 
82 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 houses as pets ; but there is so much of the rat in their appear 
 ance, and they emit such a disagreeable odour in the spring, as 
 to prevent them from becoming general favourites. They are 
 difficult to cage up, and will eat their way out of a deal box in 
 a single night. Their flesh, although somewhat musky, is eaten 
 by the Indians and white hunters, but these gentry eat almost 
 everything that " lives, breathes, and moves." Many Canadians, 
 however, are fond of the flesh. 
 
 It is not for its flesh that the muskrat is so eagerly hunted. 
 Its fur is the important consideration. This is almost equal to 
 the fur of the beaver in the manufacture of hats, and sells for a 
 price that pays the Indians and white trappers for the hardships 
 they undergo in obtaining it. It is, moreover, used in the mak 
 ing of boas -and muffs, as it somewhat resembles the fur of the 
 pine marten or American sable (Mustela martes], and on account 
 of its cheapness is sometimes passed off for the latter. It is 
 one of the regular articles of the Hudson's Bay Company's 
 commerce, and thousands of muskrat skins are annually 
 obtained. Indeed, were it not that the animal is prolific and 
 difficult to capture, its species would soon suffer extermina 
 tion. 
 
 The mode of taking it differs from that practised in trapping 
 the beaver. It is often caught in traps set for the latter, but 
 such a " catch/" is regarded in the light of a misfortune, as until 
 it is taken out the trap is rendered useless for its real object. 
 As an amusement it is sometimes hunted by dogs, as the otter is, 
 and dug out of its burrow ; but the labour of laying open its 
 deep cave is ill repaid by the sport. The amateur sportsman 
 frequently gets a shot at the muskrat while passing along the 
 bank near its haunts, and almost as frequently misses his aim. 
 The creature is too quick for him, and dives almost without 
 making a bubble. Of course once in the pool it is seen no 
 more. 
 
 Many tribes of Indians hunt the muskrat both for its flesh 
 
A RAT-HUNT. 83 
 
 and skin. They have peculiar modes of capturing it, of one of 
 which the hunter-naturalist gave an account. A winter which 
 he had spent at a fort in the neighbourhood of a settlement of 
 Ojibways gave him an opportunity of witnessing this sport in 
 perfection. 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 A RAT-HUNT. 
 
 " CHINGAWA," he began, " a Chippeway or Ojibway Indian, 
 better known at the fort as ' Old Foxey/ was a noted hunter of 
 his tribe. T had grown to be a favourite with him. My well- 
 known passion for the chase was a sort of masonic link between 
 us ; and our friendship was farther augmented by the present of 
 an old knife for which I had no farther use. The knife was not 
 worth twopence of sterling money, but it made ' Old Foxey ' my 
 best friend ; and all his ' hunter-craft ' the gatherings of about 
 sixty winters became mine. 
 
 "I had not yet been inducted into the mystery of 'rat- 
 catching/ but the season for that ' noble ' sport at length arrived, 
 and the Indian hunter invited me to join him in a muskrat hunt. 
 
 "Taking our 'traps' on our shoulders, we set out for the 
 place where the game was to be found. This was a chain of 
 small lakes or ponds that ran through a marshy valley, some ten 
 or twelve miles distant from the fort. 
 
 11 The traps, or implements, consisted of an ice-chisel with a 
 handle some five feet in length, a small pick-axe, an iron-pointed 
 spear barbed only on one side, with a long straight shaft, and a 
 light pole about a dozen feet in length, quite straight and 
 supple. 
 
84 THE HUNTEKS 7 FEAST. 
 
 " We had provided ourselves with a small stock of eatables as 
 well as materials for kindling a fire but no Indian is ever with 
 out these. We had also carried our blankets along with us, as 
 we designed to make a night of it by the lakes. 
 
 " After trudging for several hours through the silent winter 
 forests, and crossing both lakes and rivers upon the ice, we 
 reached the great marsh. Of course, this, as well as the lakes, 
 was frozen over with thick ice ; we could have traversed it with 
 a loaded waggon and horses without danger of breaking 
 through. 
 
 " We soon came to some domed-shaped heaps rising above 
 the level of the ice. They were of mud, bound together with 
 grass and flags, and were hardened by'lhe frost. Within each 
 of these rounded heaps, Old Foxey knew there were at least half 
 a dozen muskrats perhaps three times that number lying snug 
 and warm and huddled together. 
 
 *' Since there appeared no hole or entrance, the question was 
 how to get at the animals inside. Simply by digging until the 
 inside should be laid open, thought I. This of itself would be 
 jo slight labour. The roof and sides, as my companion 
 informed me, were three feet in thickness ; and the tough mud 
 was frozen to the hardness and consistency of a fire-brick. But 
 after getting through this shell, where should we find the 
 inmates ? Why, most likely, we should not find them at all 
 after all this labour. So said my companion, telling me at the 
 same time that there were subterranean, or rather subaqueous 
 passages, by which the muskrats would be certain to make off 
 under the ice long before he had penetrated near them. 
 
 " I was quite puzzled to know how he should proceed. Not 
 so Old Foxey. He well knew what he wat about, and pitching 
 his traps down by one of the ' houses/ commenced operations. 
 
 " The one he had selected stood out in the la^e, some distance 
 from its edge. It was built entirely upon the ice ; and, as the 
 hunter well knew, there was a hole in the floor by which the 
 
A RAT-HUNT. 85 
 
 animals could get into the water at will. How then was he to 
 prevent them from escaping by the hole, while we removed the 
 covering or roof ? This was what puzzled me, and I watched 
 his movements with interest. 
 
 "Instead of digging into the house, he commenced cutting a 
 hole in the ice with his ice-chisel about two feet from the edge of 
 the mud. That being accomplished, he cut another, and another, 
 until four holes were pierced forming the corners of a square, 
 and embracing the house of the muskrat within. 
 
 " Leaving this house, he then proceeded to pierce a similar set 
 of holes around another that also stood out on the open lake. 
 After that he went to a third one, and this and then a fourth 
 were prepared in a similar manner. 
 
 " He now returned to the first, this time taking care to tread 
 lightly upon the ice and make as little stir as possible. Having 
 arrived there, he took out from his bag a square net made of 
 twiste'd deer-thongs, and not much bigger than a blanket. This 
 in a most ingenious manner he passed under the ice, until its 
 four corners appeared opposite the four holes ; where, drawing 
 them through, he made all fast and ' taut ' by a line stretching 
 from one corner to the other. 
 
 " His manner of passing the net under- the ice I have pro 
 nounced ingenious. It was accomplished by reeving a line from 
 hole to hole by means of the long slender pole already mentioned. 
 The pole, inserted through one of the holes, conducted the line, 
 and was itself conducted by means of two forked sticks that 
 guided it, and pushed it along to the other holes. The line 
 being attached to the corners of the net made it an easy matter 
 to draw the latter into its position. 
 
 "All the details of this curious operation were performed 
 with a noiseless adroitness which showed ' Old Foxy ? was no 
 novice at ' rat-catching.' 
 
 " The net being now quite taut along the lower surface of the 
 ice, must of course completely cover the hole in the ' floor/ It 
 
86 
 
 followed, therefore, that if the muskrats were ' at home,' they 
 were now ' in the trap. 7 
 
 " My companion assured me that they would be found inside. 
 The reason why he had not used the net on the first cutting the 
 holes, was to give any member of the family that had been 
 frightened out, a chance of returning ; and this he knew they 
 would certainly do, as these creatures cannot remain very long 
 under the water. 
 
 " He soon satisfied me of the truth of his statement. In a 
 few minutes, by means of the ice-chisel and pick-axe, we had 
 pierced the crust of the dome ; and there, apparently half 
 asleep, because dazzled and blinded by the sudden influx of 
 light were no less than eight full-grown musquashes 1 
 
 " Almost before I could count them, Old Poxy had trans 
 fixed the whole party, one after the other, with his long 
 spear. 
 
 " We now proceeded to another of the houses, at which the 
 holes had been cut. There my companion went through a similar 
 series of operations ; and was rewarded by a capture of six 
 more ' rats.' 
 
 "In the third of the houses only three were found. 
 
 " On opening a fourth, a singular scene met our eyes. There 
 was but one muskrat alive., and that one seemed to be nearly 
 famished to death. Its body was wasted to mere " skin and 
 bone ; ' and the animal had evidently been a long time without 
 food. Beside him lay the naked skeletons of several small 
 animals that I at once saw were those of the muskrat. A glance 
 at the bottom of the nest explained all. The hole, which in the 
 other houses had passed through the ice, and which we found 
 quite open, in this one was frozen up. The animals had neglect 
 ed keeping it open, until the ice had got too thick for them to 
 break through ; and then, impelled by the cravings of hunger, 
 they had preyed upon each other, until only one, the strongest, 
 survived I 
 
A RAT HUNT. 87 
 
 " I found upon counting the skeletons that no less than eleven 
 had tenanted this ice-bound prison. 
 
 " The Indian assured me that in seasons of very severe frost 
 such an occurrence is not rare. At such times the ice forms so 
 rapidly, that the animals perhaps not having occasion to go 
 out for, some hours find themsevles frozen in ; and are com 
 pelled to perish of hunger, or devour one another 1 
 
 "It was now near night for we had not reached the lake 
 until late iii the day and my companion proposed that we 
 should leave farther operations until the following morning. Of 
 course I assented to the proposal, and we partook ourselves to 
 some pine-trees that grew on high banks near the shore, where 
 we had determined to pass the night. 
 
 " There we kindled a roaring fire of pine knots ; but we had 
 grown very hungry, and I soon found that of the provisions I 
 had brought, and upon which I had already dined, there remain 
 ed but a scanty fragment for supper. This did not trouble my 
 companion, who skinned several of the 'rats,' gave them a slight 
 warming over the fire, and then ate them up with as much gout 
 as if they had been partridges. I was hungry, but not hungry 
 enough for that, so I sat watching him with some astonishment, 
 and not without a slight feeling of disgust. 
 
 " It was a beautiful moonlight night, one of the clearest I, ever 
 remember. There was a little snow upon the ground, just 
 enough to cover it ; and- up against the white side of the hills 
 could be traced the pyramidal outlines of the pines, with their 
 regular gradations of dark needle-clothed branches. They rose 
 on all sides around the lake, looking like ships with furled sails 
 and yards square-set. 
 
 " I was in. a reverie of admiration, when I was suddenly 
 aroused by a confused noise, that resembled the howling and bay 
 ing of hounds. I turned an inquiring look upon my companion. 
 
 "'Wolves !' he replied, unconcernedly, chawing away at his 
 ' roast rat.' 
 
88 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 " The howling sounded nearer and nearer ; and then there 
 was a rattling among dead trees, and the quickly repeated 
 4 crunch, crunch,' as of the hoofs of some animal breaking 
 through frozen snow. The next moment a deer dashed past in 
 full run, and took to the ice. It was a large buck, of the ' Cari 
 bou' or reindeer species ( Cervus tarandus), and I could see 
 that he was smoking with heat, and almost run down. 
 
 " He had hardly passed the spot, when the howl again broke 
 out in a continued strain, and a string of forms appeared 
 from out the bushes. They were about a dozen in all ; and they 
 were going at full speed like a pack of hounds on the view. 
 Their long muzzles, erect ears, and huge gaunt bodies, were out 
 lined plainly against the snowy ground. I saw that they were 
 wolves. They were white wolves, and of the largest spe 
 cies. 
 
 " I had suddenly sprung to my feet, not with the intention of 
 saving the deer, but of assisting in its capture ; and for this 
 purpose I seized the spear, and ran out. I heard* my companion, 
 as I thought, shouting some caution after me ; but I was too 
 intent upon the chase to pay any attention to what he said. I 
 had at the moment a distinct perception of hunger, and an indis 
 tinct idea of roast venison for supper. 
 
 " As I got down to the shore, I saw that the wolves had 
 overtaken the deer, and dragged it down upon the ice. The 
 poor creature made but poor running on the slippery track, 
 sprawling at every bound ; while the sharp claws of its pursu 
 ers enabled them to gallop over the ice like cats. The deer 
 had, no doubt, mistaken the ice for water, which these creatures 
 very often do, and thus become an easy prey to wolves, dogs, 
 and hunters. 
 
 " I ran on, thinking that I would soon scatter the wolves, 
 and rob them of their prey. In a few moments I was in their 
 midst, brandishing my spear ; but to my surprise, as well as 
 terror, I saw that, instead of relinquishing the deer, several of 
 
MOSQUITOES AND THEIR ANTIDOTE. 89 
 
 them still held on it, while the rest surrounded me with open 
 jaws, and eyes glancing like coals of fire. 
 
 "I shouted and fought desperately, thrusting the spear first 
 at one and then at another ; but the wolves only became more 
 bold and fierce, incensed by the wounds I was inflicting. 
 
 " For several minutes I continued this unexpected conflict. I 
 was growing quite exhausted ; and a sense of terrible dread 
 coming over me, had almost paralyzed me, when the tall, dark 
 form of the Indian, hurrying over the ice, gave me new courage ; 
 and I plied the spear with all my remaining strength, until 
 several of my assailants lay pierced upon the ice. The others, 
 now seeing the proximity of my companion with his huge ice- 
 chisel, and frighted, moreover, by his wild Indian yells, turned 
 tail and scampered off. 
 
 " Three of them, however, had uttered their last howl, and 
 the deer was found close by already half devoured. 
 
 " There was enough left, however, to make a good supper for 
 both myself and my companion ; who, although he had already 
 picked the bones of three muskrats, made a fresh attack upon 
 the venison, eating of it as though he had not tasted food for 
 a fortnight." 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 MOSQUITOES AND THEIR ANTIDOTE. 
 
 OUR next day's journey brought us again into heavy timber 
 another creek bottom. The soil was rich and loamy, and the 
 road we travelled was moist, and in some places very heavy for 
 our waggon. Several times the latter got stalled in the mud, 
 and then the whole party were obliged to dismount, and put 
 their shoulders to the wheel. Our progress was marked by 
 
90 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 some noise and confusion, and the constant din made by Jake 
 talking to his team, his loud sonorous " whoa 1" as they were 
 obliged to halt, and the lively " gee up gee up" as they moved 
 on again frighted any game long before we could come up with 
 it. Of course we were compelled to keep* by the waggon until 
 we had made the passage of the miry flat. 
 
 We were dreadfully annoyed by the mosquitoes, particularly 
 the doctor, of whose blood they seemed to be especially fond 1 
 This is a curious fact in relation to the mosquitoes of two 
 persons sleeping in the same apartment, one will sometimes be 
 bitten or rather punctured, and half bled to death, while the 
 other remains untouched 1 Is it the quality of the blood or the 
 thickness of the skin that guides to this preference ? 
 
 This point was discussed amongst us the doctor taking the 
 view that it was always a sign of 'good blood when one was 
 more than usually subject to the attack of mosquitoes. He was 
 himself an apt illustration of the fact. This statement of course 
 produced a general laugh, and some remarks at the doctor's 
 expense, on the part of the opponents of his theory. Strange to 
 say, Old Ike was fiercely assailed by the little blood-suckers. 
 This seemed to be an argument against the doctor's theory, for 
 in the tough skinny carcass of the old trapper, the blood could 
 neither have been very plenteous nor delicate. 
 
 Most of us smoked as we rode along, hoping by that means to 
 drive off the ferocious swarm, but although tobacco smoke is 
 disagreeable to the mosquitoes, they cannot be wholly got rid of 
 by a pipe or cigar. Could one keep a constant nimbus of the 
 smoke around his face it might be effective, but not otherwise. 
 A sufficient quantity of tobacco smoke will kill mosquitoes out 
 right, as I have more than once proved by a thorough fumigation 
 of my sleeping apartment. 
 
 These insects are not peculiar, as sometimes supposed, to the 
 inter-tropical regions of America. They are found in great 
 numbers even to the shores of the Arctic Sea, and as fierce and 
 
MOSQUITOES AXD THEIR ANTIDOTE. 91 
 
 bloodthirsty as anywhere else of course only in the summer 
 season, when, as before remarked, the thermometer in these 
 Northern latitudes mounts to a high figure. Their haunts are 
 the banks of rivers, and particularly those of a stagnant and* 
 muddy character. 
 
 There is another singular fact in regard to them. Upon the 
 banks of some of the South American rivers, life is almost unen 
 durable on account of this pest the " plaga de mosqnilos" as 
 the Spaniards term it while upon other streams in the very 
 same latitude mosquitoes are unknown. These streams are 
 what are termed " rios negros," or black-water rivers a peculiar 
 class of .rivers, to which many tributaries of the Amazon and 
 Orinoco belong. 
 
 Our English comrade, who had travelled all over South 
 America, gave us this information as we rode along. He stated 
 that he had often considered it a great relief, a sort of escape 
 from purgatory, while on his travels he parted from one of the 
 yellow or white water streams, to enter one of the " rios negros." 
 Many Indian tribes settled upon the banks of the latter, solely 
 to get clear of the "plaga de mosquitos." The Indians who 
 reside in the mosquito districts habitually paint their bodies and 
 smear themselves with oil, as a protection against their bites ; 
 and it is a common thing among the natives, when speaking of 
 any place, to inquire into the " character n of its mosquitoes ! 
 
 On some tributaries of the Am&zon the mosquitoes are really 
 a life torment, and the wretched creatures who inhabit such 
 places frequently bury their bodies in the sand in order to get 
 sleep ! Even the pigments with which they anoint themselves 
 are pierced by the poisoned bills of their tormentors, 
 
 Besai^on and the Kentuekian both denied that any species 
 of ointment would serve as a protection against mosquitoes. 
 The doctor joined them in their denial. They asserted that 
 they had tried everything that could be thought of camphor, 
 ether, hartshorn, spirits of turpentine, &c. 
 
92 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 Some of us were of a different opinion, and Ike settled the 
 point soon after in favour of the dissentients by a practical 
 illustration. The old trapper, as before stated, was a victim of 
 4 the fiercest attacks, as was manifested by the slapping which he 
 repeatedly administered to his cheeks, and an almost constant 
 muttering of bitcer imprecations. He knew a remedy, he said, 
 in a " sartint weed," if he could only "lay his claws upon it." 
 We noticed that from time to time as he rode along his eyes 
 swept the ground in every direction. At length a joyous excla 
 mation told that he had discovered the " weed." 
 
 " Thur's the darned thing at last," muttered he, as he flung 
 himself to the ground, and commenced gathering the stalks of a 
 small herb that grew plentifully about. It was an annual, with 
 leaves very much of the size and shape of young garden box 
 wood, but of a much brighter green. Of course we all knew 
 well enough what it was, for there is not a village " common " 
 in the Western United States that is not covered with it. It 
 was the well-known " penny-royal " (Htdeoma pulegioides), not 
 the English herb of that name, which is a species of mentha. 
 
 Redwood also leaped from his horse, and set to plucking the 
 " weed." He too, from experience, knew its virtues. 
 
 We all drew bridle, watching the guides. Both operated in 
 a similar manner. Having collected a handful of the teuderest 
 tops, they rubbed them violently between their palms rough 
 and -good for such service and then passed the latter over the 
 exposed skin of their necks and faces. Ike took two small 
 bunches of the stalks, crushed them under his heel, and then 
 stuck them beneath his cap, so that the ends hung down over 
 his cheeks. This being done, he and his comrade mounted their 
 horses and rode on 
 
 Some of us the hunter-naturalist, the Englishman, and 
 myself dismounted and imitated Ike of course under a volley 
 of laughter and "pooh-poohs " from Besangon, the Kentuckian, 
 and the doctor ; but we had not ridden two hundred paces until 
 
MOSQUITOES AND THEIR ANTIDOTE. 93 
 
 the joke changed sides. From that moment not a mosquito 
 approached us, while our three friends were bitten as badly as 
 ever. 
 
 In the end they were convinced, and the torment of the mos 
 quitoes proving stronger than the fear of our ridicule, all three 
 sprang out of their saddles, and made a rush at the next bed of 
 penny-royal that came in sight. 
 
 Whether it is the highly aromatic odour of the penny-royal 
 that keeps off these insects, or whether the juice when touched 
 by them burns the delicate nerves of their feet, I am unable to 
 say. Certain it is they will not alight upon the skin which has 
 been plentifully anointed with it. I have tried the same experi 
 ment often since that time with a similar result, and in fact have 
 never since travelled through a mosquito country without a pro 
 vision of the " essence of penny-royal." This is better than the 
 herb itself, and can be obtained from any apothecary. A single 
 drop or two spilled in the palm of the hand is sufficient to rub 
 over all the parts exposed, and will often ensure sleep, where 
 otherwise such a thing would be impossible. I have often lain 
 with my face so smeared, and listened to the sharp hum of the 
 mosquito as it approached, fancying that the next moment I 
 should feel its tiny touch, as it settled down upon my cheek, or 
 brow. As soon, however, as it came within the influence of the 
 penny-royal I could hear it suddenly tack round and wing its 
 way off again, until its disagreeable "music" was no longer 
 heard. 
 
 The only drawback in the use of the penny-royal, lies in the 
 burning sensation which the fluid produces upon the skin ; and 
 this in a climate where the thermometer is pointing to 90 is no 
 slight disqualification of the remedy. The use of it is sometimes 
 little better than " Hobbson's choice.' 7 
 
 The application of it on the occasion mentioned restored the 
 spirits of our party, which had been somewhat kept under by 
 the continuous attacks of the mosquitoes, and a lively incident 
 
94 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 that occurred soon after, viz. the hunt and capture of a raccoon, 
 made us all quite merry. 
 
 Cooney, though a night prowler, is sometimes abroad during 
 the day, but especially in situations where the timber is high, 
 and the woods dark and gloomy. On the march we had come 
 so suddenly upon this one, that he had not time to strike out for 
 
 his own tree, where he would soon have hidden from us in its 
 
 - 
 
 deep cavity. He had been too busy with his own affairs the 
 nest of a wild turkey upon the ground, under some brush and 
 leaves, the broken eggs in which told of the delicious meal he 
 had made. Taken by surprise for the guides had ridden nearly 
 on top of him he galloped up the nearest tree, which fortu 
 nately contained neither fork nor cavity in which he could shelter 
 himself ; and a well-directed shot from Redwood's rifle brought 
 him with a heavy " thump " back to the ground again. 
 
 We were all stirred up a little by this incident ; in fact, the 
 unusual absence of game rendered ever so trifling an occurrence an 
 " event" with us. No one, however, was so pleased as the black 
 waggoner Jake, whose eyes fairly danced in his head at the sight 
 of a "coon." The "coon" to Jake was well-known game 
 natural and legitimate and Jake preferred " roast coon " to 
 fried bacon at any time. Jake knew that none of us would care 
 to eat of his coonship. He was therefore sure of his supper ; 
 and the " varmint" was carefully deposited in the corner of the 
 waggon. 
 
 Jake did not have it all to himself. The trappers liked fresh 
 meat too, even " coon-meat ; " and of course claimed their share. 
 None of the rest of the party had any relish for such a fox-like 
 carcass. 
 
 After supper, cooney was honoured with a description, and for 
 many of the facts of his history we are indebted to Jake himself. 
 
THE 'COON, AND HIS HABITS. 95 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 THE 'COON, AND HIS HABITS. 
 
 FOREMOST amongst the wild creatures of America in point of 
 being generally known is the raccoon (Procyon lotor). None has 
 a wider geographical distribution, as its " range " embraces the 
 entire Continent from the Polar Sea to Terra del Fuego. Some 
 naturalists have denied that it is found in South America. 
 This denia-1 is founded on the fact, that neither Ulloa nor Molina 
 have spoken of it. But how many other animals have these 
 crude naturalists omitted to describe ? We may safely assert 
 that the raccoon .exists in South America, as well in the tropical 
 forests of Guiana as in the colder regions of the Table Land 
 everywhere that there exists tree-timber. In most parts where 
 the Spanish language is spoken, it is known as the " zorro negro," 
 or black fox. Indeed, there are two species in South America, 
 the common one (Procyon lotor), and the crab-eater (Procyon 
 mncrivorus. ) 
 
 In North America it is one of the most common of wild 
 animals. In all parts you may meet with it. In the hot low 
 lands of Louisiana in the tropical " chapparals" of Mexico 
 in the snowy regions of Canada and in the vernal valleys of 
 California. Unlike the deer, the wild cat, and the wolverene, it 
 is never mistaken for any other animal, nor is any other annual 
 taken for it. It is as well known in America as the red fox is 
 in England, and with a somewhat similar reputation. 
 
 Although there is a variety in color and size, there is no 
 ambiguity about species or genus. Wherever the English lan 
 guage is spoken, it has but one name, the " raccoon.' 7 In Ame 
 rica, every man, woman and child knows the " sly old 'coon.' 7 
 
96 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 animal has been placed by naturalists in the family 
 Ursidae, genus Procyon. Linnaeus made it a bear, and classed it 
 with Ursus. It has, in our opinion, but little in common with 
 the bear, and far more resembles the fox. Hence the Spanish 
 name of " zorro negro" (black fox). 
 
 A writer quaintly describes it thus : " The limbs of a bear, 
 and the body of a badger, the head of a fox, the nose of a dog, 
 the tail of a cat, and sharp claws, by which it climbs trees like a 
 monkey." We cannot admit the similarity of its tail to that of 
 a cat. The tail of the raccoon is full and bushy, which is not 
 true of the cat's tail. There is only a similarity in the annulated 
 or banded appearance noticed in the tails of some cats, which in 
 that of the raccoon is a marked characteristic. 
 
 The raccoon, to speak in round terms, is about the size of an 
 English fox, but somewhat thicker, and " bunchier " in the body. 
 Its legs are short in proportion, and as it is plantigrade in the 
 hind feet, it stands and runs low and cat-like. The muzzle is 
 extremely pointed and slender, adapted to its habit of prying 
 into every chink and corner, in search of spiders, beetles, and 
 other creatures. 
 
 The general colour of the raccoon is dark-brown (nearly 
 black) on the upper part of the body mixed with iron-grey. 
 Underneath it .is of a lighter hue. There is, here and there., a 
 little fawn colour intermixed. A broad black band runs across 
 the eyes and unites under the throat. This band is surrounded 
 and sharply denned with a margin of greyish white, which gives 
 a unique expression to the " countenance " of the "coon." 
 
 One of the chief beauties of this animal is its tail, which is 
 characteristic in its markings. It exhibits twelve annulations or 
 ring-bands, six black and six greyish-white, in regular alterna 
 tion. The tip is black, and the tail itself is very full and 
 " bushy." When the 'coon skin is made into a cap which it 
 often is among hunters and frontiersmen the tail is left to hang 
 as a drooping plume ; and such a head-dress is far from ungracc- 
 
THE 'COON AND HIS HABITS. 97 
 
 ful. In some "settlements" the 'coon-skin cap is quite the 
 fashion among the young " backwoodsmen." 
 
 The raccoon is an animal of an extremely amorous dispo 
 sition ; but there is a fact connected with the sex of this crea 
 ture which is curious : the female is larger than the male. Not 
 only larger, but in every respect a liner-looking animal The 
 hair, long on both, is more full and glossy upon the female, its 
 tints deeper and more beautiful. This is contrary to the 
 general order of nature. By those unacquainted with this fact, 
 the female is mistaken for the male, and vice versa, as in the case 
 of the hawks and eagles. 
 
 The fur of the raccoon has long been an article of commerce, 
 as it is used in making beaver hats ; but as these have given 
 place in most countries to the silk article, the 'coon skin now 
 commands but a small price. 
 
 The raccoon is a tree-climber of the first quality. It climbs 
 with its sharp curved claws, not by hugging, as is the case with the 
 bear tribe. Its lair, or place of retreat, is in a tree some hol 
 low, with its entrance high up. Such trees are common in the 
 great primeval forests of America. In this tree-cave it has its 
 nest, where the female brings forth three, four, five, or six 
 " cubs " at a birth. This takes place in early spring usually 
 the first week in April. 
 
 The raccoon is a creature of the woods. On the prairies and 
 in tree-less regions it is not known. It prefers heavy "timber," 
 where there are huge logs and hollow- trees in plenty. It 
 requires the neighbourhood of water, and in connection with 
 this may be mentioned a curious habit it has, that of plunging 
 its food into the water before devouring it. It will be remembered 
 that the otter has a similar habit. It is from this peculiarity 
 that the raccoon derives its specific name of Lotor (washer). 
 It does not always moisten its morsel thus, but pretty generally. 
 It is fond, moreover, of frequent ablutions, and no animal is more 
 clean and tidy in its habits. 
 
 5 
 
98 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 The raccoon is almost omnivorous. It eats poultry or wild 
 fowl. It devours frogs, lizards, larvae, and insects without dis 
 tinction. It is fond of sweets, and is very destructive to the 
 sugar-cane and Indian corn of the planter. When the ear of 
 the maize is young, or, as it is termed, "in the milk," it is very 
 sweet. Then the raccoon loves to prey upon it. Whole troops 
 at night visit the corn-fields and commit extensive havoc. 
 These mischievous habits make the creature many enemies, and 
 in fact it has but few friends. It kills hares, rabbits, and 
 squirrels when it can catch them, and will rob a bird's nest in 
 the most ruthless manner. It is particularly fond of shell-fish ; 
 and the unios, with which many of the fresh-water lakes and 
 rivers of America abound, form part of its food. These it opens 
 as adroitly with its claws as an oysterman could with his knife. 
 It is partial to the " soft-shell " crabs and small tortoises com 
 mon in the American waters. 
 
 Jake told us of a trick which the 'coon puts in practice for 
 catching the small turtles of the creek. We were not inclined 
 to give credence to the story, but Jake almost swore to it. It 
 is certainly curious if true, but it smacks very much of Buffon. 
 It may be remarked, however, that the knowledge which the 
 plantation negroes have of the habits of the raccoon surpasses 
 that of any mere naturalist. Jake boldly declares that the 
 'coon fishes for turtles ! that it squats upon the bank of the 
 stream, allowing its bushy tail to hang over into the water ; that 
 the turtles swimming about in search of food or amusement, 
 spies the hairy appendage and lays hold of it ; and the 'coon 
 feeling the nibble, suddenly draws the testaceous swimmer upon 
 dry land, and then " cleans out de shell" at his leisure ! 
 
 The 'coon is often domesticated in America. It is harmless as 
 a dog or cat except when crossed by children, when it will snarl, 
 snap, and bite like the most crabbed cur. It is troublesome, 
 however, where poultry is kept, and this prevents its being 
 much of a favourite. Indeed, it is not one, for it is hunted 
 
THE 'COON AND HIS HABITS. 99 
 
 everywhere, and killed wherever this can be done on 
 sight. 
 
 There is a curious connection between the negro and the 
 raccoon. It is not a tie of sympathy, but a link of antagonism. 
 The 'coon, as already observed, is the negro's legitimate game. 
 'Coon-hunting is peculiarly a negro sport. The negro is the 
 'coon's mortal enemy. He kills the 'coon when and wherever he 
 can, and eats it too. He loves its " meat,'' which is pork-tasted, 
 and in young 'coons palatable enough, but in old ones rather 
 rank. This, however, our " darkie" friend does not much mind, 
 particularly if his master be a " stingy old boss," and keeps him 
 on rice instead of meat rations. The negro, moreover, makes an 
 odd "bit" (12 cents) by the skin, which he disposes of to the 
 neighbouring "storekeeper." 
 
 The 'coon-hunt is a " nocturnal " sport, and therefore does not 
 interfere with the negro's regular labour. By right the night 
 belongs to him, and he may then dispose of his time as he 
 pleases, which he often does in this very way. 
 
 The negro is not allowed to carry fire-arms, and for this reason 
 the squirrel may perch upon a high limb, jerk its tail about and 
 defy him ; the hare may run swiftly away, and the wild turkey 
 may tantalise him with its incessant " gobbling." But the 'coon 
 can be killed without fire-arms. The 'coon can be overtaken and 
 " treed." The negro is not denied the use of an axe, and no 
 man knows better how to handle it than he. The 'coon, there 
 fore is his natural game, and much sport does he have in its 
 pursuit. Nearly the same may be said of the opossum 
 (Diddphis Virginiana) ; but the " 'possum" is more rare, and it 
 is not our intention now to describe that very curious creature. 
 From both 'coon and 'possum does the poor negro derive infinite 
 sport many a sweet excitement that cheers his long winter 
 nights, and checquers with brighter spots the dull and darksome 
 monotony of his slave-life. I have often thought what a pity it 
 would be if the 'coon and the opossum should be extirpated 
 
100 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 before slavery itself became extinct. I had often shared in this 
 peculiar sport of the negro, and joined in a real 'coon chase, but 
 the most exciting of all was the first in which I had been 
 engaged, and I proffered my comrades an account of it. 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 A 'COON CHASE. 
 
 "My 'coon cnase took place in Tennessee, where I was 
 sojourning for some time upon a plantation. It was the first 
 affair of the kind I had been present at, and I was somewhat 
 curious as to the mode of carrying it on. My companion and 
 inductor was a certain ' Uncle Abe/ a gentleman very much 
 after the style and * complexion' of our own Jake here. 
 
 " I need not tell you, gentlemen, that throughout the Western 
 States every neighbourhood has its noted 'coon hunter. He is 
 usually a wary old ' nigger,' who knows all the tricks and 
 dodges of the 'coon. He either owns a dog himself, or has train 
 ed one of his master's, in that peculiar line. It is of little 
 importance what breed the dog may be. I have known curs 
 that were excellent ' 'coon dogs. 7 All that is wanted is, that 
 he have a good nose, and he be a good runner, and of sufficient 
 bulk to be able to bully a 'coon when taken. This a very small 
 dog cannot do, as the 'coon frequently makes a desperate fight 
 before yielding. Mastiffs, terriers, and half-bred pointers make 
 the best ' 'coon-dogs.' 
 
 " Uncle Abe was the mighty hunter, the Nimrod of the neigh 
 bourhood in which I happened to be ; and Uncle Abe's dog a 
 stout terrier was esteemed the smartest ' 'coon-dog ' in a circle 
 of twenty miles. In going out with Uncle Abe, therefore, I 
 had confidence that I should see sport. 
 
A ; COON CHASE. 101 
 
 " On one side of the plantation was a heavily-timbered ' bot 
 tom/ through which meandered a small stream, called, of course, 
 a ' creek. 7 This bottom was a favourite habitat of the 'coons, 
 as there were large trees growing near the water, many of which 
 were hollow either in their trunks or some of their huge limbs. 
 Moreover, there were vast trellises of vines extending from tree 
 to tree ; some of them, as the fox and muskadine ( Vitis 
 labrnsca), yielding sweet grapes, of which the raccoons are very 
 fond. 
 
 " To this bottom, then, we directed our course, Abe acting as 
 guide, and holding his dog, Pompo, in the leash. Abe carried 
 110 other weapon than an axe, while I had armed myself with 
 a double-barrel. Pompo knew as well as either of us the errand 
 on which we were bent, as appeared from his flashing eyes and 
 the impatient leaps which he now and then made to get 
 free. 
 
 ''We had to cross a large corn-field, a full half-mile in breath, 
 before we reached the woods. Between this and the timber 
 was a zigzag fence the common ' rail' fence of the American 
 farmer. For some distance beyond the fence the timber was 
 small, but farther on was the creek ' bottom,' where the 'coons 
 were more likely to make their dwelling-place. 
 
 " We did not however, proceed direct to the bottom. Abe 
 knew better than that. The young corn was just then 'in the 
 milk,' and the 'coon-hunter expected to find his game nearer the 
 field. It was settled, therefore, that we should follow the line 
 of the fence, in hopes that the dog would strike a fresh trail, 
 leading either to or from the corn-field. 
 
 " It was now night, two hours after sundown. The 'coon- 
 chase, I have already said, is a nocturnal sport. The raccoon 
 does range by day, but rarely, and only in dark and solitary 
 woods. He often basks by day upon high limbs, or the broken 
 tops, of trees. I have shot several of his tribe while asleep, 
 or sunning themselves in such situations. Perhaps before they 
 
102 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 knew their great enemy-man, they were less nocturnal in their 
 activity. 
 
 " We had a fine moonlight ; but so far as a view of the chase 
 was concerned, that would benefit us but little. During the 
 hunt there is not much to be seen of either dog or 'coon, as it 
 is always a scramble through trees and underwood. The dog 
 trusts altogether to his nose, and the hunter to his ears, for the 
 latter has no other guide save the yelp or bark of his canine 
 assistant. Nevertheless, moonlight, or a clear night, is indispen 
 sable ; without one or the other, it would be impossible to fol 
 low through the woods. A view of a 'coon-chase is a luxury 
 enjoyed only by the bats and owls. 
 
 " Pompo was now let loose in the corn ; while Abe and I 
 walked quietly along the fence, keeping on different sides. Abe 
 remained in the field for the purpose of handing over the dog, 
 as the fence was high a regular ' ten rail, with stalks and 
 riders.' A 'coon could easily cross it, but not a dog without 
 help. 
 
 " We had not gone more than a hundred yards, when a quick 
 sharp yelp from Pompo announced that he had come suddenly 
 upon something in the corn-field. 
 
 " ' A varmint ! ' cried Abe ; and the next moment appeared 
 the dog, running up full tilt among the maize plants and up to 
 the fence. I could see some dark object before him, that passed 
 over the rails with a sudden spring, and bounded into the 
 timbers. 
 
 " ' A varmint, massa ! ' repeated Abe, as he lifted the dog 
 over, and followed himself. 
 
 " I knew that in Abe's vocabulary for that night at least 
 a 'varmint' meant a 'coon; and as we dashed through the 
 brushwood, following the dog, I felt all the excitement of a 
 'coon-chase. 
 
 " It was not a long one I should think of about five minutes' 
 duration ; at the end of which time the yelp of the dog which 
 
A 'COON CHASE. 103 
 
 had hitherto guided us, changed into a regular and continuous 
 barking. On hearing this, Abe quietly announced 
 
 " ' The varmint am treed.' 
 
 " Our only thought now was to get to the tree as speedily 
 as possible, but another thought entered our minds as we 
 advanced ; that was, what sort of a tree had the 'coon taken 
 shelter in ? 
 
 " This was an important question, and its answer involved the 
 success or failure of our hunt. If a very large tree, we might 
 1 whistle ' for the 'coon. Abe knew this well, and as we passed 
 on, expressed his doubts about the result. 
 
 " The bark of Pompo sounded some hundred yards off, in the 
 very heaviest of the bottom timber. It was not likely, there 
 fore, that the 'coon had taken to a small tree, while here were 
 large ones near at hand. Our only hope was that he had 
 climbed one that was not ' hollow. ' In that case we might still 
 have a chance with the double-barrel and buck-shot. Abe had 
 but little hope. 
 
 " ' He hab reach him own tree, massa ; an' that am sartin to 
 be a big un wi' a hole near um top. Wagh ! 'twar dat ar fence. 
 But for de dratted fence ole Pomp nebber lot um reach um own 
 tree. Wagh !' 
 
 " From this I learned that one point in the character of a 
 good 'coon-dog was speed. The 'coon runs well for a few hun 
 dred yards. He rarely strays farther from his lair. If he can 
 beat his pursuer for this distance he is safe, as his retreat is 
 always in a hollow tree of great size. There is no way of get 
 ting at him there, except by felling the tree, and this the most 
 zealous 'coon-hunter would not think of attempting. The labour 
 of cutting down such a tree would be worth a dozen 'coons. 
 A swift dog, therefore, will overtake the raccoon, and force him 
 to the nearest tree often a small one, where he is either shaken 
 off or the tree cut down. Sometimes the hunter climbs after 
 
104 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 and forces him to leap out so as to fall into the very jaws of 
 the watchful dog below. 
 
 " In Abe's opinion Pompo would have ' treed' his 'coon before 
 reaching the bottom, had not the fence interfered, but now 
 
 "'Told ye so, massa!' muttered he, interrupting my thoughts. 
 'Look dar 1 dar's de tree trunk thick as a haystack ! Wagh !' 
 
 " I looked in the direction indicated by my companion. I saw 
 Pompo standing by the root of a very large tree, looking 
 upward, shaking his tail, and barking at intervals. Before I 
 had time to make any farther observations Abe's voice again 
 sounded in my ears. 
 
 " ' Gollies 1 it am a buttonwood ! Why, Pomp, old fellur, 
 you hab made a mistake de varmint ain't dar. 'Cooney nebber 
 trees upon buttonwood nebber you oughter know better'n dat, 
 ole fool ! ' 
 
 " Abe's speech drew my attention to the tree. I saw that it 
 was the American sycamore (Platanus Ocddentalis) , familiarly 
 known by the trivial name, ' buttonwood,' from the use to which 
 its wood is sometimes put. But why should the 'coon not 
 ' tree ' upon it, as well as any other ? I put the question to my 
 companion. 
 
 " ' 'Cause, massa, its bark am slippery. De varmint nebber 
 takes to 'im. He likes de oak an' de poplum, an' de scaly-bark. 
 Gosh ! but he am dar !' continued Abe, raising his voice, and 
 looking outward ' Look yonder, massa ! He had climb by de 
 great vine. Dat's right, Pomp ! you am right after all, and dis 
 nigga's a fool. Hee up, ole dog ! bee up ! ' 
 
 Following the direction in which Abe pointed, my eyes rested 
 on a huge parasite of the lliana kind, that, rising out of the 
 ground at some distance, slanted upwards and joined the syca 
 more near its top. This had no doubt heen the ladder by which 
 the 'coon had climbed. 
 
 " This discovery, however, did not mend the matter as far as 
 
A 'COON CHASE. 105 
 
 we were concerned. The 'coon had got into the buttonwood, 
 fifty feet from the ground, where the tree had been broken off 
 by the lightning or the wind, and where the mouth of a large 
 cavity was distinctly visible by the light of the moon. The 
 trunk was one of the largest, and it would have been sheer folly 
 (so we concluded^ to have attempted felling it. 
 
 "We left the spot without further ado, and took our way 
 back to the corn-field. 
 
 " The dog had now been silent for some time, and we were in 
 hopes that another ' varmint ' might have stolen into the corn. 
 
 " Our hopes were not doomed to disappointment. Pompo 
 
 had scarcely entered the field when a second 'coon was sprung, 
 
 which, like the other, ran directly for the fence and the woods. 
 
 " Pomp followed as fast as he could be flung over ; and this 
 
 'coon was also ' treed ' in a few minutes. 
 
 " From the direction of the barking, we calculated that it 
 must be near where the other had escaped us ; but our aston 
 ishment equalled our chagrin, when arriving at the spot, we 
 found that both the ' varmints ' had taken to the same 
 tree I 
 
 " With some rather emphatic ejaculations we returned to the 
 corn-field, and after a short while a third 'coon was raised, which 
 like the others, made of course for the timber. 
 
 " Pomp ran upon his trail with an angry yelping, that soon 
 changed into the well-known signal that he had treed the 
 game. 
 
 " We ran after, through the' brush and brake, and soon came 
 up with the dog. If our astonishment was great before, it was 
 now beyond bounds. The identical buttonwood with its para 
 site was before -us, the dog barking at its foot ! The third 
 'coon had taken shelter in its capacious cavity. 
 
 " ' Wagh ! massa ! ' ejaculated Abe, in a voice of terror, 'its 
 de same varmint. It aint no 'coon, its de debil ! For de lub o* 
 God, massa, let us get away from here 1 ; 
 
 5* 
 
106 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 " Of course I followed his advice, as to get at the 'coons was 
 out of the question. 
 
 "We returned once more to the corn-field, but we found that 
 we had at last cleared it of 'coons. It was still early, however, 
 and I was determined not to give up the chase till I had assisted 
 in killing a 'coon. By Abe's advice, therefore, we struck into 
 the woods with the intention of making a circuit where the trees 
 were small. Some 'coon might be prowling there in search of 
 birds' nests. So thought Abe. 
 
 " He was right in his conjecture. A fourth was started, 
 and off went Pompo after him. In a few minutes the quick con 
 stant bark echoed back. This time we were sure, from the 
 direction, in a new tree. 
 
 " It proved to be so, and such a small one that, on coming up, 
 we saw the animal squatted upon the branches, not twenty feet 
 from the ground. 
 
 " We were now sure of him, as we thought ; and I had raised 
 rny gun to fire ; when all at once, as if guessing my intent, 
 the 'coon sprang into another tree, and then ran down to the 
 ground and off again, with Pompo yelling in his track. 
 
 11 Of course we expected that the dog would speedily tree 
 him again, which after a few minutes he did, but this time in 
 the heavy timber. 
 
 " We hastened forward, guided by the barking. To the 
 extreme of my astonishment, and I fancy to the very extreme 
 of Abe's terror, we again found ourselves at the foot of the but 
 ton wood. 
 
 " Abe's wool stood on end. Superstition was the butt end 
 of his religion ; and he not only protested, but I am satisfied 
 that he believed that all the four 'coons were one and the same 
 individual, and that individual ' de debil.' 
 
 " Great 'coon hunter as he was, he would now have gone 
 home, if I had let him. But I had no thoughts of giving up the 
 matter in that easy way. I was roused by the repeated disap- 
 
A 'COON CHASE. 107 
 
 pointment. A new resolve had entered my mind. I was 
 determined to get the 'coons out of the buttonwood, cost what it 
 might. The tree must come down, if it should take us till mor 
 ning to fell it. 
 
 " With this determination I caught hold of Abe's axe, and 
 struck the first blow. To my surprise and delight the tree 
 sounded hollow. I repeated the stroke. The sharp axe went 
 crashing inwards. The tree was hollow to the ground ; on the 
 side where I had commenced chopping, it was but a shell. 
 
 "A few more blows, and I had made a hole large enough to 
 put a head through. Felling such a tree would be no great job 
 after all, and I saw that it would hardly occupy an hour. The 
 tree must come down. 
 
 "Abe seeing me so resolute, had somewhat recovered his 
 courage and his senses, and now laid hold of the axe. Abe was 
 a ' first hand' at * chopping,' and the hole soon gaped wider. 
 
 " ' If de hole run clar up, massa,' said he, resting for a 
 moment, ' we can smoke out de varmint wid de punk and de 
 grass here we can smoke out de debil himself. S'pose we try 'im, 
 massa ? ' 
 
 " ' Good I ' cried I, catching at Abe's suggestion ; and in a 
 few minutes we had made a fire in the hole, and covered it with 
 leaves, grass, and weeds. 
 
 " The smoke soon did its work. We saw it ooze out above at 
 the entrance of the 'coon's hole at first in a slight filmy stream, 
 and then in thick volumes. We heard a scraping and rattling 
 within the hollow trunk, and a moment after a dark object 
 sprang out upon the lliana, and ran a short way downward. 
 Another followed, and another, and another, until a string of 
 no less than six raccoons squatted along the parasite, threaten 
 ing to run downward ! 
 
 " The scene that followed was indescribable. I had seized my 
 gun, and both barrels were emptied in a 'squirrel's jump. 7 
 Two of the 'coons came to the ground, badly wounded. Pompo 
 
108 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 tackled another, that had run down the lliana, and was attempt 
 ing to get off ; while Abe with his axe clove the scull of a 
 fourth, that had tried to escape in a similar manner. 
 
 " The other two ran back into the/ funnel,' but only to come 
 out again just in time to receive a shot each from the reloaded 
 gun, which brought both of them tumbling from the tree. We 
 succeeded in bagging the whole family ; and thus finished what 
 Abe declared to be the greatest * 'coon chase on de record.' 
 
 " As it was by this time far in the night, we gathered up our 
 game, and took the ' back track to hum.' " 
 
 CHAPTER XIY. 
 
 WILD HOGS OF THE WOODS. 
 
 NEXT day while threading our way through a patch of oak 
 forest the ground covered thickly with fallen leaves we were 
 startled by a peculiar noise in front of us. It was a kind of bel 
 lows-like snort, exactly like that made by the domestic swine 
 when suddenly affrighted. 
 
 Some of the party cried out "bear," and of course this 
 announcement threw us all into a high state of excitement. 
 Even the buffalo itself would be but secondary game, when a 
 bear was upon the ground. 
 
 The " snuff" of the bear has a very considerable resemblance 
 to that of the terrified hogs, and even our guides were deceived. 
 They thought it might be " bar " we had heard. 
 
 It proved we were all wrong. No wonder we fancied the 
 noise resembled that made by hogs. The animal that uttered it 
 was nothing else than a wild boar. 
 
 " What 1" you will exclaim, " a wild boar in the forests of 
 Missouri ? Oh I a peccary I suppose." 
 
WILD HOGS OF THE WOODS. 109 
 
 No, not a peccary ; for these creatures do not range so far 
 north as the latitude of Missouri not a wild boar, neither, if 
 you restrict the meaning of the phrase to the true indigenous 
 animal of that kind. For all that, it was a wild boar, or rather 
 a boar run wild. Wild enough and savage too it appeared, 
 although we had only a glimpse of its shaggy form as it dashed 
 into the ticket with a loud grunt. Half a dozen shots followed 
 it. No doubt it was tickled with some of the "leaden hail" 
 from the double-barrelled guns, but it contrived to escape, leav 
 ing us only the incident as a subject for conversation. 
 
 Throughout the backwoods -there are large numbers of half- 
 wild hogs, but they are usually the denizens of woods that are 
 inclosed by a rail fence, and therefore private property. One 
 part of the year they are tamer, when a scarcity of food renders 
 it necessary for them to approach the owner's house, and eat the 
 corn placed for them in a well-known spot. At this season they 
 answer to a call somewhat similar to the " milk oh 1" of the 
 London dairyman, but loud enough to be heard a mile or 
 more through the woods. A traveller passing through the back 
 woods' settlements will often hear this singular call sounding 
 afar off in the stillness of the evening. 
 
 These hogs pick up most of their subsistence in the forest. 
 The " mast " of the beech-tree, the nut of the hickory, the fruit 
 of the Chinquapin oak, the acorn, and many other seeds and 
 berries, furnish them with food. Many roots besides, and 
 grasses, contribute to sustain them, and they make an occasional 
 meal off a snake whenever they can get hold of one. Indeed it 
 may be safely asserted, that no other cause has contributed so 
 much to the destruction of these reptiles, as the introduction of 
 the domestic hog into the forests of America. Wherever a 
 track of woods has been used as the "run" of a drove of hogs, 
 serpents of every kind become exceedingly scarce, and you may 
 hunt through such a tract for weeks without seeing one. The 
 hog seems to have the strongest antipathy to the snake tribe ; 
 
110 
 
 without the least fear of them. When one of the latter is dis 
 covered by a hog, and DO crevice in the rocks, or hollow log, offers 
 it a shelter, its destruction is inevitable. The hog rushes to the 
 spot, and, bounding forward, crushes the reptile under his hoofs. 
 Should the first attempt not succeed, and the serpent glide 
 away, the hog nimbly follows, and repeats his efforts until the 
 victim lies helpless. The victor then goes to work with his 
 powerful jaws, and quietly devours the prey. 
 
 The fondness of the hog for this species of food proves that 
 in a state of nature it is partially a carnivorous animal. The 
 peccary, which is the true representative of the wild hog in 
 America has the very same habit, and is well known to be one 
 of the most fatal enemies of the serpent tribe to be found among 
 American animals. 
 
 The hog shows no fear of the snake. His thick hide seems to 
 protect him. The " skin ' ; of the rattlesnake and the " hiss " of 
 the deadly "moccassin," are alike unheeded by him. He kills 
 them as easily as he does the innocent " chicken snake" or the 
 black constrictor. The latter often escapes from its dreaded 
 enemy by taking to a bush or tree ; but the rattlesnake and 
 the moccassin are not tree-climbers, and either hide themselves 
 in the herbage and dead leaves, or retreat to their holers. 
 
 It is not true that the hog eats the body of the snake he has 
 killed, leaving the head untouched, and thus avoiding the 
 poisoned fangs. He devours the whole of the creature, head 
 and all. The venom of the snake, like the "curari" poison of 
 the South American Indians, is only effective when coming in 
 contact with the blood. Taken internally its effects are innox 
 ious indeed there are those who believe it to be beneficial, and 
 the curari is often swallowedjas a medicine. 
 
 Most of this information about the half-wild hogs of the back 
 woods was given by our Kentucky comrade, who himself was 
 the proprietor of many hundreds of them. An annual hog-hunt 
 was part of the routine of his life. It was undertaken not 
 
WILD HOGS OF THE WOODS. Ill 
 
 merely for the sport of the thing though that was by no means 
 to be despised and the season of the hog-hunting is looked 
 forward to with pleasant anticipation by the domestics of the 
 plantation, as well as a few select friends or neighbours who are 
 invited to participate in it. 
 
 When the time arrives, the proprietor, with his pack of hounds, 
 and accompanied by a party mounted and armed with rifles, 
 enters the large tract of woodland perhaps miles in extent, 
 and in many places covered with canebrakes and almost impe 
 netrable thickets of undergrowth. To such places the hogs fly 
 for shelter, but the dogs can penetrate wherever hogs can go ; 
 and of course the latter are soon driven out, and forced into the 
 more open ground, where the mounted men are waiting to 
 receive them with a volley of bullets. Sometimes a keen pur 
 suit follows, and the dogs in full cry are carried across the 
 country, over huge logs, and through thickets and ravines, 
 followed by the horsemen just as if an old fox was the game 
 pursued. 
 
 A large waggon with drivers and attendants follows the chase, 
 and in this the killed are deposited, to be " hauled " home when 
 the hunt is over. 
 
 This, however, continues for several days, until all, or at least 
 all the larger hogs, are collected and brought home, and then the 
 sport terminates. The produce of the hunt sometimes amounts 
 to hundreds according to the wealth of the proprietor. Of 
 course a scene of slaughtering and bacon-curing follows. A 
 part of the bacon furnishes the " smoke-house " for home con 
 sumption during the winter ; while the larger part finds its way 
 to the great pork-market of Cincinnati. 
 
 The Kentuckian related to us a curious incident illustrating 
 the instinct of the swinish quadruped ; but which to his mind, as 
 well as to ours, seemed more like a proof of a rational principle 
 possessed by the animal. The incident he had himself been 
 witness to, and in his own woodlands. He related it thus : 
 
112 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 " I had strayed into the woods in search of a wild turkey, 
 with nothing but my shot gun, and having tramped about a good 
 bit, I sat down upon a log to rest myself. I had not been 
 seated five minutes when I heard a rustling among the dead 
 leaves in front of me. I thought it might be a deer, and raised 
 my gun ; but I was greatly disappointed on seeing some half 
 dozen of my own hogs make their appearance, rooting as they 
 went along. 
 
 " I paid no more heed to them at the time ; but a few 
 minutes after, my attention was again drawn to them, by seeing 
 them make a sudden rush across a piece of open ground, as if 
 they were in pursuit of something. 
 
 " Sure enough they were. Just before their snouts, I espied 
 the long shining body of a black snake doing its best to get out 
 of their way. In tbis it succeeded, for the next moment I saw it 
 twisting itself up a pawpaw sapling, until it had reached the 
 top branches, were it remained looking down at its pursuers. 
 
 " The snake may have fancied itself secure at the moment, 
 and so thought I, at least so far as the hogs were concerned. 
 I had made up my mind to be its destroyer myself, and was 
 just about to sprinkle it with shot, when a movement on the 
 part of one of the hogs caused me to hold back and remain 
 quiet. I need not tell you I was considerably astonished to see 
 the foremost of these animals seize the sapling in its jaws and 
 jerk it about in a determined manner, as if with the intention of 
 shaking off the snake I Of course it did not succeed in this, 
 for the latter was wound around the branches, and it would 
 have been as easy to haVe shaken off the bark. 
 
 " As you all know, gentlemen, the pawpaw not the pawpaw 
 ( Carica papaya), but a small tree of the anonas or custard 
 apple tribe, common in the woods of western America is one 
 of the softest and most brittle of our trees, and the hog seemed 
 to have discovered this, for he suddenly changed his tactics, 
 and instead of shaking at the sapling, commenced grinding it 
 
TREED BY PECCARIES. 113 
 
 between his powerful jaws. The others assisted him, and the 
 tree fell in a few seconds. As soon as the top branches touched 
 the ground, the whole drove dashed forward at the snake : and 
 in less than the time I take in telling it, the creature was 
 crushed and devoured." 
 
 After hearing the singular tale, our conversation now returned 
 to the hog we had just "jumped." All agreed that it must be 
 some stray from the plantations that had wandered thus far 
 from the haunts of men, for there was no settlement within 
 twenty miles of where we then were. 
 
 Our trapper guides stated that wild hogs are frequently found 
 in remote parts, and that many of them are not " strays/ 7 but 
 have been "littered" and brought up in the forest. These are 
 as shy and difficult to approach as deer, or any other hunted 
 animals. They are generally of a small breed, and it is sup 
 posed that they are identical with the species found throughout 
 Mexico, and introduced by the Spaniards. 
 
 CHAPTER XY. 
 
 TREED BY PECCARIES. 
 
 TALKING of these Spanish hogs naturally led us to the subject 
 of the peccary for this creature is an inhabitant only of those 
 parts of North America which have been hitherto in possession 
 of the Spanish race. Of the peccary (dicotyles), there are two 
 distinct species known the " collared," and the " white-lipped." 
 In form and habits they are very similar to each other. In 
 size and colour they differ. The " white-lipped" is the larger. 
 Its colour is dark brown, nearly black, while that of the collared 
 peccary is a uniform iron-grey, with the exception of the band 
 or collar upon its shoulders. 
 
114 
 
 The distinctive markings are, on the former species a greyish- 
 white patch along the jaws, and on the other a yellowish- 
 white belt embracing the neck and shoulders, as a collar does a 
 horse. These markings have given to each its specific name. 
 They are farther distinguished, by the forehead of the white- 
 lipped peccary being more hollowed or concave than that of its 
 congener. 
 
 In most other respects these creatures are alike. Both feed 
 upon roots, fruits, frogs, toads, lizards, and snakes. Both make 
 their lair in hollow logs, or in caves among the rocks, and both 
 are gregarious in their habits. In this last habit, however, 
 they exhibit some difference. The white-lipped species associate 
 in troops to the number of hundreds, and even as many as a 
 thousand have been seen together ; whereas the others do not 
 live in such large droves, but are oftener met with in pairs. 
 Yet this difference of habit may arise from the fact that 
 in the places where both have been observed, the latter 
 have not been so plentiful as the white-lipped species. As 
 many as a hundred of the collared peccary have been observed 
 in one "gang," and no doubt had there been more of 
 them in the neighbourhood, the flock would have been still 
 larger. 
 
 The white-lipped species does not extend to the northern half 
 of the American Continent. Its habitat is in the great tropical 
 forests of Guyana and Brazil, and it is found much farther south, 
 being common in Paraguay. It is there known as the " vaquira," 
 whence our word " peccary." The other species is also found 
 in South America, and is distinguished as the " vaquira de 
 collar" ( collared peccary). Of course, they both have trivial 
 Indian names, differing in different parts of the country. The 
 former is called in Paraguay " Tagnicati," while the latter is 
 the " Taytetou." 
 
 Neither species is so numerous as they were in former times. 
 They have been thinned off by hunting not for the value either 
 
TREED BY PECCARIES. 115 
 
 of their flesh or their skins, nor for the "mere sport either, but 
 on account of their destructive habits. In the neighbourhood 
 of settlements they make frequent forays into the maize and 
 mandioc fields, and they will lay waste a plantation of sugar 
 cane in a single night. For this reason it is that a war of 
 extermination has long been waged against them by the planters 
 and their dependents. 
 
 As already stated, it is believed that the white-lipped species 
 is not found in North America. Probably it does exist in the 
 forests of Southern Mexico. The natural history of these 
 countries is yet to be thoroughly investigated. The Mexicans 
 have unfortunately "employed all their time in making revolutions. 
 But a new period has arrived. The Panama railroad, the Nica 
 ragua canal, and the route of Tehuantepec, will soon be open, 
 when among the foremost who traverse these hitherto unfre 
 quented regions, will be found troops of naturalists, of the 
 Audubon school, who will explore every nook and corner of 
 Central America. Indeed, already some progress has been 
 made in this respect. 
 
 The two species of peccaries, although so much alike, never 
 associate together, and do not seem to have any knowledge of a 
 relationship existing between them. Indeed, what is very singu 
 lar, they are never found in the same tract of woods. A district 
 frequented by the one is always without the other. 
 
 The Collared Peccary is the species found in North America ; 
 and of it we more particularly speak. It is met with when you 
 approach the more southern latitudes westward of the Mississippi 
 River. In that great wing of the continent, to the eastward of 
 this river, and now occupied by the United States, no such 
 animal exists, nor is there any proof that it was ever known to 
 exist there in its wild state. In the territory of Texas, it is a 
 common animal, and its range extends westward to the Pacific, 
 and south throughout the remainder of the Continent. 
 
 As you proceed westwards, the line of its range rises con- 
 
116 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 siderably ; and in New Mexico it is met with as high as the 
 33rd parallel. This is just following the isothermal line, and 
 proves that the peccary cannot endure the rigours of a severe 
 winter climate. It is a production of the tropics and the 
 countries adjacent. 
 
 Some naturalists assert that it is a forest-dwelling animal, and 
 is never seen in open countries. Others, as Buffon, state that 
 it makes its habitat in the mountains, never the low countries 
 and plains ; while still others have declared .that it is never 
 found in the mountains ! 
 
 None" of these " theories" appears to be the correct one. It 
 is well known to frequent the forest-covered plains of Texas, 
 and Emory (one of the most talented of modern observers) 
 reports having met with a large drove of peccaries in the almost 
 treeless mountains of New Mexico. The fact is, the peccary is 
 a wide "ranger," and frequents either plains or mountains wher 
 ever he can find the roots or fruits which constitute his natural 
 food. The haunts he likes best appear to be the dry hilly woods, 
 where he finds several species of nuts to his taste such as the 
 chinquapin ( Castanea pumila), the pecan (Juglams olivceformis), 
 and the acorns of several species of oak, with which the half- 
 prairie country of western Texas abounds. 
 
 Farther than to eat their fruit, the forest trees are of no use 
 to the peccary. He is not a climber, as he is a hoofed animal. 
 But in the absence of rocks, or crevices in the cliffs, he makes 
 his lair in the bottoms of hollow trees, or in the great cavities 
 so common in half-decayed logs. He prefers, however, a habita 
 tion among rocks, as experience has, no doubt, taught him that 
 it is a safer retreat both from hunters and fire. 
 
 The peccary is easily distinguished from the other forest 
 animals by his rounded, hog-like form, and long, sharp snout. 
 Although pig-shaped, he is extremely active and light in his 
 movements. The absence of a tail for that member is repre 
 sented only by a very small protuberance or " knob" imparts 
 
TREED BY PECCARIES. lit 
 
 a character of lightness to his body. His jaws are those of the 
 hog, and a single pair of tusks, protruding near the angles of the 
 mouth, gives him a fierce and dangerous aspect. These tusks 
 are seen in the old males or " boars." The ears are short, and 
 almost buried in the long harsh hairs or bristles that cover the 
 whole body, but which are much longer on the back. These, 
 when erected or thrown forward as is the case when the 
 peccary is incensed have the appearance of a stiff mane rising 
 all along the neck, shoulders and spine. At such times, indeed, 
 the rigid, bristling coat over the whole body gives somewhat of 
 a porcupine appearance to the animal. 
 
 The peccary, as already stated, is gregarious. They wander 
 in droves of twenty, or sometimes more. This, however, is only 
 in the winter. In the season of love, and during the period of 
 gestation, they are met with only in pairs a male and female. 
 They are very true to each other, and keep close together. 
 
 The female produces two young at a litter. These are of a 
 reddish-brown colour, and at first not larger than young pup 
 pies ; but they are soon able to follow the mother through the 
 woods ; and then the " family party " usually consists of 
 four. 
 
 Later in the season, several of these families unite and remain 
 together, partly, perhaps, from having met by accident, and 
 partly for mutual protection ; for whenever one of their number 
 is attacked, all the drove takes part against the assailant, 
 whether he be hunter, cougar, or lynx. As they use both their 
 teeth, tusks, and sharp fore-hoofs with rapidity and effect, they 
 become a formidable and dangerous enemy. 
 
 The cougar is often killed and torn to pieces by a drove of 
 peccaries, that he has been imprudent enough to attack. 
 Indeed, this fierce creature will not often meddle with the 
 peccaries when he sees them in large numbers. He attacks 
 only single ones ; but their " grunting," which can be heard to 
 the distance of nearly a mile, summons the rest, and he is sur- 
 
118 
 
 rounded before he is aware of it, and seized by as many as can 
 get around him. 
 
 The Texan hunter, if afoot, will not dare to disturb a drove 
 of peccaries. Even when mounted, unless the woods be open, 
 he will pass them by without rousing their resentment. But, 
 for all this* the animal is hunted by the settlers, and hundreds 
 are killed annually. Their ravages committed upon the corn 
 fields make them many enemies, who go after them with a 
 desire for wholesale slaughter. 
 
 Hounds are employed to track the peccary and bring it to 
 bay, when the hunters ride up and finish the chase by their 
 unerring rifles. 
 
 A flock of peccaries, when pursued, will sometimes take shel 
 ter in a cave or cleft of the rocks, one of their number standing 
 ready at the mouth. When this one is shot by the hunter, 
 another will immediately rush out and take its place. This, too, 
 being destroyed, will be replaced by a third, and so on until the 
 whole drove has fallen. 
 
 Should the hounds attack the peccary while by themselves, 
 and without the aid arid encouragement of the hunter, they are 
 sure to be "routed," and some of their number destroyed. 
 Indeed, this little creature, of not more than two feet in length, 
 is a match for the stoutest bull-dog! I have myself seen a pec 
 cary (a caged one, too,) that had killed no less than six dogs 
 of bull and mastiff breed all of them considered fighting dogs 
 of first-rate reputation. 
 
 The Kentuckian had a peccary adventure which had occurred 
 to him while on an excursion to the new settlements of Texas. 
 " It was my first introduction to these animals," began he, 
 " and I am not likely soon to forget it. It gave me, among the 
 frontier settlers of Texas, the reputation of a 'mighty hunter,' 
 though how far I deserved that name you may judge for 
 yourselves. 
 
 " I was for some weeks the guest of a farmer or ' planter/ 
 
TREED BY PECCARIES. 119 
 
 who lived upon the Trinity Bottom. We had been out in the 
 'timber 7 several times, and had killed both bear, deer, and 
 turkeys, but had not yet had the luck to fall in with the peccary, 
 although we never went abroad without seeing their tracks, or 
 some other indications of what my friend termed ' peccary sign. 7 
 The truth is. that these animals possess the sense of smell in the 
 keenest degree, and they are usually hidden long before the 
 hunter can see them or come near them. As we had gone with 
 out clogs, of course we were not likely to discover which of the 
 nine hundred and ninety-nine hollow logs passed in a day, was 
 the precise one in which the peccaries had taken shelter. 
 
 " I had grown very curious about these creatures. Bear I 
 had often hunted deer I had driven, and turkeys I had both 
 trapped and shot ; but I had never yet killed a peccary ; in fact 
 had never seen one. I was, therefore, very desirous of adding 
 the tusk of one of these wild boars to my trophies of the chase. 
 
 "My desire was gratified sooner than I expected, and to an 
 extent I had never dreamt of ; for in one morning before tast 
 ing my breakfast I caused no less than nineteen of these 
 animals to utter their last squeak I But I shall give the details 
 of this ' feat ' as they happened. 
 
 " It was in the autumn season the most beautiful season of 
 the forest when the frond age obtains its tints of gold, orange, 
 and purple. I was a-bed in the house of my friend, but was 
 awakened out of my sleep by the * gobbling ' of wild turkeys 
 that sounded close to the place. 
 
 " Although there was not a window in my room, the yellow 
 beams streaming in through the chinks of the log wall, told me 
 that' it was after ' sun-up.' 
 
 " I arose, drew on my garments and hunting habiliments, 
 took my rifle and stole out. I said nothing to any one, as there 
 was no one neither ' nigger ' nor white man to be seen stir 
 ring about the >place. I wanted to steal a march upon my 
 friend, and show him how smart I was by bagging a fat young 
 1 gobbler ' for breakfast. 
 
120 THE HUNTEBS' FEAST. 
 
 " As soon as I had got round the house, I saw the turkeys 
 a large ' gang ' of them. They were out in an old corn-field, 
 feeding upon such of the seeds as had been dropped in the coru- 
 gathering. They were too far off for my gun to reach them, 
 and I entered among the corn-stalks to get near them. 
 
 " I soon perceived that they were feeding towards the woods, 
 and that they were likely to enter them at a certain point. 
 Could I only reach that point before them, reflected I, I should 
 be sure of a fair shot. I had only to go back to the house and 
 keep around the edge of the field, where there happened to be 
 some 'cover.' In this way I should be sure to ' head' them 
 that is, could I but reach the woods in time. 
 
 " I lost not a moment in setting out ; and, running most of 
 the way, I reached the desired point. 
 
 " I was now about a mile from my friend's house for the 
 corn-field was a very large one such as you may only see in the 
 great plantations of the far western world. I saw that I had 
 ' headed ' the turkeys, with some time to spare ; and chosiug 
 a convenient log I sat down to await their coming. I placed 
 myself in such a situation that I was completely hidden by the 
 broad green leaves of some bushy trees that grew over the 
 log. 
 
 "I had not been in that position over a minute, I should 
 think, when a slight rustling among the leaves attracted mj 
 attention. I looked, and saw issuing from under the rubbish 
 the long body of a snake. As yet, I could not see its tail, 
 which was hidden by the grass ; but the form of the head and 
 the peculiar chevron-like markings of the body, convinced me it 
 was the ' Banded Rattle-snake.' It was slowly gliding out intc 
 some open ground, with the intention of crossing to a thicket 
 upon the other side. I had disturbed it from the log where ft 
 had, no doubt, been sunning itself ; and it was now making 
 away from me. 
 
 " My first thought was to follow the hideous reptile, and kill 
 it ; but reflecting that if I did so I should expose myself to the 
 
TREED BY PECCARIES. 121 
 
 yiew of the tmrkeys, I concluded to remain where I was, and let 
 it escape. 
 
 " I watched it slowly dragging itself along for this species 
 makes but slow progress until it was near the middle of the 
 glade, when 1 again turned my attention to the birds that had 
 now advanced almost within range of my gun. 
 
 " I was just getting ready to fire, when a strange noise, like 
 the grunt of a small pig, sounded in my ears from the glade, 
 and again caused me to look in that direction. As I did so, my 
 eyes fell upon a curious little animal just emerging from the 
 bushes. Its long, sharp snout its pig-like form the absence 
 of a tail the high rump, and whitish band along the shoulders, 
 were all marks of description which I remembered. The animal 
 could be no other than a peccary. 
 
 "As I gazed upon it with curious eyes, another emerged 
 from the bushes, and then another, and another, until a good- 
 sized drove of them were in sight. 
 
 " The rattlesnake, on seeing the first one, had laid his head 
 flat upon the ground ; and evidently terrified, was endeavouring 
 to conceal himself in the grass. But it was a smooth piece of 
 turf, and he did not succeed. The peccary had already espied 
 him ; and upon the instant his hinder parts were raised to their 
 full height, his mane became rigid, and the hair over his whole 
 body stood erect, radiating on all sides outwards. The appear 
 ance of the creature was changed in an instant, and I could 
 perceive that the air was becoming impregnated with a disagree 
 able odour, which the incensed animal emitted from its dorsal 
 gland. Without stopping longer than a moment, he rushed 
 forward, until he stood within three feet of the body of the snake. 
 
 " The latter, seeing he could no longer conceal himself, threw 
 himself into a coil, and stood upon his defence. His eyes glared 
 with a fiery lustre : the skir-r-r of his rattles could be heard 
 almost incessantly ; while with his upraised head he struck 
 repeatedly in the direction of his enemy. 
 
 6 
 
122 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 "These demonstrations brought the whole drove* of peccaries 
 to the spot, and in a moment a circle of them had formed around 
 the reptile, that did not know which to strike at, bi ; kept 
 launching out its head recklessly in all directions. The peccaries 
 stood with their backs highly arched and their feet drawn up 
 together, like so many angry cats, threatening and uttering shrill 
 grunts. Then one of them, I think the first that had appeared, 
 rose suddenly into the air, and with his four hoofs held close 
 together, came pounce down upon the coiled body of the snake. 
 Another followed in a similar manner, and another, and another, 
 until 1 could see the long carcase of the reptile unfolded, and 
 writhing over the ground. 
 
 " After a short while it lay still, crushed beneath their feet. 
 The whole squad then seized it in their teeth, and tearing it to 
 pieces, devoured it almost instantaneously. 
 
 " From the moment the peccaries had appeared in sight, I had 
 given up all thoughts about the turkeys. I had resolved to send 
 my leaden messenger in quite a different direction. Turkeys I 
 could have at almost any time; but it was not every day that 
 peccaries appeared. So I ' slewed ' myself round upon the log } 
 raised my rifle cautiously, ' marked ' the biggest ' boar ' 1 could 
 see in the drove, and fired. 
 
 " I heard the boar squeak (so did all of them), and taw him 
 fall over, either killed or badly wounded. But I had little time 
 to tell which, for the smoke had hardly cleared out of my eyes, 
 when I perceived the whole gang of peccaries, instead of running 
 away, as I had expected, coming full tilt towards me. 
 
 " In a moment I was surrounded by a dark mass of angry 
 creatures, leaping wildly at my legs, uttering shrill grunts, and 
 making their teeth crack like castanets. 
 
 " I ran for the highest part of the log, but this proved no 
 security. The peccaries leaped upon it, and followed. I struck 
 with the butt of my clubbed gun, and knocked them off ; but 
 again they surrounded me, leaping upward and snapping at my 
 legs, until hardly a shred remained of my trousers. 
 
TREED BY PECCARIES. 123 
 
 " I saw that I was in extreme peril, and put forth all my 
 energies. I .swept my gun wildly around me ; but where one 
 of the fierce brutes was knocked over, another leaped into his 
 place, as determined as he. Still I had no help for it, and I 
 shouted at the top of my voice, all the while battling with des 
 peration. 
 
 " I still kept upon the highest point of the log, as there they 
 could not all come around me at once ; and I saw that I could 
 thus better defend myself. But even with this advantage, the 
 assaults of the animals were so incessant, and my exertions in 
 keeping them off so continuous, that I was in dalager of falling 
 into their jaws from very exhaustion. 
 
 " I was growing weak and wearied I was beginning to 
 despair for my life when on winding my gun over my head in 
 order to give force to my blows, I felt it strike against some 
 thing behind me. It was the branch of a tree, that stretched 
 over the spot where I was standing. 
 
 " A new thought came suddenly into my mind. Could I 
 climb the tree ? I knew that they could not, and in the tree I 
 should be safe. 
 
 " I looked upward ; the branch was within reach. I seized 
 upon it and brought it nearer. I drew a long breath, and with 
 all the strength that remained in my bodysprang upward. 
 
 " I succeeded in getting upon the limb, and the next moment 
 I had crawled along it, and sat close in by the trunk. I breathed 
 freely I was safe. 
 
 " It was some time before I thought of anything elsethan 
 resting myself. I remained a full half-hour before I moved in 
 my perch. Occasionally I looked down at my late tormentors. 
 I saw that instead of going off, they were still there. They ran 
 around the root of the tree, leaping up against its trunk, and 
 tearing the bark with their teeth. They kept constantly utter 
 ing their .shrill, disagreeable grunts ; and the odour, resembling 
 the smell of musk and garlic, which they emitted from their 
 
124 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 dorsal glands, almost stifled me. I saw that they showed no 
 disposition to retire, but, on the contrary, were determined to 
 make me stand siege. 
 
 " Now and then they passed out to where their dead comrade 
 lay upon the grass, but this seemed only to bind their resolution 
 the faster, for they always returned again, grunting as fiercely 
 as ever. 
 
 " I had hopes that my friend would be up by this time, and 
 would come to my rescue ; but it was not likely neither, as he 
 would not ' miss ' me until I had remained long enough to make 
 my absence seem strange. As it was, that would not be until 
 after night, or perhaps far in the next day. It was no unusual 
 thing for me to wander off with my gun, and be gone for a 
 period of at least twenty hours. 
 
 " I sat for hours on my painful perch now looking down at 
 the spiteful creatures beneath now bending my eyes across the 
 great corn-field, in hopes of seeing some one. At times the 
 idea crossed my mind, that even upon the morrow I might not 
 be missed. 
 
 " I might perish with hunger, with thirst I was suffering 
 from both at the moment or even if I kept alive, I might 
 become so weak as not to* be able to hold on to the tree. My 
 seat was far from being an easy one. The tree was small the 
 branch was slender. It was already cutting into my thighs. I 
 might, in my feebleness, be compelled to let it go, and then 
 
 " These reflections were terrible ; and as they came across 
 my mind, I shouted to the highest pitch of my voice, hoping I 
 should he heard. 
 
 "Up to this time I had not thought of using my gun, 
 although clinging to it instinctively. I had brought it with me 
 into the tree. It now occurred to me to fire it, in hopes that 
 my friend or some one might hear the report. 
 
 " I balanced myself on the branch as well as I eould, and 
 loaded it with powder. I was about to fire it off in the air, 
 

 TREED BY PECCARIES. 125 
 
 I 
 
 when it appeared to me that I might as well reduce the number 
 of my enemies. I therefore rammed down a ball, took aim at 
 the forehead of one, and knocked him over. 
 
 " Another idea now arose in my mind, and that was, that I 
 might serve the whole gang as I had done this one. His fall 
 had not frightened them in the least ; they only came nearer, 
 throwing up their snouts and uttering their shrill notes thus 
 giving me a better chance of hitting them. 
 
 " I repeated the loading and firing. Another enemy the 
 less. 
 
 " Hope began to return. I counted my bullets and, held my 
 horn up to the sun. There were over twenty bullets, and pow 
 der sufficient. I counted the peccaries. Sixteen still lived, with 
 three that I had done for. 
 
 " I again loaded and fired loaded and fired loaded and 
 fired. I aimed so carefully each time, that out of all 1 missed 
 only one shot. 
 
 " When the firing ceased, I dropped down from my perch in 
 the midst of a scene that resembled a great slaughter-yard. 
 Nineteen of the creatures lay dead around the tree, and the 
 ground was saturated with their blood ! 
 
 " The voice of my friend at this moment sounded in my ears, 
 and turning I beheld him standing, with hands uplifted and eyes 
 as large as saucers. 
 
 " The feat was soon reported through the settlement, and I 
 was looked upon for the time as the greatest hunter in the* 
 ' Trinity Bottom.' 
 
126 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 CHAPTER XYI. 
 
 A DUCK-SHOOTING ADVENTURE. 
 
 DURING our next day's journey we again fell in with flocks of 
 the wild pigeon, and our stock was renewed. We were very 
 glad of this, as we were getting tired of the dry salt bacon, and 
 another "pot-pie'' from Lanty's cuisine was quite welcome. 
 The subject of the pigeons was exhausted, and we talked no 
 more about them. Ducks were upon the table in a double 
 sense, for during the march we had fallen in with a brood of the 
 beautiful little summer ducks (Anas sponsa), and had succeeded 
 in shooting several of them. These little creatures, however, 
 did not occupy our attention, but the far more celebrated 
 species known as the " canvas-back" (Anasvallisneria). 
 
 Of the two dozen species of American wild-ducks, none has a 
 wider celebrity than that known as the canvas-back ; even the 
 eider-duck is less thought of, as the Americans care little for 
 beds of down. But the juicy, fine-flavoured flesh of the canvas- 
 back is esteemed by all classes of people ; and epicures prize it 
 above that of all other winged creatures, with the exception, 
 perhaps, of the reed-bird or rice-bunting, and the prairie-hen. 
 These last enjoy a celebrity almost if not altogether equal. The 
 prairie-hen, however, is the Ion morce.au of western epicures ; 
 while the canvas-back is only to be found in the great cities of 
 the Atlantic. The reed-bird in the West Indies called 
 " ortolan " is also found in the same markets with the canvas- 
 back. The flesh of all three of these birds although the birds 
 themselves are of widely different families is really of the most 
 delicious kind ; it would be hard to say which of them is the 
 greatest favourite. 
 
A DUCK-SHOOTIXG ADVENTURE. 127 
 
 The canvas-back is not a large duck, rarely exceeding three 
 pounds in weight. Its colour is very similar to the pochard of 
 Europe : its head is a uniform deep chestnut, its breast black ; 
 while the back and upper parts of the wings present a surface 
 of bluish-grey, so lined and mottled as to resemble, though very 
 slightly, the texture of canvas : hence the trivial name of the bird. 
 
 Like most of the water-birds of America, the canvas-back is 
 migratory. It proceeds in spring to the cold countries of the 
 Hudson's Bay territory, and returns southward in October, 
 appearing in immense flocks along the Atlantic shores. It does 
 not spread over the fresh-water lakes of the United States, but 
 confines itself to three or four well-known haunts, the principal 
 of which is the great Chesapeake Bay. This preference for the 
 Chesapeake Bay is easily acounted for, as here its favorite food 
 is found in the greatest abundance. Round the mouths of the 
 rivers that run into this bay, there are extensive shoals of 
 brackish water ; these favour the growth of a certain plant of 
 the genus vallisneria a grass-like plant, standing several feet 
 out of the water, with deep green leaves, and stems, and having a 
 white and tender root. On this root, which is of such a character 
 as to have given the plant the trivial name of " wild celery," the 
 canvas-back feeds exclusively ; for wherever it is not to be found, 
 neither does the bird make its appearance. Diving for it, and 
 bringing it up in its bill, the canvas-back readily breaks off the 
 long lanceolate leaves, which float off, either to be eaten by ano 
 ther species the pochard or to form immense banks of wrack, 
 that are thrown up against the adjacent shores. 
 
 It is to the roots of the wild celery that the flesh of the can 
 vas-back owes its esteemed flavour, causing it to be in such 
 demand that very often a pair of these ducks will bring three 
 dollars in the markets of New York and Philadelphia. When 
 the finest turkey can be had for less than a third of that sum, 
 Rome idea may be formed of the superior estimation in which the 
 web-f >oted favourites are held. 
 
128 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 Of course, shooting the canvas-back duck is extensively prac 
 ticed, not only as an amusement, but as a professional occupation. 
 Various means are employed to slaughter these birds : decoys 
 by means of dogs, duck-boats armed with guns that resemble 
 infernal-machines, and disguises of every possible kind. The 
 birds themselves are extremely shy ; and a shot at them is only 
 obtained by great ingenuity, and after considerable dodging. 
 They are excellent divers ; and when only wounded, almost 
 always make good their escape. Their shyness is overcome by 
 their curiosity. A dog placed upon the shore, near where they 
 happen to be, and trained to run backwards and forwards, will 
 almost always seduce them within shot. Should the dog himself 
 not succeed, a red rag wrapped around his body, or tied to his 
 tail, will generally bring about the desired result. There are 
 times, however, when the ducks have been much shot at, that 
 even this decoy fails of success. 
 
 On account of the high price the canvas-backs bring in the 
 market, they are pursued by the hunters with great assiduity, 
 and are looked upon as a source of much profit. So important 
 has this been considered, that in the international treaties 
 between the States bordering upon the Chesapeake, there are 
 several clauses or articles relating to them that limit the right 
 of shooting to certain parties. An infringement of this right, 
 some three or four years ago, led to serious collisions between 
 the gunners of Philadelphia and Baltimore. So far was the dis 
 pute carried, that schooners armed, and filled with armed men, 
 cruised for some time on the waters of the Chesapeake, and all 
 the initiatory steps of a little war were taken by both parties. 
 The interference of the General Government prevented what 
 would have proved, had it been left to itself, a very sanguinary 
 aifair. 
 
 It so chanced that I had met with a rather singular adven 
 ture while duck-shooting on the Chesapeake bay, and the story 
 was related thus : " I was staying for some days at the house 
 
A DUCK-SHOOTING ADVENTURE. 129 
 
 of a friend a planter who lived near the mouth of a small 
 river that runs into the Chesapeake. I felt inclined to have a 
 shot at the far-famed canvas-backs. I had often eaten of these 
 birds, but had never shot one, or even seen them in their natu 
 ral habitat. I was, therefore, anxious to try my hand upon 
 them, and I accordingly set out one morning for that purpose. 
 
 " My friend lived upon the bank of the river, some distance 
 above tide-water. As the wild celery grows only in brackish 
 water that is, neither in the salt sea itself nor yet in the fresh 
 water rivers I had to pass down the little stream a mile or 
 more before I came to the proper place for finding the ducks. 
 I went in a small skiff, with no other companion than an ill- 
 favoured cur-dog t with which I had been furnished, and which 
 was represented to me as one of the best ' duck-dogs ' in the 
 country. 
 
 " My friend having business elsewhere, unfortunately could 
 not upon that day give me his company but I knew something 
 of the place, and being au fait in most of the dodges of duck- 
 hunting, I fancied I was quite able to take care of myself. 
 . " Floating and rowing by turns, I soon came in sight of the 
 bay and the wild-celery fields, and also of flocks of water-fowl of 
 different species, among which I could recognise the pochards, 
 the canvas-backs, and the common American widgeon. 
 
 " Seeking a convenient place near the mouth of the stream, I 
 landed ; and, tying the skiff to some weeds, proceeded in search 
 of a cover. This was soon found some bushes favoured me ; 
 and having taken my position, I set the dog to his work. The 
 brute, however, took but little notice of my words and gestures 
 of encouragement. I fancied that he had a wild and frightened 
 look, but I attributed this to my being partially a stranger to 
 him ; and was in hopes that, as soon as we became better 
 acquainted, he would work in a different manner. 
 
 " I was disappointed, however, as, do what I might, he would 
 not go near the water, nor would he perform the trick of running 
 
 6* 
 
130 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 to and fro which I had been assured by my friend he would be 
 certain to do. On the contrary, he cowered among the bushes, 
 near where I had stationed myself, and seemed unwilling to move 
 out of them. Two or three times, when I dragged him forward, 
 and motioned him toward the water, he rushed back again, and 
 ran under the bushwood. 
 
 " I was exceedingly provoked with this conduct of the dog, 
 the more so that a flock of canvas-backs, consisting of several 
 thousands, was seated upon the water not more than half a mile 
 from the shore. Had my dog done his duty, I have no doubt 
 they might have been brought within range ; and, calculating 
 upon this, I had made sure of a noble shot. My expectations, 
 however, were defeated by the waywardness of the dog, and I 
 saw there was no hope of doing anything with him. 
 
 " Having arrived at this conclusion, after some hours spent to 
 no purpose, I rose from my cover, and marched back to the 
 skiff. I did not' even motion the wretched cur to follow me ; 
 and I should have rowed off without him, risking the chances of 
 my friend's displeasure, but it pleased the animal himself to trot 
 after me without invitation, and, on arriving at the boat, to leap 
 voluntarily into it. 
 
 " I was really so provoked with the brute, that I felt much 
 inclined to pitch him out again. My vexation, however, 
 gradually left me ; and I stood up in the skiff, turning over in 
 my mind what course I should pursue next. 
 
 " I looked toward the flock of canvas-backs. It was a tanta 
 lising sight. They sat upon the water as light as corks, and as 
 close together as sportsman could desire for a shot. A well- 
 aimed discharge could not have failed to kill a score of them at 
 least. 
 
 " Was there no way of approaching them ? This question I 
 had put to myself for the twentieth time without being able to 
 answer it to my satisfaction. 
 
 11 An idea at length flitted across my brain. I had often 
 
A DUCK-SHOOTIXG ADVENTURE. 131 
 
 approached common mallards by concealing my boat under 
 branches or furze, and then floating down upon them, impelled 
 either by the wind or the current of a stream. Might not this 
 also succeed with the canvas-backs ? 
 
 *' I resolved upon making the experiment. The flock was in 
 a position to enable me to do so. They were to the leeward of 
 a sedge of the vallisneria. The wind would carry my skiff 
 through this ; and the green bashes with which I intended to 
 disguise it would not be distinguished from the sedge, which was 
 also green. 
 
 " The thing was feasible. I deemed it so. I set about cut 
 ting some leafy branches that grew near, and trying them along 
 the gunwales of my little craft. In less than half an hour, I 
 pushed her from the shore ; and no one at a distance would 
 have taken her for aught else than a floating raft of brushwood. 
 
 " I now pulled quietly out until I had got exactly to wind 
 ward of the ducks, at about half a mile's distance from the 
 edge of the flock. I then took in the paddles, and permitted 
 the skiff to glide before the wind. 1 took the precaution to 
 place myself in such a manner that I was completely hidden, 
 while through the branches I commanded a view of the surface 
 on any side I might wish to look. 
 
 " The bushes acted as a sail, and I was soon drifted down 
 among the plants of the wild celery. I feared that this might 
 stay my progress, as the breeze was light, and might not carry 
 me through. But the sward, contrary to what is usual, was 
 thin at the place where the skiff had entered, and I felt, to my 
 satisfaction, that I was moving, though slowly, in the right 
 direction, 
 
 " I remember that the heat annoyed me at the tim.e, It was 
 the month of November ; but it was that peculiar season known 
 as the ' Indian summer/ and the heat was excessive not under 
 90 degrees, I am certain. * The shrubbery that encircled me 
 prevented a breath of air from reaching my body ; and the 
 
132 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 rays of the noonday sun fell almost vertically in that southern 
 latitude, scorching me as I lay along the bottom of the boat. 
 Under other circumstances, I should not have liked to undergo 
 such a roasting ; but with the prospect of a splendid shot before 
 me, I endured it as best I could. 
 
 " The skiff was nearly an hour in pushing its way through the 
 field of vallisneria, and once or twice it remained for a consider 
 able time motionless. A stronger breeze, however, would spring 
 up, and then the sound of the reeds rubbing the sides of the 
 ( boat would gratefully admonish me that I was moving ahead. 
 
 " I saw, at length, to my great gratification, that I was 
 approaching the selvage of the sedge, and, moreover, that the 
 flock itself was moving, as it were, to meet me 1 Many of the 
 birds were diving and feeding in the direction of the skiff. 
 
 " I lay watching them with interest. I saw that the canvas- 
 backs were accompanied by another species of a very different 
 colour from themselves : this was the American widgeon. It 
 was a curious sight to witness the constant warfare that was 
 carried on between these two species of birds. The widgeon is but 
 a poor diver, while the canvas-back is one of the very best. The 
 widgeon, however, is equally fond of the roots of the wild celery 
 with its congener ; but he has no means of obtaining them 
 except by robbing the latter. Being a smaller and less power 
 ful bird, he is not able to do this openly ; and it was curious to 
 observe the means by which he effected his purpose. It was as 
 follows : When the canvas-back descends, he must perforce 
 remain some moments under water. It requires time to seize 
 hold of the plant, and pluck it up by the roots. In consequence 
 of this, he usually reaches the surface in a state of half blind^ 
 ness, holding the luscious morsel in his bill. The widgeon has 
 observed him going down ; and, calculating to a nicety the spot 
 where he will reappear, seats himself in readiness. The moment 
 the other emerges, and before he can fully recover his sight or 
 his senses, the active spoliator makes a dash, seizes the celery in 
 
A DUCK-SHOOTING ADVENTURE. 133 
 
 bis horny mandibles, and makes off with it as fast as his webbed 
 feet can propel him. The canvas-back, although chagrined at 
 being plundered in this impudent manner, knows that pursuit 
 would be idle, and, setting the root down as lost, draws a fresh 
 breath and dives for another. I noticed in the flock a continual 
 recurrence of such scenes. 
 
 " A third species of birds drew my attention. These were 
 the pochards, or, as they are termed by the gunners of the 
 Chesapeake, 'red-heads.' These creatures bear a very great 
 resemblance to the canvas-backs, and can hardly be distin 
 guished except by their bills ; those of the former being concave 
 along the upper surface, while the bills of the canvas-backs 
 exhibit a nearly straight line. 
 
 " I saw that the pochards did not interfere with either of the 
 other species, contenting themselves with feeding upon what 
 neither of the others cared for the green leaves of the vallis- 
 neria, which, after being stripped of their roots, were floating in 
 quantities on the surface of the water. Yet these pochards are 
 almost as much prized for the table as their cousins the canvas- 
 backs ; and, indeed, I have since learnt that they are often put 
 off for the latter by the poulterers of New York and Philadel 
 phia Those who would buy a real canvas-back should know 
 something of natural history. The form and colour of the bill 
 would serve as a criterion to prevent their being deceived. In 
 the pochard, the bill is o.f a bluish colour ; that of the canvas- 
 back is dark green ; moreover, the eye of the pochard is yellow, 
 while that of its congener is fiery red. 
 
 " I was gratified in perceiving that I had at last drifted 
 within range of a thick clump of the ducks. Nothing now 
 remained but to poke my gun noiselessly through the bushes, 
 set the cocks of both barrels, take aim and fire. 
 
 " It was my intention to follow the usual plan that is, fire 
 one barrel at the birds while sitting, and give them the second 
 
134 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 as they rose upon the wing. This intention was carried out the 
 moment^ after ; and I had the gratification of seeing some fifteen 
 or twenty ducks strewed over the M^ater at my service. The 
 rest of the flock rose into the heavens, and the clapping of their 
 wings filled the air with a noise that resembled thunder. 
 
 " I say that there appeared to have been fifteen or twenty 
 killed ; how many I never knew : 1 never laid my hands upon a 
 single bird of them. I became differently occupied, and with a 
 matter that soon drove canvas-backs, and widgeons, and 
 pochards as clean out of my head as if no such creatures had 
 ever existed. 
 
 "While drifting through the sedge, my attention had several 
 times been attracted by what appeared to be strange conduct 
 on the part of my canine companion. He lay cowering in the 
 bottom of the boat near the bow, and half covered by the 
 bushes ; but every now and then he would start to his feet, look 
 wildly around, utter a strange whimpering, and then resume his 
 crouching attitude. I noticed, moreover, that at intervals he 
 trembled as if he was about to shake out his teeth. All this 
 had caused me wonder nothing more. I was too much occu 
 pied in watching the game, to speculate upon causes ; I believed, 
 if I formed any belief on the subject, that these manoeuvres were 
 caused by fear ; that the cur had never been to sea, and that 
 he was now either sea-sick or sea-scared. 
 
 "This explanation had hitherto satisfied me, and I had 
 thought no more upon the matter. I had scarcely delivered my 
 second barrel, however, when my attention was anew attracted 
 to the dog ; and this time was so arrested, that in one half- 
 second I thought of nothing else. The animal had arisen, and 
 stood within three feet of me, whining hideously. His eyes 
 glared upon me with a wild and unnatural expression, his tongue 
 lolled out, and saliva fell copiously from his lips. The dog was 
 mad ! 
 
A DUCK-SHOOTING ADVENTURE. 135 
 
 |.- 
 
 " I saw that the dog was mad, as certainly as I saw the dog. 
 I had seen mad dogs before, and knew the symptoms well. It 
 was hydrophobia of the most dangerous character. 
 
 " Fear, quick and sudden, came over me. Fear is a tame 
 word ; horror I should call it ; and the phrase would not be too 
 strong to express my sensations at that moment. I knew 
 myself to be in a situation of extreme peril, and I saw not the 
 way out of it Death death painful and horrid appeared to 
 be nigh, appeared to confront me, glaring from out the eyes of 
 the hideous brute. 
 
 " Instinct had caused me to put myself in an attitude of 
 defence. My first instinct was a false one. I raised my gun, 
 at the same moment manipulating the lock, with the design of 
 cocking her. In the confusion of terror, I had even forgotten 
 that both barrels were empty, that I had just scattered their 
 contents in the sea. 
 
 " I thought of re-loading, but a movement of the dog towards 
 me showed that that would be a dangerous experiment ; and a 
 third thought or instinct directed me to turn the piece in my 
 hand, and defend myself, if necessary, with the butt. This 
 instinct was instantly obeyed, and in a second's time I held the 
 piece clubbed and ready to strike. 
 
 "I had retreated backward until I stood in the stern of the 
 skiff. The dog had hitherto lain close up to the bow, but after 
 the shots, he had sprung up and taken a position nearer the 
 centre of the boat. In fact, he had been within biting distance 
 of me before I had noticed his madness. The position into 
 which I had thus half involuntarily thrown myself, offered me 
 but a trifling security. 
 
 " Any one who has ever rowed an American skiff will remem 
 ber that these little vessels are ' crank ' to an extreme degree. 
 Although boat-shaped above they are without keels, and a rude 
 step will turn them bottom upward in an instant. Even to 
 stand upright in them, requires careful balancing ; but to fight 
 
136 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 | 
 
 a mad dog in one without being bitten, would require the skill 
 and adroitness of an acrobat. With all my caution, as I half 
 stood, half crouched in the stern, the skiff rocked from side to 
 side, and I was in danger of being pitched out. Should the dog 
 spring at me, I knew that any violent exertion to fend him off 
 would either cause me to be precipitated into the water, or 
 would upset the boat a still more dreadful alternative. 
 
 " These thoughts did not occupy half the time I have taken 
 to describe them. Short, however, as that time was in actual 
 duration, to me it seemed long enough, for the dog still held a 
 threatening attitude, his fore-paws resting upon one of the seats, 
 while his eyes continued to glare upon me with a wild and 
 uncertain expression. 
 
 " I remained for some moments in fearful suspense. I was 
 half paralysed with terror, and uncertain what action it would 
 be best to take. I feared that any movement would attract the 
 fierce animal, and be the signal for him to spring upon me. 1 
 thought of jumping out of the skiff into the water. I could not 
 wade in it. It was shallow enough not over five feet in depth, 
 but the bottom appeared to be of soft mud. I might sink 
 another foot in the mud. No ; I could not have waded. The 
 idea was dismissed. 
 
 "To swim to the shore. I glanced sideways in that direc 
 tion ; it was nearly half a mile distant. I could never reach it, 
 cumbered with my clothes. To have stripped these off would 
 have tempted the attack. Even could I have done so, might 
 not the dog follow and seize me in the water ? A horrible 
 thought 1 
 
 " I abandoned all hope of escape, at least that might arise 
 from any active measures on my part. I could do nothing to 
 save myself ; my only hope lay in passively awaiting the result. 
 
 *' Impressed with this idea, I remained motionless as a 
 statue ; I moved neither hand nor foot from the attitude I had 
 first assumed ; I scarcely permitted myself to breathe, so much 
 
A DUCK-SHOOTING ADVENTURE. 137 
 
 did I dread attracting the farther attention of my terrible com 
 panion, and interrupting the neutrality that existed. 
 
 " For some minutes they seemed hours this state of affairs 
 continued. The dog still stood up, with his fore-paws raised 
 upon the bench ; the oars were among his feet. In this position 
 he remained, gazing wildly, though it did not appear to me 
 steadily, in my face. Several times I thought he was about to 
 spring on me ; and, although I carefully avoided making any 
 movement, I instinctively grasped my gun with a firmer hold. 
 To add to my embarrassment, I saw that I was fast drifting 
 seaward. The wind was from the shore ; it was impelling the 
 boat with considerable velocity, in consequence of the mass of 
 bushes acting as sails. Already it had cleared the sedge, and 
 was floating out in open water. To my dismay, at less than a 
 mile's distance, I descried a line of breakers ! 
 
 " A side glance was sufficient to convince me, that unless the 
 skiff was checked, she would drift upon these in the space of ten 
 minutes. 
 
 " A fearful alternative now presented itself : I must either 
 drive the dog from the oars, or allow the skiff to be swamped 
 among the breakers. The latter would be certain death, the 
 former offered a chance for life ; and, nerving myself with the 
 palpable necessity for action, I instantly resolved to make the 
 attack. 
 
 " Whether the dog had read my intention in my eyes, or 
 observed my fingers taking a firmer clutch of my gun, I know 
 not, but at this moment he seemed to evince sudden fear, and, 
 dropping down from, the seat, he ran backward to the bow, and 
 cowered there as before. 
 
 " My first impulse was to get hold of the oars, for the roar of 
 the breakers already filled my ears. A better idea suggested 
 itself immediately after, and that was to load my gun. This 
 was a delicate business, but I set about it with all the caution I 
 could command. 
 
138 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 " I kept my eyes fixed upon the animal, and felt the powder, 
 the wadding, and the shot, into the muzzle. I succeeded in load 
 ing one barrel, and fixing the cap. 
 
 " As I had now something upon which I could rely, I pro 
 ceeded with more confidence, and loaded the second barrel with 
 greater care, the dog 'eyeing me all the while. Had madness 
 not obscured his intelligence, he would no doubt have interrupted 
 my manipulations ; as it was he remained still until both barrels 
 were loaded, capped, and cocked. 
 
 "I had no time to spare ; the breakers were nigh ; their 
 hoarse 'sough 7 warned me of their perilous proximity; a 
 minute more, and the little skiff would be dancing among them 
 like a shell, or sunk for ever. 
 
 " Not a moment was to be lost, and yet I had to proceed with 
 caution. I dared not raise the gun to my shoulder I dared not 
 glance along the barrels : the manoeuvre might rouse the dan 
 gerous brute. 
 
 " I held the piece low, slanting along my thighs. I guided 
 the barrels with my mind, and, feeling the direction to be true, 
 I fired. 
 
 " I scarcely heard the report, on account of the roaring of the 
 sea ; but I saw the dog roll over, kicking violently. I saw a 
 livid patch over his ribs, where the shot had entered in a clump. 
 This would no doubt have proved sufficient ; but to make sure, 
 I raised the gun to my shoulder, took aim, and sent the contents 
 of the second barrel through the ribs of the miserable brute 
 His kicking ended almost instantly, and he lay dead in the bot 
 tom of the boat. 
 
 4 ' I dropped my gun and flew to the oars : it was a close 
 ' shave ; ' the skiff was already in white water, and dancing like 
 a feather ; but with a few strokes I succeeded in backing her 
 9ut, and then heading her away from the breakers, I pulled in a 
 direct line for the shore. 
 
 " I thought not of my canvas-backs they had floated by this 
 
HUNTING THE VICUNA. 139 
 
 time, I neither knew nor cared whither : the sharks might have 
 them for me. My only care was to get away from the scene as 
 quickly as possible, determined never again to go duck-shooting 
 with a cur for my companion. 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 HUNTING THE VICUNA. 
 
 DURING our next day's march the only incident that befel us 
 was the breaking of our waggon-tongue, which delayed our jour 
 ney. There was plenty of good hickory-wood near the place, 
 and Jake, with a little help from Redwood and Ike and Lanty, 
 soon spliced it again, making it stronger than ever. Of course 
 it shortened our journey for the day, and we encamped at the 
 end of a ten miles 7 inarch. Strange to say, on the whole ten 
 miles we did not meet with a single animal to give us a little 
 sport, or to form the subject of "our camp talk. 
 
 We were not without a subject, however, as our English friend 
 proposed giving us an account of the mode of hunting the vicu 
 na, and the details of a week's hunting he had enjoyed upon the 
 high table-lands of the Peruvian Andes. He also imparted to 
 our camp-fire circle much information about the different species 
 of that celebrated animal the llama or " camel-sheep " of Peru, 
 which proved extremely interesting, not only to the old hunter- 
 naturalist, but to the " mountain-men," to whom this species of 
 game, as well as the mode of hunting it, was something new. 
 
 Thompson began his narrative as follows : 
 
 " When Pizarro and his Spaniards first climbed the Peruvian 
 Andes, they were astonished at seeing a new and singular species 
 of quadrupeds, the camel-sheep, so called from their resemblance 
 
140 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 to these two kinds of animals. They saw the ' llama' domesti 
 cated and trained to carrying burdens, and the ' alpaca,' a 
 smaller species, reared on account of its valuable fleece. 
 
 " But there were still two other species of these odd animals 
 only observed in a wild state, and in the more desolate and unin 
 habited parts of the Cordilleras. These were the 'guanaco' and 
 ' vicuna.' 
 
 " Up to a very late period the guanaco was believed to be the 
 llama in its wild state, and by some the llama run wild. This, 
 however, is not the case. The four species, llama, alpaca, gua- 
 naca, and vicuna are quite distinct from each other, and 
 although the guanaco can be tamed and taught to carry bur 
 dens, its labor is not of sufficient value to render this worth 
 while. The alpaca is never used as a beast of burden. Its fleece 
 is the consideration for which it is domesticated and reared, and 
 its wool is much finer and more valuable than that of the llama. 
 
 " The guanaco is, perhaps, the least prized of the four, as its 
 fleece is of indifferent quality, and its flesh is not esteemed. The 
 vicuna, on the contrary, yields a wool which is eagerly sought 
 after, and which in the Andes towns will sell for at least five 
 times its weight in alpaca wool. Ponchos woven out of it ' 
 are deemed the finest made, and command the fabulous price of 
 20/. or 30/. sterling. A rich proprietor in the cordilleras is often 
 seen with such a poncho, and the quality of the garment, the 
 length of time it will turn rain, &c., are favourite subjects of 
 conversation with the wearers of them. Of course everybody 
 in those parts possesses one, as everybody in England or the Uni 
 ted States must have a great coat ; but the ponchos of the 
 poorer classes of Peruvians the Indian labourers, shepherds 
 and miners are usually manufactured out of the coarse wool 
 of the llama. Only the 'ricos' can afford the beautiful fabric 
 of the vicuna's fleece. x 
 
 " The wool of the vicuna being so much in demand, it will be 
 easily conceived that hunting the animal is a profitable pursuit; 
 
HUNTING THE VICUNA. 141 
 
 and so it is. In many parts of the Andes there are regular 
 vicuna hunters, while, in other places, whole tribes of Peruvian 
 Indians spend a part of every year in the chase of this animal 
 and the guanaco. When we go farther south, in the direction 
 of Patagonia, we find other tribes who subsist principally 
 upon the guanaco, the vicuna, and the rhea or South America 
 ostrich. 
 
 " Hunting the vicuna is by no means an easy calling. The 
 hunter must betake himself to the highest and coldest regions 
 of the Andes far from civilized life, and far from its comforts. 
 He has to encamp in the open air, and sleep in a cave or a rude 
 hut, built by his own hands. He has to endure a climate as 
 severe as a Lapland winter, often in places where not a stick of 
 wood can be procured, and where he is compelled to cook his 
 meals with the dry ordure of wild cattle. 
 
 " If not successful in the chase he is brought to the verge of 
 starvation, and must have recourse to roots and berries a few 
 species of which, such as the tuberous root ' rnaca,' are found 
 growing in these elevated regions. He is exposed, moreover, 
 to the perils of the precipice, the creaking * soga ' bridge, the 
 slippery path, and the hoarse rushing torrent and these among 
 the rugged Cordilleras of the Andes are no mean dangers. A 
 life of toil, exposure, and peril is that of the vicuna hunter. 
 
 " During my travels in Peru I had resolved to enjoy the sport 
 of hunting the vicuna. For this purpose I set out from one of 
 the towns of the Lower Sierra, and climbed up the high region 
 known as the 'Puna,' or sometimes as the 'Despoblado' (the 
 uninhabited region). 
 
 " I reached at length the edge of a plain to which I had 
 mounted by many a weary path up many a dark ravine. I 
 was twelve or fourteen thousand feet above sea level, and 
 although I had just parted from the land of the palm-tree and 
 the orange, I was now in a region cold and sterile. Mountains 
 were before and around me some black and dark, others shining 
 
142 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 under a robe of snow, and still others of that greyish hue as if 
 snow had freshly fallen upon them, but not enough to cover 
 their stony surface. The plain before me was several miles in 
 circumference. It was only part of a system of similar levels 
 separated from each other by spurs of the mountains. By 
 crossing a ridge another comes in view, a deep cleft leads you into 
 a third and so on. 
 
 " These table plains are too cold for the agriculturist. Only 
 the cereal barley will grow there, and some of those hardy roots 
 the natives of an arctic zone. But they are covered with a 
 sward of grass the 'ycha' grass, the favorite food of the llamas 
 and this renders them serviceable to man. Herds of half-wild 
 cattle may be seen, tended by their wilder-looking shepherds. 
 Flocks of alpacas, female llamas with their young, and long-tailed 
 Peruvian sheep, stray over them, and to some extent relieve 
 their cheerless aspect. The giant vulture the condor, wheels 
 above all, or perches on the jutting rock. Here and there, in 
 some sheltered nook, may be seen the dark mud hut of the 
 ' vaquero ' (cattle herd), or the man himself with his troop of 
 savage curs following at his heels, and this is all the sign of 
 habitation or inhabitant to be met with for hundreds of miles. 
 This bleak land among the mountain tops of the Andes, as I 
 have already said, is called the 'Puna.' 
 
 " The Puna is the favourite haunt of the vicuna, and, of 
 course, the home of the vicuna hunter. I had directions to find 
 one of these hunters and an introduction to him when found, and 
 after spending the night at a shepherd's hut, I proceeded next 
 morning in search of him some ten miles farther into tjie 
 mountains. 
 
 " I arrived at the house, or rather hovel, at an early hour. 
 Notwithstanding, my host had been abroad, and was just 
 returned with full hands, having a large bundle of dead animals 
 in each. They were chinchillas and viscachas, which he had 
 taken out of his snares set over night. He said that most of 
 
HUNTING THE VICUNA. 143 
 
 them had been freshly caught, as their favourite time of coming 
 out of their deris to feed is just before daybreak. 
 
 These two kinds of animals, which in many respects resemble 
 our rabbits, also resemble each other in habits. They make 
 their nests in crevices of the rocks, to which they retreat, when 
 pursued, as rabbits to their burrows. Of course, they are snared 
 in a very similar manner by setting the snares upon their tracks, 
 and at the entrances to their holes. One difference I noted. 
 The Peruvian hunter used snares made of twisted horse-hair, 
 instead of the spring wire employed by our game-keepers and 
 poachers. The chinchilla is a much more beautiful creature 
 than the viscacha, and is a better known-animal, its soft, and 
 beautifully marbled fur being an article of fashionable wear in 
 the cities of Europe. 
 
 " As I approached his hut, the hunter had just arrived with 
 the night's produce of his snares, and was hanging them up to 
 the side of the building, skinning them one by one. Not less 
 than 'half a score of small fox-looking dogs were around him 
 true native dogs of the country. 
 
 " Of the disposition of these creatures I was soon made aware. 
 No sooner had they espied me, than with angry yelps the whole 
 pack ran forward to meet me, and came barking and grinning 
 close around the feet of my horse. Several of them sprang 
 upward at my legs, and would, no doubt, have bitten them, had 
 I not suddenly raised my feet up to the withers, and for some 
 time held them in that position. I have no hesitation in saying 
 that had I been afoot, I should have been badly torn by the 
 curs ; nor do I hesitate to say, that of all the dogs in the known 
 world, these Peruvian mountain dogs are the most vicious and 
 spiteful. They will bite even the friends of their own masters, and 
 very often their masters themselves have to use the stick to keep 
 them in subjection. I believe the dogs found among many tribes 
 of your North-American Indians have a very similar disposition, 
 
144 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 though by no means to compare in fierceness and savage nature 
 with their cousins of the cold Puna. 
 
 " The masters of these dogs are generally Indians, and it is a 
 Pirange fact, that they are much more spiteful towards the 
 whites than Indians. It is difficult for a white man to get on 
 friendly terms with them. 
 
 " After a good deal of kicking and cuffing, my host succeeded 
 in making his kennel uaderstand that I had not come there to be 
 eaten up. I then alighted from my horse, and walked (I should 
 j-ay crawled) mnde the hut. 
 
 " This was, as I have already stated, a mere hovel. A circu 
 lar wall of mnd and stoue, about five feet high, supported a set 
 of poles that served aa rafters. These poles were the flower- 
 stalks of the great American aloe, or maguey-plant the only 
 thing resembling- wood that grew near. Over these was laid a 
 thick layer of Puna grass, which was tied with strong ropes of 
 4ho came material, to keep it from flying off when the wind blew 
 fiokn',Ir, which it there often does. A few blocks of stone in 
 Ihe middle of the floor constituted the fire-place, and the smoke 
 ^ot out the best w&y it could through a hole in the roof. 
 
 " The owner of this mansion was a true Indian, belonging to 
 one of those tribes of the mountains that could not be said ever 
 to have been conquered by the Spaniards. Living in remote 
 districts, many of these people never submitted to the. reparti- 
 mientos, yet a sort of religious conquest was made of some of 
 4 hem by the missionaries, thus bringing them under the title of 
 1 Indies mansos/ (tame Indians), in contradiction to the ' Indioa 
 Vavos,' or savage tribes, who remain unconquered and indepen- 
 lent to this day. 
 
 " As already stated, I had come by appointment to share the 
 day's hunt. I was invited to partake of breakfast. My host 
 being a bachelor, was his own cook, and some parched maize 
 and ' macas/ with a roasted chinchilla, furnished the repast. 
 
 " Fortunately, I carried with me a flask of Catalan brandy ; 
 
HUNTING THE VICUNA. 140 
 
 and this, with a cap of water from the icy mountain spring, ren 
 dered our meal more palatable. I was not without some dry 
 tobacco, and a husk to roll it in, so that we enjoyed our cigar ; 
 but what our hunter enjoyed still more was a ' coceada/ for he 
 was a regular chewer cf 4 coca.' He carried his pouch of chin 
 chilla skin filled with the dried leaves of the coca plant, and 
 around his neck was suspended the gourd bottle, filled with burnt 
 lime and ashes of the root of the ' molle ' tree. 
 
 " All things arranged, we started forth. It was to be 
 a ' still ' hunt, and we went afoot, leaving our horses safely tied 
 by the hut. The Indian took with him only one of his dogs a 
 faithful and trusty one, on' which he could rely. 
 
 11 We skirted the plain, and struck into a defile in the moun 
 tains. It led upwards, among rocky boulders. A cold stream 
 gurgled in its bottom, now and then leaping over low falls, 
 and churned into foam. At times the path was a giddy one, 
 leading along narrow ledges, rendered more perilous by the 
 frozen snow, that lay to the depth of several inches. Our 
 object was to reach the level of a plain still higher, where my 
 companion assured me we should be likely to happen upon a herd 
 of vicunas. 
 
 " As we climbed among the rocks, my eye was attracted by a 
 moving object, higher up. On looking more attentively, several 
 animals were seen, of large size, and reddish brown colour. I 
 took them at first for deer, as I was thinking of that animal. I 
 saw my mistake in a moment. They were not deer, but crea 
 tures quite as nimble. They were bounding from rock to rock, 
 and running along the narrow ledges with the agility of the 
 chamois. These must be the vicunas, thought I. 
 
 " ' No,' said my companion j 'guanacos nothing more.' 
 
 " I was anxious to have a shot at them. 
 
 " ' Better leave them now,' suggested the hunter ; ' the report 
 would frighten the vicunas, if they be in the plain it is near. 
 I know these guanacos. I know where they will retreat to 
 
146 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 a defile close by we can have a chance at them on our re 
 turn.' 
 
 " I forbore firing, though I certainly deemed the guanacos 
 within shot, but the hunter was thinking of the more precious 
 skin of the vicunas, and we passed on. I saw the guauacos run 
 for a dark-looking cleft between two mountain spurs. 
 
 " ' We shall find them in there/ muttered my companion, 
 * that is their haunt.' 
 
 " Noble game are these guanacos large fine animals noble 
 game as the red deer himself. They differ much from the 
 vicunas. They herd only in small numbers, from six to ten or a 
 dozen : while as many as four times this number of vicunas 
 may be seen together. There are essential points of difference 
 in the habits of the two species. The guanacos are dwellers 
 among the rocks, and are most at home when bounding from 
 cliff to cliff, and ledge to ledge. They make but a poor run 
 upon the level grassy plain, and their singular contorted hoofs 
 seem to be adapted for their favourite haunts. The" vicunas, on 
 the contrary, prefer the smooth turf of the table plains, over 
 which they dart with the swiftness of the deer. Both are of the 
 same family of quadrupeds, but with this very essential difference 
 the one is a dweller of the level plain, the other of the rocky 
 declivity ; and nature has adapted each to its respective habitat." 
 
 Here the narrator was interrupted by the hunter-naturalist, who 
 stated that he had observed this curious fact in relation to other 
 animals of a very different genus, and belonging to the fauna 
 of North America. " The animals I speak of," said he, " are indi 
 genous to the region of the Rocky Mountains, and wellknown 
 to our trapper friends here. They are the big horn ( Ovis mon- 
 tana) and the prong-horned antelope (A. furcifcr). The big 
 horn is usually denominated a sheep, though it possesses far more 
 of the characteristics of the deer and antelope families. Like 
 the chamois, it is a dweller among the rocky cliffs and declivities, 
 and only there does it feel at home, and in the full enjoyment of 
 
HUNTING THE VICUNA. 147 
 
 its faculties for security. Place it upon a level plain, and you 
 deprive it of confidence, and render its capture comparatively 
 easy. At the base of these very cliffs on which the Ocis mon- 
 tana disports itself, roams the prong-horn, not very dissimilar 
 either in form, colour, or habits ; and yet this creature, trusting 
 to its heels for safety, feels at home and secure only on the wide 
 open plain where it can see the horizon around it ! Such is the 
 difference in the mode of life of two species of animals almost 
 congeneric, and I am not surprised to hear you state that 
 a somewhat like difference exists between the guanaco and 
 vicuna." 
 
 The hunter-naturalist was again silent, and the narrator 
 continued. 
 
 " A few more strides up the mountain pass brought us to the 
 edge of the plain, where we expected to see the vicunas. We 
 were not disappointed. A herd was feeding upon it, though at 
 a good distance off. A beautiful sight they were, quite equalling 
 in grace and stateliness the lordly deer. In fact, they might have 
 passed for the latter to an unpractised eye, particularly at that 
 season when the deer are ' in the red.' Indeed the vicuna is 
 more deer-like than any other animal except the antelope much 
 more so than its congeners the llama, alpaca, or guanaco. Its 
 form is slender, and its gait light and agile, while the long taper 
 ing neck and head add to the resemblance. The colour, how 
 ever, is peculiarly its own, and any one accustomed to seeing the 
 vicuna can distinguish the orange-red of its silky coat at a 
 glance, and at a great distance. So peculiar is it, that in Peru 
 the 'Color de vicuna' (vicuna colour) has become a specific 
 name. 
 
 " My companion at once pronounced the animals before us a 
 herd of vicunas. There were about twenty in all, and all 
 except one were quietly feeding on the grassy plain. This one 
 stood apart, his long neck raised high in air, and his head 
 occasionally turning from side to side, as though he was keeping 
 
148 THE EUNTEKS' FEAST. 
 
 watch for the rest. Such was in fact the duty he was perform 
 ing ; he was the leader of the herd the patriarch, husband 
 and father of the flock. All the others were ewes or young 
 ones. So affirmed my companion. 
 
 " The vicuna is polygamous fights for his harem with despe 
 rate fierceness, watches over its number while they feed or sleep, 
 chooses the ground for browsing and rest defends them against 
 enemies heads them in the advance, and covers their retreat 
 with his own ' person ' such is the domestic economy of the 
 vicuna. 
 
 11 ' Now, senor,' said the hunter, eyeing the herd, ' if I could 
 only kill him (he pointed to the leader) I would have no trouble 
 with the rest. I should get every one of them.' 
 
 " ' How T I inquired. 
 
 < Oh ! they would 1 ha I The very thing I wished for !' 
 
 " ' What T 
 
 " ' They are heading towards yonder rocks.' He pointed to 
 a clump of rocky boulders that lay isolated near one side of the 
 plain ' let us get there, comrade vamos /' 
 
 "We stole cautiously round the edge of the mountain until 
 the rocks lay between us and the game ; and then crouched for 
 ward and took our position among them. We lay behind a 
 jagged boulder, whose seamed outline looked as if it had been 
 designed for loop-hole firing. It was just the cover we wanted. 
 
 " We peeped cautiously through the cracks of the rock. 
 Already the vicunas were near, almost within range of our 
 pieces. I held in my hands a double-barrel, loaded in both 
 barrels with large-sized buck-shot ; my companion's weapon was 
 a long Spanish rifle. 
 
 " I received his instructions in a whisper. I was not to shoot 
 until he had fired. Both were to aim at the leader. About 
 this he was particular, and I promised obedience. 
 
 " The unconscious herd drew near. The leader, with the long 
 white silky hair hanging from his breast, was in the advance, 
 
HUNTING THE VICUNA. 1 149 
 
 and upon him the eyes of both of us were fixed. T could observe 
 his glistening orbs, and his attitude of pride, as he turned at 
 intervals to beckon his followers on. 
 
 " ' I hope he has got the worms/ muttered my companion ; 'if 
 he has, he'll come to rub his hide upon the rocks.' 
 
 " Some such intention was no doubt guiding the vicuna, for at 
 that moment it stretched forth its neck and trotted a few paces 
 towards us. It suddenly halted. The wind was in our favour, 
 else we should have been scented long ago. But we were sus 
 pected. The creature halted, threw up its head, struck the 
 ground with its hoof, and uttered a strange cry, somewhat resem 
 bling the whistling of a deer. The echo of that cry was the ring 
 of my companion's rifle, and I saw. the vicuna leap up and fall 
 dead upon the plain. 
 
 "I expected the others to break off in flight, and was about 
 to fire at them though they were still at long range. My com 
 panion prevented me. 
 
 "'Hold I' he whispered, 'you'll have a better chance see 
 there ! now, if you like, Senor I' 
 
 " To my surprise, the herd, instead of attempting to escape, 
 came trotting up to where the leader lay, and commenced 
 running around at intervals, stooping over the body, and utter 
 ing plaintive cries. 
 
 " It was a touching sight, but the hunter is without pity for 
 what he deems his lawful game. In an instant I had pulled 
 both triggers, and both barrels had sent forth their united and 
 deadly showers. 
 
 " Deadly, indeed when the smoke blew aside, nearly half of 
 the herd were seen lying quiet or kicking on the plain. 
 
 " The rest remained as before ! another ring ol" the long rifle, 
 and another fell another double detonation of the heavy deer 
 gun, and several came to the ground and so continued the 
 alternate fire of bullets and shot, until the whole herd were 
 strewn dead and dying upon the ground ! 
 
150 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 "Our work was done a great day's work for iny companion, 
 who would realize nearly a hundred dollars for the produce of 
 his day's sport. 
 
 " This, however, he assured me was a very unusual piece of 
 good luck. Often for days and even weeks, he would range the 
 mountains without killing a single head either vicuna or 
 guanaco, and only twice before had he succeeded in thus making 
 a lattue of a whole herd. Once he had approached a flock of 
 vicunas disguised in the skin of a guanaco, and killed most of 
 them before they thought of retreating. 
 
 " It was necessary for us to return to the hut for our horses, 
 in order to carry home the game, and this required several 
 journeys to be made. To keep off the wolves and condors my 
 companion made use of a very simple expedient, which I believe 
 is often used in the North among your prairie trappers here. 
 Several bladders were taken fcpm the vicunas and inflated. 
 They were then tied upon poles of maguey, and set upright over 
 the carcasses, so as to dangle and dance about in the wind. 
 Cunning as is the Andes wolf, this ' scare ' is sufficient to keep 
 him off, as well as his ravenous associate, the condor. 
 
 " It was quite night when we reached the Indian hut with 
 our last load. Both of us were wearied and hungry, but a fresh 
 vicuna cutlet, washed down by the Catalan, and followed by a 
 cigarette, made us forget our fatigues. My host was more than 
 satisfied with his day's work, and promised me a guanaco hunt 
 for the morrow." 
 
A CHACU OF VICUNAS. 151 
 
 CHAPTER XYIII. 
 
 A CHACU OF VICUNAS. 
 
 "WELL, upon the morrow," continued the Englishman, " we 
 had our guanaco hunt, and killed several of the herd we had 
 seen on the previous day. There was nothing particular in 
 regard to our mode of hunting farther than to use all our cun 
 ning in getting within shot, and then letting fly at them. 
 
 "It is not so easy getting near the guanaco. He is among 
 the shyest game I have ever hunted, and his position is usually 
 so far above that of the hunter, that he commands at all times 
 a view of the movements of the latter. The overhanging rocks, 
 however, help one a little, and by diligent creeping he is some 
 times approached. It requires a dead shot to bring him down, 
 for, if only wounded, he will scale the cliffs, and make off 
 perhaps to die in some inaccessible haunt. 
 
 " While sojourning with my hunter-friend, I heard of a singu 
 lar method practised by the Indians of capturing the vicuna in 
 large numbers. This was called the ' chacu.' 
 
 " Of course, I became very desirous of witnessing a ' chacu/ 
 and the hunter promised to gratify me. It was now the season 
 of the year for such expeditions, and one was to come off in a 
 few days. It was the annual hunt got up by the tribe to which 
 my host belonged ; and, of course, he, as a practised and pro 
 fessional hunter, was to bear a distinguished part in the 
 ceremony. 
 
 "The day before the expedition was to set out, we repaired 
 to the village of the tribe a collection of rude huts, straggling 
 along the bottom of one of the deep clefts or valleys of the 
 coidilleras. This village lay several thousand feet below the 
 
152 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 level of the Puna plains, and was therefore in a much warmer 
 climate. In fact, the sugar-cane and yucca plant (Jatropha 
 mainhot) were both seen growing in the gardens of the villagers, 
 and Indian corn flourished in the fields. 
 
 "The inhabitants were ' Indies mansos' (civilized Indians). 
 They attended part of the year to agriculture, although the 
 greater part of it was spent in idleness, amusements, or hunting. 
 They had been converted that is, nominally to Christianity ; 
 and a church with its cross was a prominent feature of the 
 village. 
 
 "The cure, or priest, was the only white man resident in the 
 place, and he was white only by comparison. Though of pure 
 Spanish blood, he would have passed for a ' coloured old gentle 
 man ' in any part of Europe or the States. 
 
 " My companion introduced me to the padre, and I was at 
 once received upon terms of intimacy. To my surprise, I learnt 
 that he was to accompany the chacu in fact, to take a leading 
 part in it. He seemed to be as much interested in the success 
 of the hunt as any of them more so, perhaps, and with good 
 reason, too. I afterwards learnt why. The produce of the 
 annual hunt was part of the padre's income. By an established 
 law, the skins of the vicunas were the property of the church, 
 and these, being worth on the spot at least a dollar apiece, 
 formed no despicable tithe. After hearing this, I was at no loss 
 to understand the padre's enthusiasm about the chacu. All the 
 day before he had been bustling about among his parishioners, 
 aiding them with his counsel, and assisting them in their pre 
 parations. I shared the padre's dwelling, the best in the 
 village ; his supper, too a stewed fowl, killed for the occasion, 
 and rendered fiery hot with ' aji/ or capsicum. This wa^ 
 washed down with ' chica, 7 and afterwards the padre and I 
 indulged in a cigarette and a chat. 
 
 "He was a genuine specimen of the South- American mission 
 ary priest ; rather more scrupulous about getting his dues than 
 
A CHACU OF VICUNAS. 153 
 
 about the moral welfare of his flock ; fat, somewhat greasy, 
 fond of a good dinner, 'a glass of ' Yea ' brandy, and a cigar 
 ette. Nevertheless, his rule was patriarchal in a high degree, 
 and he was a favourite with the simple people among whom he 
 dwelt. 
 
 " Morning came, and the expedition set forth ; not, however, 
 until a grand ma^s had been celebrated in the church, and 
 prayers offered up iv r the success of the hunt. The cavalcade 
 then got under weigh, and commenced winding up the rugged 
 path that led toward the ' Altos,' or Puna heights. We travel 
 led in a different direction from that in which my companion and 
 I had come. 
 
 " The expedition itself was a picturesque affair. There were 
 horses, mules, and llamas, men, women, children, and dogs ; in 
 fact, almost every living thing in the village had turned out. 
 A chacu is no common occasion no one day affair. It was to 
 be an affair of weeks. There were rude tents carried along ; 
 blankets and cooking utensils ; and the presence of the women 
 was as necessary as any part of the expedition. Their office 
 would be to do the cooking, and keep the camp in order, as well 
 as to sssist in the hunt. 
 
 " Strung out in admirable confusion, we climbed up the 
 mountain a picturesque train the men swinging along in their 
 coloured ponchos of llama wool, and the women dressed in bright 
 mantas of ; bay eta ' (a coarse cloth, of native manufacture). I 
 noticed several mules and llamas packed with loads of a curious 
 character. Some carried large bundles of rags others were 
 loaded with coils of rope while several were ' freighted ' with 
 &hort poles, tied in bunches. I had observed these cargoes 
 being prepared before leaving the village, and could not divine 
 the use of them. That would no doubt be explained when we 
 had reached the scene of the chacu, and I forbore to trouble 
 my companions with any interrogatories, as I had enough to do 
 to guide my horse along the slippery path we were travelling. 
 
 7* 
 
154 
 
 " About a mile from the village there was a sudden halt. I 
 inquired the cause. 
 
 " ' The huaro, 1 was the reply. 
 
 " I knew the huaro to be the name of a peculiar kind of 
 bridge, arid I learnt that one was here to be crossed. I rode 
 forward, and found myself in front of the huaro. A singular 
 structure it was. I could scarcely believe in the practicability 
 of our getting over it. The padre, however, assured me it was 
 a good one, and we should all be on the other side in a couple 
 of hours ! 
 
 " I at first felt inclined to treat this piece of information as a 
 joke : but it proved that the priest was in earnest. It was full 
 two hours before we were all crossed with our bag and baggage. 
 
 "The huaro was nothing more than a thick rope stretched 
 across the chasm, and made fast at both ends. On this rope 
 was a strong piece of wood, bent into the shape of the letter U, 
 and fastened to a roller which rested upon the rope, and moved 
 along it when pulled by a cord from either side. There were 
 two cords, or ropes, attached to the roller, one leading to each 
 side of the chasm, and their object was to drag the passenger 
 across ; of course, only one of us could be carried over at a 
 time. No wonder we were so long in making the crossing, when 
 there were over one hundred in all, with numerous articles of 
 baggage. 
 
 " I shall never forget the sensations I experienced in making 
 the passage of the huaro. I had felt giddy enough in going 
 over the ' soga ' bridges and ' barbacoas ' common throughout 
 Peru, but the passage of the hnaro is really a gymnastic feat of 
 no easy accomplishment. I was first tied, back downwards, 
 with my back resting in the concavity of the bent wood : my 
 legs were then crossed over the main the bridge itself with 
 nothing to hold them there farther than my own muscular exer 
 tion. With my hands I clutched the vertical side of the wooden 
 yoke, and was told to keep my head in as upright a position as 
 
A CHACU OF VICUNAS. 155 
 
 possible. Without farther ado,- I felt myself jerked out until I 
 hung in empty air over a chasm that opened at least two hundred 
 feet beneath, and through the bottom of which a white torrent 
 was foaming over black rocks ! My ankles slipped along the 
 rope, but the sensation was so strange, that I felt several times 
 on the point of letting them drop off. In that case my situation 
 would have been still more painful, as I should have depended 
 mainly on my arms for support. Indeed, I held on tightly with 
 both hands, as I fancied that the cord with which I had been 
 tied to the yoke would every minute give way. 
 
 " After a good deal of jerking and hauling, I found myself on 
 the opposite side, and once more on my feet ! 
 
 " I was almost repaid for the fright I had gone through, by 
 seeing the great fat padre pulled over. It was certainly a 
 ludicrous sight, and I laughed the more, as I fancied the old 
 fellow had taken occasion to laugh at me. He took it all in 
 good part, however, telling me that it caused him no fear, as he 
 had long been accustomed to those kind of bridges. 
 
 " This slow and laborious method of crossing streams is not 
 uncommon in many parts of the Andes. It occurs in retired 
 and thinly-populated districts, where there is no means for 
 building bridges of regular construction. Of course, the travel 
 ler himself only can be got over by the huaro. His horse, mule, 
 or llamas must swim the stream, and in many instances these are 
 carried off by the rapid current, or dashed against the rocks, 
 and killed. 
 
 "The whole cavallada of the expedition got safely over, and 
 in a short while we were en route, once more climbing up toward 
 the ' altos.' I asked my companion why we could not have got 
 over the stream at some other point, and thus have saved the 
 time and labour. The answer was, that it would have cost us 
 a twenty miles' journey to have reached a point no nearer our 
 destination than the other end of the huaro rope 1 No wonder 
 such pains had been taken to ferry the party across. 
 
156 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 " We reached the heights late in the evening. The hunt 
 would not begin until the next day. 
 
 "That evening was spent in putting up tents, and getting 
 everything in order about the camp. The tent of the padre 
 was conspicuous it was the largest, and I was invited to share 
 it with him. The horses and other animals were picketted or 
 hoppled upon the plain, which was covered with a short brown 
 grass. 
 
 " The air was- chill cold, in fact we were nearly three 
 miles above ocean level. The women and youths employed 
 themselves in collecting taquia to make fires. There was plenty 
 of this, for the plain where we had halted was a pasture of large 
 flocks of llamas and horned cattle. It was not there we expected 
 to fall in with the vicunas. A string of ' altos,' still farther on, 
 were their favourite haunts. Our first camp was sufficiently 
 convenient to begin the hunt. It would be moved farther on 
 when the plains in its neighbourhood had been hunted, and the 
 game should grow scarce. 
 
 " Morning arrived ; but before daybreak, a large party had 
 set off, taking with them the ropes, poles, and bundles of rags 
 I have already noticed. The women and boys accompanied this 
 party. Their destination was a large table plain, contiguous to 
 that on which we had encamped. 
 
 " An hour afterwards the rest of the party set forth most 
 of them mounted one way or other. These were the real hunters 
 or 'drivers. 7 Along with them went the dogs the whole 
 canine population of the village, I should have preferred 
 riding with this party, but the padre took me along with him 
 self, promising to guide me to a spot where I should get the 
 best view of the chacu. He and I rode forward alone. 
 
 "In half an hour we reached the plain where the first party 
 had gone. They were all at work as we came up scattere4 
 over the plain and I now saw the use that was to be made of 
 the ropes ar,d rags. With them a pound, Qr ' corral/ was in 
 
A CHACU OF VICUNAS. 157 
 
 process of construction. Part of it was already finished, and I 
 perceived that it was to be of a circular shape.. The poles, or 
 stakes, were driven into the ground in a curving line at a dis 
 tance of about a rod from each other. When thus driven, each 
 stake stood four feet high, and from the top of one to the" other, 
 ropes were ranged and tied, thus making the inclosure complete. 
 Along these ropes were knotted the rags and strips of cotton, 
 so as to hang nearly to the ground, or flutter in the wind ; and 
 this slight semblance of a fence was continued over the plain in 
 a circumference of nearly three miles in length. One side, for a 
 distance of several hundred yards, was left unfinished, and this 
 was the entrance to the corral. Of course, this was in the 
 direction from which the drove was to come. 
 
 " As soon as the inclosure was ready, those engaged upon it 
 withdrew in two parties to the opposite flanks, and then deployed 
 off in diverging lines, so as to form a sort of funnel at least two 
 miles in width. In this position they remained to await the result 
 of the drive, most of them squatting down to rest them 
 selves. 
 
 41 Meanwhile the drive was proceeding, although the hunters 
 engaged in it were at a great distance scarcely seen from our 
 position. They too, had gone out in two parties, taking oppo 
 site directions, and skirting the hills that surrounded the plain. 
 Their circuit could not have been less than a dozen miles ; and, 
 as soon as fairly round, they deployed themselves into a long 
 arc, with its concavity towards the rope corral. Then, facing 
 inward, the forward movement commenced. Whatever animals 
 chanced to bo feeding between them and the enclosure were 
 almost certain of being driven out. 
 
 " The padre had led me to an elevated position among the 
 rocks. It commanded a view of the rope circle ; but we were a 
 long while waiting before the drivers came in sight. At length 
 we descried the line of mounted men far off upon the 'plain, and, 
 on closely scrutinising the ground between them and us, we could 
 
153 T;I:-: HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 distinguisli several reddish forms gliding about : these were the 
 vicunas. There appeared to be several bands of them, as we 
 saw some at different points. They were crossing and recrossing 
 the line of the drive, evidently startled, and not knowing in what 
 direction to run. Every now and then a herd, led by its old 
 male, could be seen shooting in a straight line then suddenly 
 making a halt and the next minute sweeping off in a contrary 
 direction. Their beautiful orange-red flanks, glistening in the 
 sun, enabled us to mark them at a great distance. 
 
 " The drivers came nearer and nearer, until we could distin 
 guish the forms of the horsemen as they rose over the swells of 
 the plain. We could now hear their shouts the winding of 
 their ox-horns, and even the yelping of their dogs. But what 
 most gratified my companion was to see that several herds of 
 vicunas were bounding backwards and forwards in front of the 
 advancing line. 
 
 " ' Mir a !' he cried exultingly, ' mira f Senor, one, two, three, 
 four four herds, and large ones ah ! Carrambo ! Jesus ! con 
 tinued he, suddenly changing tone. ' carrambo ! esos malditos 
 guanacos !' (those cursed guanacos). I looked as he was point 
 ing. I noticed a small band of guanacos springing over the 
 plain. I could easily distinguish them from the vicunas by their 
 being larger and less graceful in their motions, but more particu 
 larly by the duller hue of brownish red. But what was there 
 in their presence to draw down the maledictions of the padre, 
 which he continued to lavish upon them most unsparingly ? I 
 put the question. 
 
 "'Ah! Senor,' he answered with a sigh, 'these guanacos 
 will spoil all they will ruin the hunt. Caspita ! ' 
 
 " ' How ? in what manner, mio padre ?' I asked in my inno 
 cence, thinking that a fine herd of guanacos would be inclosed 
 along with their cousins, and that, ' all were fish/ &c. 
 
 " ' Ah !' exclaimed the padre, 'these guanacos are hereticos 
 reckless brutes, they pay no regard to the ropes they will break 
 
A CHACU OF VICUNAS, 159 
 
 through and let the others escape santissima virgen ! what is 
 to be done ?' 
 
 " Nothing could be done except leave things to take their 
 course, for in "a few minutes the horsemen were seen advancing, 
 until their line closed upon the funnel formed by the others. 
 The vicunas, in several troops now rushed wildly from side to 
 side, turning sharply as they approached the figures of the nfen 
 and women, and running in the opposite direction. There were 
 some fifty or sixty in all, and at length they got together in a 
 single but confused clump. The guanacos, eight or ten in num 
 ber, became mixed up with them, and after several quarterings, 
 the whole flock, led by one that thought it had discovered the 
 way of escape, struck off into a gallop, and dashed into the 
 enclosure. 
 
 " The hunters who were a-foot with the women, now rushed 
 to the entrance and in a short while new stakes were driven in, 
 ropes tied upon them, rags attached, and the circle of the chacu 
 was complete. 
 
 "The mounted hunters at the same time had galloped around 
 the outside, and flinging themselves from their horses, took their 
 stations at intervals from each other. Each now prepared his 
 ' bolas/ ready to advance and commence the work of death, as 
 soon as the corral should be fairly surrounded by the women and 
 boys who acted as assistants. 
 
 " The hunters now advanced towards the centre, swinging 
 their bolas, and shouting to one another to direct the attack. 
 The frightened vicunas rushed from side to side, everywhere 
 headed by an Indian. Now they broke into confused masses 
 and ran in different directions now they united again and swept 
 in graceful curves over the plain. Everywhere the bolas whizzed 
 through the air, and soon the turf was strewed with forms 
 sprawling and kicking. A strange picture was presented. Here 
 a hunter stood with the leaden balls whirling around his head 
 there another rushed forward upon a vicuna hoppled and falling 
 
160 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 a third bent over one that was already down, anon he bran 
 dished a bleeding knife, and then, releasing the thong from the 
 limbs of his victim, again swung his bolas in the air, and rushed 
 forward in the chase. 
 
 "An incident occurred near the beginning of the melee, which 
 was very gratifying to my companion the padre, and at once 
 restored the equanimity of his temper. The herd of guanacos 
 succeeded in making their escape, and without compromising 
 the success of the hunt. This, however, was brought about 
 by a skilful manoeuvre on the part of my old friend the Puna 
 hunter. These animals had somehow or other got separated 
 from the vicunas, and dashed off to a distant part of the inclo- 
 sure. Seeing this, the hunter sprang to his horse, and calling 
 his pack of curs after him, leaped over the rope fence and dashed 
 forward after the guanacos. He soon got directly in their rear, 
 and signalling those who stood in front to separate and let the 
 guanacos pass, he drove them out of the inclosure. They went 
 head foremost against the ropes, breaking them free from the 
 stakes ; but the hunter, galloping up, guarded the opening until 
 the ropes and rags were freshly adjusted. 
 
 " The poor vicunas, nearly fifty in number, were all killed or 
 captured. When pursued up to the 'sham-fence' they neither 
 attempted to rush against it or leap over, but would wheel sud 
 denly round, and run directly in the faces of their pur 
 suers ! 
 
 "The sport became even more interesting when all but a few 
 were hors de combat. Then the odd ones that remained were 
 each attacked by several hunters at once, and the rushing and 
 doubling of the animals the many headings and turnings the 
 shouts of the spectators the whizzing of the bolas sometimes 
 two or three of these missiles hurled at a single victim all com 
 bined to furnish a spectacle to me novel and exciting. 
 
 " About twenty minutes after the animals entered the rope 
 inclosure the last of them, was seen to * bite the dust,' and the 
 
A CHACU OF VICUNAS. 161 
 
 chacu of that day was over. Then came the mutual congratu 
 lations of the hunters, and the joyous mingling of voices. The 
 slain vicunas were collected in a heap the skins stripped off, 
 and the flesh divided among the different families who took part 
 in the chacu. 
 
 -" The skins, as we have said, fell to the share of the ' church, 7 
 that is, to the church's representative the padre, and this waa 
 certainly the lion's share of the day's product. 
 
 " The ropes were now unfastened and coiled the rags once 
 morebundled, and the stakes pulled up and collected all to be 
 used on the morrow in some other part of the Puna. The meat 
 was packed on the horses and mules, and the hunting party, if- 
 a long string, proceeded to camp. Then followed a scene of 
 feasting and merriment such. as did not fall to the lot of thesk 
 poor people ever day in the year. 
 
 " This chacu lasted ten days, during which time I remained 
 in the company of my half-savage friends. The whola game 
 killed amounted to five hundred and odd vicunas, with a score 
 or two guanacos, several tarush, or deer of the Ande? ( r )& vis 
 antisensis) and half a dozen bjack bears (Ursus ornat^s\ Of 
 course only the vicunas were taken in the chacu. The other 
 animals were started incidentally, and killed b^ tlie hunters 
 either with their bblas, or guns, with which a fev/ (A them were 
 armed. 
 
 The "chacu" of the Andes Indiana crrrtuponds to the 
 " surround " of the Indian hunters on the great plains of 
 North America. In the latter case, however, buffaloes are 
 usually the objects of pursuit, and no fence is attempted the 
 hunters trusting to their horses to keep the wild oxen enclosed. 
 The "pound" is another mode of capturing wild animals prac 
 tised by several tribes of Indians in the Hudson's Bay territory. 
 In this case the game is caribou or reindeer, but no rope fence 
 wouid serve to impound these. A good substantial inclosure 
 of branches and trees is necessary, and the construction of a 
 
162 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 " pound " is the work of time and labour. I know of no animal 
 except the vicuna itself, that could be captured after the manner 
 practiced in the " chacu." 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 SQUIRREL SHOOTING. 
 
 WE were now travelling among the spurs of the " Ozark 
 hills," and our road was a more difficult one. The ravines were 
 deeper, and as our course obliged us to cross the direction in which 
 most of them ran, we were constantly climbing or descending the 
 sides of steep ridges. There was no road except a faint Indian 
 trail, used by the Kansas in their occasional excursions to the 
 borders of the settlements. At times we were compelled to cut 
 away the underwood, and ply the axe lustily upon some huge 
 trunk that had fallen across the path and obstructed the passage 
 of the waggon. This rendered our progress but slow. 
 
 During such halt most of the party strayed off into the woods 
 in search of game. Squirrels were the only four-footed crea 
 tures found, and enough of these were shot to make a good- 
 sized " pof-pie ;" and it may be here remarked, that no sort of 
 flesh is better for this purpose than that of the squirrel. 
 
 The species found in these words was the large "cat-squirrel" 
 ( Sciurus cinereus}, one of the noblest of its kind. Of course at 
 that season, amid the plenitude of seeds, nuts, and berries, they 
 were as plump as partridges. This species is usually in good 
 condition, and its flesh the best flavoured of all. In the markets 
 of New York they bring three times the price of the common 
 grey squirrel. 
 
 As we rode along, the naturalist stated many facts in relation 
 to the squirrel tribe, that were new to most of us. He said that 
 
SQUIRREL SHOOTING. 163 
 
 in North America there were not less than twenty species of 
 true squirrels, all of them dwellers in the trees, and by including 
 the " ground " and " flying" squirrels (tamias and pleromys), the 
 cumber of species might be more than forty. Of course there are 
 still, new species yet undescribed, inhabiting the half-explored 
 regions of the western territory. 
 
 The best known of the squirrels is the common " grey squir 
 rel, 57 as it is in most parts of the United States the most plenti 
 ful. Indeed it is asserted that some of the other species, as the 
 "black squirrel" (Sciurus niger), disappear from districts 
 where the grey squirrels become numerous as the native rat 
 gives place to the fierce " Norway." 
 
 The true fox squirrel ( S. vulpinus) differs essentially from 
 the " cat," which is also known in many States by the name of 
 fox squirrel. The former is larger, and altogether a more active 
 animal, dashing up to the top of a pine-tree in a single run. 
 The cat squirrel, on the contrary, is slow and timid among the 
 branches, and rarely mounts above the first fork, unless when 
 forced higher by the near approach of its enemy. It prefers 
 concealing itself behind the trunk, dodging round the tree as the 
 hunter advances upon it. It has one peculiarity, however, in its 
 mode of escape that often saves it, and disappoints its pursuers. 
 Unless very hotly pursued by a dog, or other swift enemy, it will 
 not be treed until it has reached the tree that contains its nest, 
 and of course, it drops securely into its hole, bidding defiance to 
 whatever enemy unless, indeed that enemy chance to be the 
 pine-martin, which is capable of following it even to the bottom 
 of its dark tree-cave. 
 
 Now most of the other squirrels make a temporary retreat to 
 the nearest large tree that offers. This is often without a hole 
 where they can conceal themselves, and they are therefore 
 exposed to the small shot or rifle bullet from below. 
 
 It does not always follow, however, that they are brought 
 down from their perch In very heavy bottom timber the 
 
164 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 squirrel often escapes among the huge twigs, even where thero 
 are no leaves to conceal it, nor any hole iu the tree. Twenty 
 shots, and from good marksmen too, have been fired at a single 
 squirrel in such situations, without bringing it to the ground, or 
 seriously wounding it 1 A party of hunters have often retired 
 without getting such game, and yet the squirrel has been con 
 stantly changing place, and offering itself to be sighted in new 
 positions and attitudes. 
 
 The craft of the squirrel on these occasions is remarkable. It 
 stretches its body along the upper part of a branch, elongating 
 it in such a manner, that the branch not thicker than the body 
 itself, forms a complete shield against the shot. The head, too, 
 is laid close, and the tail no longer erect, but flattened along 
 the branch, so as not to betray the whereabouts of the ani 
 mal. 
 
 Squirrel shooting is by no means poor sport. It is the most 
 common kind in the United States, because the squirrel is the 
 most common game. In that country it takes the place that 
 snipe or partridge-shooting holds in England. In my opinion it 
 is a sport superior to either of these last, and the game, when 
 killed, is not much less in value. Good fat squirrel may be 
 cooked in a variety of ways, and many people prefer it to fea 
 thered game of any kind. It is true the squirrel has a rat-like 
 physiognomy, but that is only in the eyes of strangers to him. 
 A residence in the backwoods, and a short practice in the eat 
 ing of squirrel pot-pie, soon removes any impression of that kind. 
 A hare, as brought upon the table-cloth in England, is ii*r more 
 likely to produce d'egout from its very striking likeness to 
 " puss," that is purring upon the hearth-rug. 
 
 In almost all parts of the United States, a day's squirrel- 
 shooting may be had without the necessity of making a very 
 long journey. There are still tracts of woodland left untouched, 
 where these animals find a home. In the Western States a 
 fiquirrel-hunt maybe had simplj by walking a couple of hun 
 
SQUIRREL SHOOTING. 165 
 
 dred yards from your house, and in some places you may shoot 
 the creatures out of the very door. 
 
 To make a successful squirrel-hunt two persons at least are 
 necessary. If only one goes out, the squirrel can avoid him 
 simply by " dodging " round the trunk, or any large limb of the 
 tree. When there are two, one remains stationary, while the 
 other makes a circuit, and drives the game from the opposite 
 side. It is still better when three or four persons make up the 
 party, as then the squirrel is assailed on all sides, and can find 
 no resting-place, without seeing a black tube levelled upon him, 
 and ready to send forth its deadly missile. 
 
 Some hunt the squirrel with shot guns. These are chiefly 
 young hands. The old hunter prefers the rifle ; and in the 
 hands of practised marksmen this is the better weapon. The 
 rifle-bullet, be it ever so small, kills the game at once ; whereas 
 a squirrel severely peppered with shot will often escape to the 
 tree where its hole is, and drop in, often to die of its wounds. 
 No creature c#n be more tenacious of life not even a cat. 
 When badly wounded it will cling to the twigs to its last breath, 
 and even after death its claws sometimes retain their hold, and 
 its dead body hangs suspended to the branch ! 
 
 The height from which a squirrel will leap to the ground with 
 out sustaining injury, is one of those marvels witnessed by every 
 squirrel-hunter. When a tree in which it has taken refuge is 
 found not to afford sufficient shelter, and a neighbouring tree is 
 not near enough for it to leap to, it then perceives the necessity 
 of returning to the ground, to get to some other part of the 
 woods. Some species, as the cat squirrel, fearing to take the 
 dreadful leap (often nearly a hundred feet), rush down by the 
 trunk. Not so the more active squirrels, as the common grey- 
 kind. These run to the extremity of a branch, and spring 
 boldly down in a diagonal direction. The hunter if a stranger 
 to the feat would expect to see the creature crushed or crippled 
 by the fall. No danger of that. Even the watchful dog that 
 
160 
 
 is waiting for such an event, and standing close by the spot, has 
 not time to spring upon it, until it is off again like a flying bird, 
 and, almost as quick as sight can follow, is seen ascending some 
 other tree. 
 
 There is an explanation required about this precipitous leap. 
 The squirrel is endowed with the capability of spreading out its 
 body to a great extent, and this in the downward rush it takes 
 care to do thus breaking its fall by the resistance of the air. 
 This alone accounts for its not killing itself. 
 
 Nearly all squirrels possess this power, but in different degrees 
 In the flying squirrel it is so strongly developed, as to enable 
 them to make a flight resembling that of the birds themselves. 
 
 The squirrel-hunter is often accompanied by a dog not that 
 the dog ever by any chance catches one of these creatures. Of 
 him the squirrel has but little fear, well knowing that he cannot 
 climb a tree. The office of the dog is of a different kind. It is 
 to " tree" the squirrel, and, by remaining at the root, point out 
 the particular tree to his master. 
 
 The advantage of the dog is obvious. In fact, he is almost as 
 necessary as the pointer to the sportsman. First, by ranging 
 widely, he beats a greater breadth of the forest. Secondly, when 
 a squirrel is seen by him, his swiftness enables him to hurry it 
 up some tree not its own. This second -advantage is of the 
 greatest importance. When the game has time enough allowed 
 it, it either makes to its own tree (with a hole in it of course), 
 or selects one of the tallest near the spot. In the former case it 
 is impossible, and in the latter difficult, to have a fair shot at it. 
 
 If there be no dog, and the hunter trusts to his own eyes, he 
 is often unable to find the exact tree which the squirrel has 
 climbed, and of course loses it. 
 
 A good squirrel-dog is a useful animal. The breed is not 
 important. The best are usually half-bred pointers. They 
 should have good sight as well as scent ; should range v idely 
 and run fast. When well trained they will not take aft ' rab 
 
SQUIRREL SHOOTING. 16t 
 
 bits, or any other game. They will bark only when a squirrel is 
 treed, and remain staunchly by the root of the tree. The bark 
 ing is necessary, otherwise the hunter, often separated from thorn 
 by the underwood, would not know when they had succeeded in 
 " treeing." 
 
 The squirrel seems to have little fear of the dog, and rarely 
 ascends to a great height. It is often seen only a few feet above 
 him, jerking its tail about, and apparently mocking its savage 
 enemy below. 
 
 The coining up of the hunter changes the scene. The squirrel 
 then takes the alarm, and shooting up, conceals itself among the 
 higher branches. 
 
 Taking it all in all, we know none of the smaller class of field 
 sports that requires greater skill, and yields more real amuse 
 ment, than hunting the squirrel. 
 
 Our Kentuckiaii comrade gave us an account of a grand 
 squirrel-hunt got up by himself and some neighbours, which is 
 not an uncommon sort of a thing in the Western States. The 
 hunters divided themselves into two parties of equal numbers, 
 each taking its own direction through the woods. A large 
 wager was laid upon the result, to be won by the party that 
 could bring in the greatest number of squirrels. There were six 
 guns on each side, and the numbers obtained at the end of a 
 week for the hunt lasted so long were respectively 5000, 
 and 4780 ! Of course the sport came off in a tract of country 
 where squirrels were but little hunted, and were both tame and 
 plenty. 
 
 Such hunts upon a grand scale are, as already stated, not 
 uncommon in some parts of the United States. They have 
 another object besides the sport that of thinning off the 
 squirrels for the protection of the planter's corn-field. So des 
 tructive are these little animals to the corn and other grains, 
 that in some States there has been at times a bounty granted for 
 killing them. In early times such a law existed in Pennsylvania, 
 
lf>8 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 and there is a registry that in one year the sum of 8000/. was 
 pain out of the treasury of this bounty-money, which at three 
 pence a head the premium would make 640,000, the number 
 of the squirrels killed in that year ! 
 
 The "migration of the squirrel's" is still an unexplained fact. 
 It is among the grey squirrels it takes place ; hence the name 
 given to that species, Sciurus migratorius. There is no regula 
 rity about these migrations, and their motive is not known. 
 Immense bands of squirrels are observed in a particular neigh 
 bourhood, proceeding through the woods or -across -tracts of open 
 ground,, all in one direction. Nothing stays their course. Nar 
 row streams and broad rivers are crossed by them by swimming, 
 and many are drowned in the attempt. 
 
 Under ordinary circumstances, these little creatures are as 
 much afraid of water as cats, yet when moving along their track 
 of migration they plunge boldly into a river, without calculating 
 whether they will ever reach the other side. When found upon 
 the opposite bank, they are often so tired with the effort, that 
 one may overtake them with a stick ; and thousands are killed 
 in this way when a migration has been discovered. 
 
 It is stated that they roll pieces of dry wood, or bark, into 
 the water, and, seating themselves on these, are wafted across, 
 their tails supplying them with a sail : of course this account 
 must be held as apocryphal. 
 
 But the question is, what motive impels them to undertake 
 these long and perilous wanderings, from which it is thought 
 they never return to their original place of abode ? It cannot 
 be the search of food, nor the desire to change from a colder to 
 a warmer climate. The direction of the wanderings forbids us 
 to receive either of these as the correct reason. No light has 
 been yet thrown upon this curious habit. It would seem as if 
 some strange instinct propelled them, but for what purpose, and 
 to what end, no one can tell 
 
\ 
 
 TREEING A BEAR. 169 
 
 CH A PTER XX. 
 
 TREEING A BEAR. 
 
 THE doctor was the only one -not taking part in the conversa 
 tion. Even the rude guides listened. All that related to game 
 interested them, even the scientific details given by the hunter- 
 naturalist. The doctor had ridden on in front of us. Some one 
 remarked that he wanted water to mix with the contents of his 
 flask, and was therefore searching for a stream. Be this as it 
 may, he was seen suddenly to jerk his spare horse about, and 
 spur back to us, his countenance exhibiting symptoms of surprise 
 and alarm. 
 
 " What is it, doctor T' inquired one. 
 
 " He has seen Indians," remarked another. 
 
 "A bear a bear!" cried the doctor, panting for breath ; 
 "a grizzly bear ! a terrible-looking creature, I assure you." 
 
 41 A bar I d' you say ?" demanded Ike, shooting forward on 
 his old mare. 
 
 "A bar !" cried Redwood, breaking through the bushes in 
 pursuit. 
 
 " A bear ?" shouted the others, all putting spurs to their 
 horses, and gallopping forward in a body. 
 
 " Where, doctor ? Where ?" cried several. 
 
 "Yonder," replied the doctor, "just by that great tree. I 
 saw him go in there a grizzly, I'm sure." 
 
 It was this idea that had put the doctor in such affright, and 
 caused him to ride back so suddenly. 
 
 "Nonsense, doctor," said the naturalist, "we are yet far to 
 the east of the range of the grizzly bear. It was a black bear 
 you saw." 
 
 8 
 
170 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 " As I live," replied the doctor, "it was not black, anything 
 but that. I should know the black bear. It was a light brown 
 colour almost yellowish." 
 
 " Oh ! that's no criterion. The black bear is found with 
 many varieties of colour. I have seen them of the colour you 
 describe. It must be one of them. The grizzly is not found so 
 far to the eastward, although it is possible we may see them 
 soon ; but not in woods like these." 
 
 There was no time for farther explanation. We had come up 
 to the spot where the bear had been seen ; and although an 
 unpractised eye could have detected no trace of the animal's 
 presence, old Ike, Redwood, and the hunter-naturalist could 
 follow its trail over the bed of fallen leaves, almost as fast as 
 they could walk. Both the guides had dismounted, and with 
 their bodies slightly bent, and leading their horses after them, 
 commenced tracking the bear. From Ike's manner one would 
 have fancied that he was guided by scent rather than by 
 sight. 
 
 The trail led us from our path, and we had followed it some 
 hundred yards into the woods. Most of us were of the opinion 
 that the creature had never halted after seeing the doctor, but 
 had run off to a great distance. If left to ourselves we should 
 have given over the chase. 
 
 The trappers, however, knew what they were about. They 
 asserted that the bear had gone away slowly that it had made 
 frequent halts that they discovered " sign " to lead them to the 
 conclusion that the animal's haunt was in the neighbourhood 
 that its "nest" was near. We were, therefore, encouraged to 
 proceed. 
 
 All of us rode after the trackers. Jake and Lanty had been 
 left with the waggon, with directions to keep on their route. 
 After awhile we heard the waggon moving along directly in 
 front of us. The road had angled as well as the bear's trail, 
 and the two were again converging. 
 
TREEING A BEAR. 171 
 
 Just at that moment a loud shouting came from the direction 
 of the waggon. It was Lanty's voice, and Jake's too. 
 
 " Och ! be the Yargin mother ! luck there ! Awch, mother 
 o'Moses, Jake, such a baste !" 
 
 " Golly, Massa Lanty, it am a bar !" 
 
 We all heard this at once. Of course we thought of the trail 
 no longer, but made a rush in the direction of the voices, causing 
 the branches to fly on every side. 
 
 " Whar's the bar ?" cried Redwood, who was first up to the 
 waggon, " whar did you see't ?" 
 
 " Yander he goes !" cried Lanty, pointing to a piece of heavy 
 timber, beset with an undergrowth of cane, but standing almost 
 isolated from the rest of the forest on account of the thin open 
 woods that were around it. 
 
 We were too late to catch a glimpse of him, but perhaps he 
 would halt in the undergrowth. If so we had a chance. 
 
 " Surround, boys, surround 1" cried the Kentuckian, who 
 understood bear-hunting as well as any of the party. " Quick, 
 round and head him ;" and, at the same time, the speaker urged 
 his great horse into a gallop. Several others rode off on the 
 opposite side, and in a few seconds we had surrounded the cane 
 brake. 
 
 " Is he in it ?" cried one. 
 
 " Do you track ? im thur, Mark ?" cried Ike, to his comrade 
 from the opposite side. , 
 
 " No," was the reply, " he haint gone out this away." 
 
 " Nor hyur," responded Ike. 
 
 " Nor here," said the Kentuckian. 
 
 " Nor by here," added the hunter-naturalist. 
 
 " Belike, then, he's still in the timmer," said Redwood. " Now 
 look out all of yees. Keep your eyes skinned, I'll hustle him 
 out o' thar." 
 
 "Hold on, Mark, boy," cried Ike, "hold on thur. D n 
 
 the varmint ! hyur's his track, paddled like a sheep pen. Wagh, 
 his den's hyur let me rout 'im." 
 
172 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 "Very wal, then," replied the other, "go ahead, old fellow 
 I'll look to my side thu'll no bar pass me 'ithout getting a pill 
 in his guts. Out wi' 'im I" 
 
 We all sat in our saddles silent and watchful. Ike had 
 entered the cane, but not a rustle was heard. A snake could 
 not have passed through it with less noise than did the old 
 trapper. 
 
 It was full ten minutes before the slightest sound warned of 
 what he was about. Then his voice reached us. 
 
 " This way, all of you ! The bar's treed." 
 
 The announcement filled all of us with pleasant anticipations. 
 The sport of killing a bear is no every-day amusement, and now 
 that the animal was " treed " we were sure of him. Some dis 
 mounted and hitched their horses to the branches ; others boldly 
 dashed into the cane, hurrying to the spot, with the hope of 
 having first shot. 
 
 Why was Ike's rifle not heard if he saw the bear treed ? 
 This puzzled some. It was explained when we got up. Ike's 
 words were figurative. The bear had not taken shelter in a 
 tree, but a hollow log, and, of course, Ike had not yet set eyes 
 on him. But there was the log, a huge one, some ten or more 
 feet in thickness, and there was the hole, with the well-beaten 
 track leading into it. It was his den. He was there to a 
 certainty. 
 
 How to get him out ? That was the next question. 
 
 Several took their stations, guns in hand, commanding the 
 entrance to the hollow. One went back upon the log, and 
 pounded it with the butt of his gun. To no purpose. Bruin 
 was not such a fool as to walk out and be peppered with 
 bullets. 
 
 A long pole was next thrust up the hollow. Nothing could 
 be felt. The den was beyond reach. 
 
 Smoking was next tried, but with like success. The bear 
 gave no sign of being annoyed with it. The axes were now 
 brought from the waggon. It would be a' tough job for the 
 
TREEING A BEAR. 173 
 
 log (a sycamore) was sound enough except near the heart. 
 There was no help for it, and Jake and Lanty went to work as 
 if for a day's rail splitting. 
 
 Redwood and the Kentuckian, both good axemen, relieved 
 them, and a deep notch soon began to make its appearance on 
 'each side of the log. The rest of us kept watch near the 
 entrance, hoping the sound of the axe might drive out the 
 game. We were disappointed in that hope, and for full two 
 hours the chopping continued, until the patience and the arms 
 of those that plied the axe were nearly tired out. 
 
 It is no trifling matter to lay open a tree ten feet in diameter. 
 They had chosen the place for their work guided by the long pole. 
 It could not be beyond the den, and if upon the near side of it, 
 the pole would then be long enough to reach the bear, and 
 either destroy him with a knife blade attached to it, or force 
 him out. This was our plan, and therefore we were encouraged 
 to proceed. 
 
 At length the axes broke through the wood and the dark inte 
 rior lay open. They had cut in the right place, for the den of 
 the bear was found directly under, but no bear ! Poles were 
 inserted at both openings, but no bear could be felt either way. 
 
 The hollow ran up no further, so after all there was no bear 
 in the log. 
 
 There were some disappointed faces about and some rather 
 rough ejaculations were heard. I might say that Ike " cussed a 
 few," and that would be no more than the truth. The old trapper 
 seemed to be ashamed of being so taken in, particularly as he 
 had somewhat exultingly announced that the " bear was treed." 
 
 " He must have got off before we surrounded," said one. 
 
 " Are you sure he came into the timber ?" asked another 
 " that fool, Lanty, was so scared, he could hardly tell where the 
 animal went." 
 
 " Be me soul I gentlemen, I saw him go in wid my own eyes, 
 Oil swear " 
 
174 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 " Cussed queer !" spitefully remarked Redwood. 
 
 " D d the bar ?" ejaculated Ike, " whur kid the varmint 
 
 a gone ?" 
 
 Where was A ? All eyes were turned to look for the 
 
 hunter-naturalist, as if he could clear up the mystery. He was 
 nowhere to be seen. He had not been seen for some time ! 
 
 At that moment, the clear sharp ring of a rifle echoed in our 
 ears. There was a moment's silence, and the next moment a 
 loud " thump " was heard, as of a heavy body falling from a 
 great height to the ground. The noise startled even our tired 
 horses, and some of them broke their ties and scampered off. 
 
 "This way, gentlemen," said a quiet voice, "here's the bear 1" 
 
 The voice was A 's ; and we all, without thinking of the 
 
 horses, hurried up to the spot. Sure enough, there lay the great 
 brute, a red stream oozing out of a bullet hole in his ribs. 
 
 A pointed to a tree a huge oak that spread out above 
 
 our heads. 
 
 " There he was, on yonder fork," said he. " We might have 
 saved ourselves a good deal of trouble had we been more 
 thoughtful. I suspected he was not in the log when the smoke 
 failed to move him. The brute was too sagacious to hide there. 
 It is not the first time I have known the hunter foiled by such a 
 trick." 
 
 The eyes of Redwood were turned admiringly on the speaker, 
 and even old Ike could not help acknowledging his superior 
 hunter-craft. 
 
 " Mister," he muttered, " I guess you'd make a darned fust- 
 rate mountain-man. He's a gone Injun when you look through 
 Bights." 
 
 All were examining the huge carcass of the bear one of the 
 largest size. 
 
 " You'r sure it's no grizzly ?" inquired the doctor. 
 
 " No, doctor," replied the naturalist, " the grizzly never climbs 
 a tree." 
 
A pointed to a tree a huge oak that spread out above our head?. " There 
 
 he was, on yonder fork,' said he. " We might have saved ourselves a good deal 
 of trouble had we been more thoughtful. I suspected he was not in the log when 
 the smoke failed to move him. The brute was too sagacious to hide there. It 
 it not the first time I have known the hunter foiled by such a trick. p. 174. 
 
THE BLACK BEAR OP AMERICA. 115 
 
 CHAPTER XXI, 
 
 THE BLACK BEAR OF AMERICA. 
 
 AFTER some time spent in recovering the horses, we lifted the 
 bear into Jake's, waggon, and proceeded on our journey. It was 
 near evening, however, and we soon after halted and formed 
 camp. The bear was skinned in a trice, Ike and Redwood per- 
 formiug this operation with the dexteri y of a pair of butchers ; 
 of course "bear-meat" was the principle dish for supper ; and 
 although some may think this rather a savage feast, I envy those 
 who are in the way of a bear-ham now. 
 
 Of course for that evening nothing was talked of but Bruin, 
 and a good many anecdotes were related of the beast. With 
 the exception of the doctor, Jake and Lanty, all of us had some 
 thing to say upon that subject, for all the rest had had more or 
 less practice in bear-hunting. 
 
 The black or "American bear" (Ursus Americanus) is one 
 of the best known of his tribe. It is he that is oftenest seen in 
 menageries and zoological gardens, for the reason, perhaps, that 
 he is found in great plenty in a country of large commercial 
 intercourse with other nations. Hence he is more frequently cap 
 tured and exported to all parts. 
 
 Any one at a glance may distinguish him from the " brown 
 bear " of Europe, as well as the other bears of the Eastern con 
 tinent not so much by his colour (for he is brown too), as by 
 his form and the regularity and smoothness of his coat. He 
 may be as easily distinguished, too, from his congeners of North 
 America of which there are three the grizzly ( U. ferox) the 
 brown (arctusl), and the "polar" (U. maritimus). The hair 
 upon other large bears (the polar excepted) is what may be 
 
176 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 termed " tufty," and their forms are different, being generally 
 more uncouth and " chunkier." The black bear is, in fact, 
 nearer to the polar in shape, as well as in the arrangement of 
 his fur, than to any other of the tribe. He is much smaller, 
 however, rarely exceeding two-thirds the weight of large speci 
 mens of the latter. 
 
 His colour is usually a deep black all over the body, with a 
 patch of rich yellowish red upon the muzzle, where the hair is 
 short and smooth. This ornamental patch is sometimes absent, 
 and varieties of the black bear are seen of different colours. 
 Brown ones are commo \ in some parts, and others of a cinna 
 mon colour, and still otl ers with white markings, but these last 
 are rare. They are all of one species, however, the assertion of 
 some naturalists to the contrary notwithstanding. The proof is, 
 that the black varieties have been seen followed by coloured 
 cubs, and vice versa. 
 
 The black bear is omnivorous feeds upon flesh as well as fruit, 
 nuts, and edible roots. Habitually his diet is not carnivo 
 rous, but he will eat at times either carrion or living flesh. We 
 say living flesh, for on capturing prey he does not wait to kill it, 
 as most carnivorous animals, but tears and destroys it while still 
 screaming. He may be said to swallow some of his food alive ! 
 
 Of honey he is especially fond, and robs the bee-hive whenever 
 it is accessible to him. It is not safe from him even in the top of 
 a tree, provided the entrance to it is large enough to admit his 
 body ; and when it is not, he often contrives to make it so by 
 means of his sharp claws. He has but little fear of the stings 
 of the angry bees. His shaggy coat and thick hide afford him 
 ample protection against such puny weapons. It is supposed 
 that he spends a good deal of his time ranging the forest in 
 search of " bee trees." 
 
 Qf course he is a tree- climber climbs by the " hug," not by 
 means of his claws, as do animals of the cat kind ; and in get 
 ting to the ground again descends the trunk, stern foremost, as 
 
THE BLACK BEAR OF AMERICA. I 
 
 a hod-carrier would come down a ladder. In this he again 
 differs from the felida. 
 
 The range of the black bear is extensive in fact it may be 
 said to be colimital with the forest, both in North and South 
 America though in the latter division of the continent, another 
 species of large black, bear exists, the Ursus ornatus. In the * 
 northern continent the American bear is found in all the wooded 
 parts from the Atlantic to the Pacific, but not in the open and 
 prairie districts. There the grizzly holds dominion, though both 
 of them range together in the wooded valleys of the Rocky 
 Mountains. The grizzly, on the other hand, is only met with 
 west of the Mississippi, and affects the dry desert countries of 
 the uninhabited West. The brown bear, supposed to be identi 
 cal with the Ursus arctus of North Europe, is only met with in 
 the wild and treeless tract known as " Barren grounds," which 
 stretch across nearly the whole northern part of the continent 
 from the last timber to the shores of the Arctic Sea, and in this 
 region the black bear is not found. The zone of the polar bear 
 joins with that of the brown, and the range of the former 
 extends perhaps to the pole itself. 
 
 At the time of the colonisation >f America, the area of the 
 present United Sates was the favou 'te home of the black bear. 
 It was a country entirely covered with thick forests, and of 
 course a suitable habitat for him. Even to this day a consider 
 able number of bears is to be found within the limits of the 
 settlements. Scarcely a State in which some wild woodlands or 
 mountain fastnesses do not afford shelter to a number of bears, 
 and to kill one of them is a grand object of the hunter's ambi 
 tion. Along the whole range of the Alleghanies black bears are 
 yet found, and it will be long ere they are finally extirpated 
 from, such haunts. In the Western States they are still more 
 common, where they inhabit the gloomy forests along the rivers, 
 and creek bottoms, protected alike by the thick undergrowth 
 and the swampy nature of the soil. 
 
 8* 
 
178 
 
 Their den is usually in a hollow tree sometimes a prostrate 
 log if the latter be large enough, and in such a position as is not 
 likely to be observed by the passing hunter. A cave in the 
 rocks is also their favourite lair, when the geological structure 
 of the country offers them so secure a retreat. They are safer 
 thus : for when a bear-tree or log has been discovered by either 
 hunter or farmer the bear has not much chance of escape. The 
 squirrel is safe enough, as his capture will not repay the trouble 
 of felling the tree ; but such noble game as a bear will repay 
 whole hours of hard work with the axe. 
 
 The black bear lies torpid during several months of the win 
 ter. The time of his hyberaation depends upon the latitude of 
 the place and the coldness of the climate. As you approach 
 the south this period becomes shorter and shorter, until in the 
 tropical forests, where frost is unknown, the black bear ranges 
 throughout the year. 
 
 The mode of hunting the black bear does not differ from that 
 practised with the fox or wild cat. He is usually chased by 
 dogs, and forced into his cave or a tree. If the former, he is 
 shot down, or the tree, if hollow, is felled. Sometimes smoking 
 brings him out. If he escapes to a cave, smoking is also tried ; 
 but if that will not succeed in dislodging him, he must be left 
 alone, as no dogs will venture to attack him there. 
 
 The hunter often tracks and kills him in the woods with a 
 bullet from his rifle. He will not turn upon man unless when 
 wounded or brought to bay. Then his assault is to be dreaded. 
 Should he grasp the hunter between his great forearms, the 
 latter will stand a fair chance of being hugged to death. He 
 does not attempt to use his teeth like the grizzly bear, but relies 
 upon the muscular power of his arms, The nose appears to be 
 his tenderest part, and his antagonist, if an old bear-hunter, and 
 sufficiently cool, will use every effort to strike him there. A 
 blow upon the snout has often caused the black bear to let go 
 his hold, and retreat terrified ! 
 
THE TRAPPER TRAPPED. 179 
 
 The log trap is sometimes tried with success. This is con 
 structed in such a way that the removal of the bait operates 
 upon a trigger, and a large heavy log comes down on the 
 animal removing it either crushing it to death or holding it 
 fast by pressure. A limb is sometimes only caught j but this 
 proves sufficient. 
 
 The same kind of trap is used throughout the northern 
 regions of America by the fur trappers particularly the sable 
 hunters and trappers of the white weasel (Mustda erminea). 
 Of course that for the bear is constructed of the heaviest logs, 
 and is of large dimensions. 
 
 Redwood related an adventure that had befallen him while 
 trapping the black bear at an earlier period of his life. It had 
 nearly cost him his life too, and a slight halt in his gait could 
 still be observed, resulting from that very adventure. 
 
 We all collected around the blazing logs to listen to the trap 
 per's story. 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 THE TRAPPER TRAPPED. 
 
 "WELL, then," began Redwood, " the thing I'm agoin' to tell 
 you about, happened to me when I war a younker, long afore I 
 ever thought I was a coming out hyar upon the parairas. I 
 wan't quite growed at the time, though I was a good chunk for 
 my age. 
 
 " It war up thar among the mountains in East Tennessee, 
 whar this child war raised, upon the head waters of the Ten 
 nessee River. 
 
 " I war fond o' huntin' from the time that I war knee high to 
 a duck, an' I can jest remember killin' a black bar afore I war 
 
180 
 
 twelve yeer old. As I growed up, the bar had become scacer 
 in them parts, and it wan't every day you could scare up such a 
 Yarmint, but now and then one ud turn up. 
 
 " Well, one day as I war poking about the crik bottom (for 
 the shanty war my ole mother lived war not on the Tennessee, 
 but on a crik that runs into it), I diskivered bar sign. There 
 war tracks o' the bar's paws in the mud, an' I follered them 
 along the water edge for nearly a mile then the trail turned 
 into about as thickety a bottom as I ever seed anywhar. It 
 would a baffled a cat to crawl through it. 
 
 " After the trail went out from the crik and towards the edge 
 o' this thicket, I lost all hopes of follerin' it further, as the 
 ground was hard, and covered with donicks, and I couldn't make 
 the tracks out no how. I had myidea that the bar had tuk the 
 thicket, so I went round the edge of it to see if I could find 
 whar he had entered. 
 
 " For a long time I couldn't see a spot whar any critter as 
 big as a bar could a got in without makin' some sort o' a hole, 
 and then I begun to think the bar had gone some other way, 
 either across the crik or further down it. 
 
 " I war a goin' to turn back to the water, when I spied a big 
 log lyin' half out o' the thicket, with one eend buried in the 
 bushes. I noticed that the top of this log had a dirty look, as 
 if some animal had tramped about on it ; an' on goin' up and 
 squintin' at it a little closter, I seed that that guess war the 
 right one. 
 
 " 1 clomb the log, for it war a regular rouster, bigger tha 
 that 'n we had so much useless trouble with, and then I scram- 
 melled along the top o' it in the direction of the brush. Thar I 
 seed the very hole whar the bar had got into the thicket, and 
 thar war a regular beaten path runnin' through the brake as fai 
 as I could see. 
 
 " I jumped off o' the log and squeezed myself through the 
 bramble. It war a trail easy enough to find, but mighty hard 
 
THE TRAPPER TEAPPED. 181 
 
 to foller, I can tell ye. Thar war thistles, and cussed stingin' 
 nettles, and briars as thick as my wrist, with claws upon them 
 as sharp as fish-hooks. I pushed on, howsomever, feelin' quite 
 sartin that such a well-used track must lead to the bar's den, 
 an' I war safe enough to find it. In coorse I reckoned that the 
 critter had his nest in some holler tree, and I could go home for 
 my axe, and come back the next morning if smoking failed to 
 git him out. 
 
 " Well, I poked on through the thicket a good three hundred 
 yards, sometimes crouching, and sometimes creeping on my 
 hands and knees. I war badly scratched, I tell you, and now 
 and then I jest thought to myself, what would be the consy- 
 quince if the bar should meet me in that narrow passage. We'd 
 a had a tough tussle, I reckon but I met no bar. 
 
 " At last the brush grew thinner, and jest as I was in hopes I 
 might stumble on the bar tree, what shed I see afore me but the 
 face o' a rocky bluff, that riz a consid'able height over the crik 
 bottom. I begun to fear that the varmint had a cave, and so, 
 cuss him ! he had a great black gulley in the rocks was right 
 close by, and thai* was his den, and no mistake. I could easily 
 tell it by the way the clay and stones had been pattered over by 
 his paws. 
 
 " Of coorse, my tracking for that day war over, and I stood 
 by the mouth of the cave not kiiowin' what to do. I didn't feel 
 inclined to go in. 
 
 " After a while I bethought me that the bar moat come out, 
 an' I laid myself squat down among the bushes facing the cave. 
 I had my gun ready to give him a mouthful of lead, as soon as 
 he should show his snout outside o' the hole. 
 
 " 'Tvvar no go. I guess he had heeard me when I first com > 
 up, and kuow'd I war thar. I laid still until 'twar so dark I 
 thought I would never find my way back to the crik ; but, after 
 a good deal of scramblin' and creepin' I got out at last, and 
 took mv way home. 
 
182 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 " It warn't likely I war a goin' to give that bar up. I war 
 bound to fetch him out o' his boots if it cost me a week's hunt 
 ing ; so I returned the next morning to the place, and lay all 
 day in front o' the cave. No bar appeared, an' I went back 
 home a cussin'. 
 
 "Next day I come again, but this time I didn't intend to 
 stay. I had fetched my axe with me, wi' the intention of riggin' 
 up a log trap near the mouth o' the cave. I had also fetched a 
 jug o' molasses and some yeers o' green com to bait the trap, 
 for I know'd the bar war fond o' both. 
 
 " Well, I got upon the spot, an' makin' as leetle rumpus as 
 possible, I went to work to build my trap. I found some logs 
 on the ground jest the scantlin', and in less than an hour I hed 
 the thing rigged an' the trigger set. 'Twant no small lift to get 
 up the big log, but I managed it wi' a lever I had made, though 
 it took every pound o' strength in my body. If it come down 
 on the bar I knew it would hold him. 
 
 " Well, I had all ready except layin' the bait ; so I crawled 
 in, and was fixin' the green yeers and the 'lasses, when, jest 
 at that moment, what shed I hear behind me but the 'sniff' o' 
 the bar ! 
 
 " I turned suddently to see. I had jest got my eye on the 
 critter standin' right in the mouth o' his cave, when I feeled 
 myself struck upon the buttocks, and flattened down to the airth 
 like a pancake. 
 
 " At the first stroke, I thought somebody had hit me a heavy 
 blow from behind, and I wish it had been that. It war wusser 
 than that. It war the log had hit me, and war now lying with 
 all its weight right acrosst my two legs. In my hurry to git 
 round I had sprung the trigger, and down corned the infernal 
 log on my -hams. 
 
 "At fust I wan't scared, but I war badly hurt. I thought 
 it would be all right as soon as I had crawled out, and I made 
 an attempt to do so. It was then that I become scared in 
 
THE TRAPPER TRAPPED. 183 
 
 airnest ; for I found that I couldn't crawl out. My legs were 
 held in such a way that I couldn't move them, and the more 1 
 pulled the more I hurt them. They were in pain already with 
 the heavy weight pressin' upon them, and I couldn't bear to 
 move them. No more could I turn myself. I war flat on my 
 face, and couldn't slew myself round any way, so as to get my 
 h? nds at the log. I war fairly catched in my own trap. 
 
 " It war jest about then I began to feel scared. Thar wan't 
 no settlement in the hul crik bottom but my mother's old 
 shanty, an' that were two miles higher up. It war as unlikely 
 a thing as could happen that anybody would be passing that 
 way ; and unless some one did, I saw no chance of gettin' clar 
 o' the scrape I war in. I could do nothin' for myself. 
 
 " I hollered as loud as I could, and that frightened the bar 
 into his cave again. I hollered for an hour, but I could hear no 
 reply, and then I war still a-bit, and then I hollered again, an' 
 kept this up pretty much for the hul o' that blessed day. 
 
 " Thar wan't any answer but the echo o' my own shoutin', and 
 the whoopin' of the owls that flew about over my head, and 
 appeared as if they war mockin' me. 
 
 " I had no behopes of any relief comin' from home. My ole 
 mother had nobody but myself, and she wan't like to miss me, 
 as I'd often stayed out a huntin' for three or four days at a time. 
 The only chance I had, and I knew it too, war that some neigh 
 bour might be strayin' down the crik, and you may guess what 
 sort o' chance that war, when I tell you thar wan't a neighbour 
 livin' within less than five mile o' us. If no one come by I knew 
 I must lay there till I died o' hunger and rotted, or the bar ate 
 me up. 
 
 ' Well, night come, and night went. 7 Twar about the longest 
 night this child remembers. I lay all through it, a sufferin' the 
 pain, and listening to the screechin' owls. I could a screeched 
 as loud as any of them if that would a-done any good. I heerd 
 
184 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 now and then the snuffin' o' the bar, and I could see thar war 
 two o' them. I could see thar big black bodies inovin' about 
 like shadows, and they appeared to be gettin' less afeerd o' me, 
 as they came close at times, and risin' up on their hind quarters 
 stood in front o' me like a couple o' black devils. 
 
 " I begun to get afeerd they would attack me, and so I guess 
 they would a-done, had not a circumstance happened that put 
 them out o' the notion. 
 
 " It war jest grey day, when one o' them came so close that 
 I expected to be attacked by him. Now as luck would have it, 
 my rifle happened to be lyin' on the ground within reach. I 
 grabbed it without saying a word, and slewin' up one shoulder 
 as high as I could, I was able to sight the bar just behind the 
 fore leg. The brute wan't four feet from the muzzle, and slap 
 into him went wad and all, and. down he tumbled like a felled 
 ox. I seed he war as dead as a buck. 
 
 " Well, badly as I war fixed, I contrived to get loaded again, 
 for I kuowed that bars will fight for each other to the death ; 
 and I thought the other might attack me. It wan't to be seen 
 at the time, but shortly after it come upon the ground from the 
 direction of the crik. 
 
 " I watched it closely as it shambled up, having my rifle ready 
 all the while. When it first set eyes on its dead comrade it 
 gave a loud snort, and stopped. It appeared to be considerably 
 surprised. It only halted a short spell, and then, with a loud 
 roar, it run up to the carcass, and sniffed at it. 
 
 " I haint the least o' a doubt that in two seconds more it 
 would a-jumped me, but I war too quick for it, and sent a 
 bullet right plum into one of its eyes, that come out again near 
 the back o' its neck. That did the business, and I had the 
 satisfaction to see it cowollop over nearly on top o' the other'n. 
 
 " Well, I killed the bars, but what o' that. That wouldn't 
 get me from under the log; and what wi' the pain I was suf- 
 
THE TRAPPER TRAPPED. 185 
 
 erin', and the poor prospect o' beirr relieved, I thought I inout 
 as well have let them eat me. 
 
 " But a man don't die so long as he can help it, I b'lieve, and 
 I detarmined to live it out while I could. At times I had hopes 
 and shouted, and then I lost hope and lay still again. 
 
 " I grew as hungry as a famished wolf. The bars were lying 
 right before me, but jest beyond reach, as if to tantylize me. 
 I could have eat a collop raw if I could have a-got hold of it, 
 but how to reach it war the difeeculty. 
 
 "Needcesity they say is the mother o' invention ; and I set 
 myself to invent a bit. Thar war a piece o' rope I had brought 
 along to help me wi' the trap, and that I got my claws on. 
 
 "I made a noose on one eeud o' it, and after about a score 
 o' trials I at last flung the noose over the head o' one o' the 
 bars, and drew it tight. I then sot to work to pull the bar 
 nearer. If that bar's neck wan't well stretched I don't know 
 what you'd call stretchiri', for I tugged at it about an hour afore 
 I could get it within reach. I did get it at last, and then with 
 my knife I cut out the bar's tongue, and ate it raw. 
 
 " I had satisfied one appetite, but another as bad, if not wus- 
 ser, troubled me. That war thirst my throat war as dry as a 
 corn cob, and whar was the water to come from. It grew so 
 bad at last that I thought I would die of it. I drawed the bar 
 nearer me, and cut his juglar to see if thar war any relief from 
 that quarter. Thar wan't. The blood war froze up thick as 
 liver. Not a drop would run. 
 
 " I lay coolin' my tongue on the blade o' my knife an' chawin' 
 a bullet that I had taken from my pouch. I managed to put 
 in the hul of the next day this away, now and then shoutin' as 
 loud as I could. Towards the evemV I grew hungry again, and 
 ate a cut out o' the cheek o' the bar ; but I thought I would 
 a-choked for want o'water. 
 
 " I put in the night the best way I could. I had the owls 
 
186 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 again for company, and some varmint came up and smelt at the 
 bars j but was frightened at my voice, and run away again. I 
 suppose it was a fox or wolf, or some such thing, and but for me 
 would a-made a meal off o' the bar's carcass. 
 
 " I won't trouble you with my reflexshuns all that night ; but 
 I can assure ye they war anything but pleasant. I thought of 
 my ole mother, who had nobody but me, and that helped to 
 keep up my spirits. I detarmined to cut away at the bar, and 
 hold out as long as possible. 
 
 " As soon as day broke I set up my shoutin' again, restin' 
 every fifteen minutes or so, and then takin' a fresh start. About 
 an hour after sun up, jest as I had finished a long spell o' 
 screechin', I thought I heerd a voice. I listened a bit with my 
 heart thumpin' against my ribs. Thar war no sound ; I yelled 
 louder than ever, and then listened. Thar war a voice. 
 
 " ' D n ye ! what are ye hollowin' about V cried the voice. 
 
 "I again shouted 'Holloa !' 
 
 " ' Who the h IPs thar ?" inquired the voice. 
 
 " ' Casey ! ' I called back, recognising the voice as that of a 
 neighbour who lived up the crik ; ' for God's sake this way.' 
 
 " ' I'm a-comin',' he replied ; ' 'Taint so easy to get through 
 hyer that you, Redwood ? What the h 's the matter ? 
 D n this brush ! ' 
 
 " I heard my neighbour breakin' his way through the thicket, 
 and strange I tell ye all, but true it is, I couldn't believe I war 
 goin' to get clar even then until I seed Casey standin' in front 
 o' me. 
 
 " Well, of coorse, I was now set free again, but couldn't put 
 a foot to the ground. Casey carried me home to the shanty, 
 whar I lay for well nigh six weeks, before I could go about, 
 and d n the thing 1 I haint got over it yet." 
 
 So ended Redwood's story. 
 
THE AMERICAN DEER. 18 1 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 THE AMERICAN DEER. 
 
 DURING our next day's journey we fell in with and killed a 
 couple of deer a young buck and doe. They were the first of 
 these animals we had yet seen, and that was considered strange, 
 as we had passed through a deer country. They were of the 
 species common to all parts of the United States' territory the 
 " red " or " fallow " deer ( Cervus Virginianus). It may be here 
 remarked that the common deer of the United States, some 
 times called " red deer," is the fallow deer of English parks, 
 that the " elk " of America is the red deer of Europe, and the 
 " elk" of Europe is the "moose" of America. Many mistakes 
 are made in relation to this family of animals on account of these 
 misapplied names. 
 
 In North America there are six well-defined species of deer 
 the moose (C. alces)-, the elk (Canadensis); the caribou (taran- 
 dus) ; the black-tail or " mule " deer (macrolus) ; the long-tail 
 (Icucurus)-, and the Virginian, or fallow deer (Virginianus). 
 The deer of Louisiana (C. nemoralis) is supposed by some to be 
 a different species from any of the above ; so also is the " maza- 
 ma" of Mexico ( C. Mexicanus.) It is more probable that these 
 two kinds are only varieties of the (Cervus Virginianus) the 
 difference in color, and other respects, resulting from a differ 
 ence in food, climate, and such like causes. 
 
 It is probable, too, that a small species of deer exists in the 
 Russian possessions west of the Rocky Mountains, quite distinct 
 from any of the six mentioned above ; but so little is yet known 
 of the natural history of these wild territories, that this can 
 
188 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 only be taken as conjecture. It may be remarked, also, that of 
 the caribou (C. tarandus) there are two marked varieties, that, 
 may almost be regarded in the light of species. One, the 
 larger, is known as the " woodland caribou," because it inhabits 
 the more southern and wooded districts of the Hudson's Bay 
 territory ; the other, the " barren-ground caribou," is the " rein 
 deer "" of the arctic voyagers. 
 
 Of the six well-ascertained species, the last mentioned 
 (C. Virginianus) has the largest' geographical range, and is the 
 most generally known. Indeed, when the word* " deer " is men 
 tioned, it only is meant. It is the deer of the United States. 
 
 The "black-tails" and "long-tails" are two species that 
 may be called new. Though long known to trappers and 
 hunters, they have been but lately described by the scientific 
 naturalist. Their habitat is the "far west" in California, 
 Oregon, the high' prairies, and the valleys of the Rocky Moun 
 tains. Up to a late period naturalists have had but little to do 
 with these countries. For this reason their fauna has so long 
 remained comparatively unknown. 
 
 The geographical disposition of the other four species is 
 curious. Each occupies a latitudinal zone. That of the caribou, 
 or reindeer, extends farthest north. It is not found within the 
 limits of the United States. 
 
 The zone of the moose overleaps that of the caribou, but, on 
 the other side, goes farther south, as this species is met with 
 along the extreme northern parts of the United States. 
 
 The Elk is next in order. His range "dovetails" into that 
 of the moose, but the elk roves still farther into the temperate 
 regions, being met with almost as far south as Texas. 
 
 The fourth, the common deer, embraces in his range the tem 
 perate and torrid zones of both North and South America, 
 while he is not found in higher latitudes than the southern fron 
 tier of Canada 
 
THE AMERICAN DEER. 189 
 
 The common deer, therefore, inhabits a greater area than any 
 of his congeners, and is altogether the best-known animal of his 
 kind. Most persons know him by sight. He is the smallest of 
 the American species, being generally about five feet in length 
 by three in height, and a little more than lOOlbs. in weight. 
 He is exceedingly well formed and graceful ; his horns are not 
 so large as those of the stag, but, like his, they are annually 
 caducous, falling off in the winter and returning in the spring. 
 They are rounded below, but in the upper part slightly flattened 
 or palmated*. Th antlers do not rise upward, but protrude for- 
 ward over the brow in a threatening manner. There is no 
 regular rule, however, for their shape and " set," and their num 
 ber also varies in different individuals. The horns are also 
 present only in the male or buck ; the doe is without them 
 They rise from a rough bony protuberance on the forehead, 
 called the " burr." In the first year they grow in the shape of 
 two short straight spikes ; hence the name "spike bucks" given 
 to the animals of that age. In the second season a small antler 
 appears on each horn, and the number increases until the fourth 
 year, when they obtain a full head-dress of " branching horns." 
 The antlers, or, as they are sometimes called, " points," often 
 increase in number with the age of the animal, until as many as 
 fifteen make their appearance. This, however, is rare. Indeed, 
 the food of the animal has much to do with the growth of his 
 horns. In an ill-fed specimen they do not grow to such size, nor 
 branch so luxuriantly as in a well-fed fat buck. 
 
 We have said that the horns fall annually. This takes place 
 in winter in December and January. They are rarely found, 
 however, as they are soon eaten up by the small-gnawing 
 animals. 
 
 The new horns begin to grow as soon as the old ones have 
 dropped off. During the spring and summer they are covered 
 with a soft velvety substance, and they are then described as 
 
190 
 
 being "in the velvet." The blood circulates freely through this 
 membrane, and it is highly sensitive, so that a blow upon the 
 horns at this season produces great pain. By the time the 
 "rutting season" commences (in October), the velvet has peeled 
 off, and the horns are then in order for battle and they need 
 be, for the battles of the bucks during this period are terrible 
 indeed. Frequently their horns get " locked" in such conflicts, 
 and being unable to separate them, the combatants remain in 
 this situation till both perish by hunger, or fall a prey to their 
 natural enemy the wolf. Many pairs of horns have been found 
 in the forest thus locked together, and there is not a museum in 
 America without this singular souvenir of mutual destruction ! 
 
 The hair of the American deer is thickly set and smooth on. 
 the surface. In winter it grows longer and is of a greyish hue ; 
 the deer is then, according to hunter phraseology, "in the grey." 
 In the summer a new coat is obtained, which is reddish, or calf- 
 coloured. The deer is then " in the red." Towards the end of 
 August, or in autumn, the whole coat has a blue tinge. This is 
 called " in the blue." At all times the animal is of a whitish 
 appearance on the throat and belly and insides of the legs. 
 The skin is toughest when " in the red," thickest "in the blue," 
 and thinnest " in the grey." In the blue it makes the best 
 buckskin, and is, therefore most valuable when obtained in 
 autumn. 
 
 The fawns of this species are beautiful little creatures ; they 
 are fawn-coloured and showered all over with white spots, which 
 disappear towards the end of their first summer, when they gra 
 dually get into the winter grey. 
 
 The American deer is a valuable animal. Much of the buck 
 skin of commerce is the product of its hides, and the horns are 
 put to many uses. Its flesh, besides supplying the tables of the 
 wealthy, has been for centuries almost the whole sustenance of 
 whole nations of Indians. Its skins have furnished them with 
 
THE AMERICAN DEER. 191 
 
 tents, beds, and clothing ; its intestines with bowstrings, ball 
 " raquets," and snow-shoes ; and in the chase of this creature 
 they have found almost their sole occupation as well as amuse 
 ment. 
 
 With so many enemies, it is a matter of wonder that this 
 species has not long been extirpated ; not only has man been 
 its constant and persevering destroyer, but it has a host of 
 enemies besides, in the cougar, the lynxes, the wolverene, And 
 the wolves. 
 
 The last are its worst foes. Hunters state that for one deer 
 killed by themselves, five fall a prey to the wolves. These 
 attack the young and feeble, and soon run them down. The 
 old deer can escape from a wolf by superior speed ; but in 
 remote districts, where the wolves are numerous, they unite in 
 packs of eight or ten, and follow the deer as hounds do, and 
 even with a somewhat similar howling. They run by the nose, 
 and unless the deer can reach water, and thus escape them, they 
 will tire it down in the end. 
 
 Frequently the deer, when thus followed in winter, makes for 
 the ice, upon which he is soon overtaken by his hungry pursuers. 
 
 Notwithstanding all this, the American deer is still common 
 in most of the States, and in some of them even plentiful. 
 Where the wolves have been thinned off by " bounty " laws, 
 and the deer protected during the breeding season by legislative 
 enactments, as is the case in New York, their number is said to 
 be on the increase. The markets of all the great cities in Ame 
 rica are supplied with venison almost as cheap as beef, which 
 shows that the deer are yet far from being scarce. 
 
 The habits of this creature are well known. It is gregarious 
 in its natural habitat. The herd is usually led by an old buck, 
 who watches over the safety of the others while feeding. When 
 an enemy approaches, this sentinel and leader strikes the ground 
 sharply with his hoofs, snorts loudly, and emits a shrill whistle ; 
 
192 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 all the time fronting the danger with his horns set forward ir 
 a threatening manner. So long as he does not attempt to run 
 the others continue to browse with confidence ; but the moment 
 their leader starts to fly, all the rest follow, each trying to be 
 foremost. 
 
 They are timid upon ordinary occasions, but the bucks in the 
 rutting season are bold, and when wounded and brought "to 
 bay," are not to be approached with impunity. They can 
 inflict terrible blows, both with their hoofs and antlers ; and 
 hunters who have come too near them on such occasions have 
 with difficulty escaped being gored to death. 
 
 They are foes to the snake tribe, and kill the most venomous 
 serpents without being bitten. The rattle-snake hides from 
 their attack. Their mode of destroying these creatures is similar 
 to that employed by the peccary (dicotyles) : that is, by pounc 
 ing down upon them with the four hoofs held close together, 
 and thus crushing them to death. The hostility of the peccary 
 to snakes is easily understood, as no sooner has it killed one 
 than it makes a meal of it. With the deer, of course, such is 
 not the case, as they are not carnivorous. Its enmity to the 
 reptile race can be explained only by supposing that it possesses 
 a knowledge of their dangerous qualities, and thinks they should 
 therefore be got rid of. 
 
 The food of the American deer consists of twigs, leaves of 
 trees, and grass. They are fonder of the tree-shoots than the 
 grass ; but their favourite morsels are the buds and flowers of 
 nyrnpha, especially those' of the common pond-lily. To get these 
 they wade into the lakes and rivers like the moose, and, like 
 them, are good swimmers. 
 
 They love the shady forest better than the open ground, and 
 they haunt the neighbourhood of streams. These afford them 
 protection, as well as a means of quenching thirst. When pur 
 sued, their irst thought is to make for water, in order to elude 
 
THE AMERICAN DEER. 193 
 
 the pursuer, which tbey often succeed in doing, throwing both 
 dogs and wolves off the scent. In summer, they seek the water 
 to cool themselves, and get free from flies and mosquitoes, that 
 pester them sadly. 
 
 They are fond of salt, and repair in great numbers to the 
 salines and salt springs, that abound in all parts of America. 
 At these they lick up quantities of earth along with the salt 
 efflorescence, until vast hollows are formed in the earth, termed, 
 from this circumstance, salt " licks." The consequence of this 
 "dirt-eating" is, that the excrement of the animal comes forth 
 in hard pellets ; and by seeing this, the hunters can always tell 
 when they are in the neighbourhood of a " lick." 
 
 The does produce in spring in May or June, according to 
 the latitude. They bring forth one, two, and very rarely three 
 fawns at a birth. Their attachment to their young is proverbial. 
 
 The mothers treat them with the greatest tenderness, and hide 
 them while they go to feed. The bleating of the fawn at once 
 recalls the mother to its side. The hunter often imitates this 
 with success, using either his own voice, or a " call," made out 
 of a cane joint. An anecdote, told by Parry, illustrates this 
 maternal fondness : " The mother, finding her young one could 
 not swim as fast herself, was observed to stop repeatedly, so as 
 to allow the fawn to come up with her ; and, having landed first, 
 stood watching it with trembling anxiety as the boat chased it 
 to the shore. She was repeatedly fired at, but remained immov 
 able, until her offspring landed in safety, when they both can 
 tered out of sight." The deer to which Parry refers is the small 
 " caribou ;" but a similar affection exists between the mother 
 and fawns of the common deer. 
 
 The American deer is hunted for its flesh, its hide, and " the 
 sport." There are many modes of hunting it. The simplest and 
 most common is that which is termed " still" hunting. In this 
 the hunter is armed with his rifle or deer gun a heavy fowling- 
 
 9 
 
194 
 
 piece and steals forward upon the deer, as be would upon any 
 other game. " Cover " is not so necessary as silence in such a 
 hunt. This deer, like some antelopes, is of a " curious" disposi 
 tion, and will sometimes allow the hunter to approach in full 
 view without attempting to run off. But the slightest noise, 
 such as the rustling of dry leaves, or the snapping of a stick, 
 will alarm him. His sense of hearing is extremely acute. His 
 nose, too, is a keen one, and he often scents the hunter, and 
 makes off long before the latter has got within sight or range. 
 It is necessary in "still" hunting to leave the dog at home; 
 unless, indeed, he be an animal trained to the purpose. 
 
 Another species of hunting is " trailing " the deer in snow. 
 This is done either with dogs or without them. The snow must 
 be frozen over, so as to cut the feet of the deer, which puts 
 them in such a state of fear and pain, that the hunter can easily 
 get within shot. I have assisted in killing twenty in a single 
 morning in this way ; and that too, in a district where deer were 
 not accounted plentiful. 
 
 The *' drive " is the most exciting mode of hunting deer ; and 
 the one practised by those who hunt for " the sport." This is 
 done with hounds, and the horsemen who follow them also carry 
 guns. In fact, there is hardly a species of him ting' in America 
 in which firearms are not used. 
 
 Several individuals are required to make up a " deer drive." 
 They are generally men who know the " lay " of the country, 
 with all its ravines and passes. One or two only accompany 
 the hounds as " drivers," while the rest get between the place 
 where the dogs are beating the cover and some river towards 
 which it is " calculated " the startled game will run. They deploy 
 themselves into a long line, which sometimes extends for miles 
 through the forest. Each, as he arrives at his station, or " stand," 
 as it is called, dismounts, ties his horse in a thicket, and takes 
 his stand, " covering ' ; himself behind a log or tree. The stands 
 
THE AMERICAN DEER. 196 
 
 are selected with reference to the configuration of the ground, 
 or by paths which the deer are accustomed to take ; and as 
 soon as all have so arranged themselves, the dogs at a distant 
 point are set loose, and the "drive " begins. 
 
 The " stand men " remain quiet, with their guns in readiness. 
 The barking of the dogs afar off through the woods, nsually 
 admonishes them when a deer has been " put up ;" and they 
 watch with eager expectation, each one hoping that the game 
 may come his way. 
 
 Hours are sometimes passed without the hunter either seeing 
 or hearing a living thing but himself and his horse ; and many 
 a day he returns home from such a " chase " without having had 
 the slightest glimpse of either buck, doe, or fawn. 
 
 This is discouraging ; but at other times he is rewarded for 
 his patient watching. A buck comes bounding forward, the 
 hounds after him in full cry At intervals he stops, and throws 
 himself back on his haunches like a halted hare. His eyes are 
 protruded, and wa,tching backward. His beautiful neck is swol 
 len with fear and rage, and his branching antlers tower high in 
 the air. Again he springs forward, and approaches the silent 
 hunter, who, with a beating heart, holds his piece in the attitude 
 of " ready." He makes another of his pauses. The gun is 
 levelled, the trigger pulled; the bullet speeds forth, and strikes 
 into his broad chest, causing him to leap upward in the spas 
 modic effort of death. 
 
 The excitement of a scene like this rewards the hunter for his 
 long and lonely vigil. 
 
 u Torch hunting," or " fire-hunting," as it is sometimes termed, 
 is another method of capturing the fallow deer. It is done by 
 carrying a torch in a very dark night through woods where deer 
 are known to frequent. The torch is made of pine-knots, well 
 dried. They are not tied in bunches, as represented by some 
 writers, but carried in a vessel of hard metal. A frying-pan 
 
19 6 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 with a long handle, as already stated, is best for the pur 
 pose. 
 
 The " knots " are kindled within the pan, and, if good ones, 
 yield a blaze that will light the woods for a hundred yards 
 around. The deer seeing this strange object, and impelled by 
 curiosity, approaches within range; and the "glance" of his 
 eyes, like two burning coals, betrays him to the hunter, who 
 with his deadly rifle " sights " between the shining orbs and fires. 
 
 While we were on the subject of torch-hunting the doctor took 
 up the cue, and gave us an account of a torch hunt he had 
 made in Tennessee. 
 
 "I will tell you of a ' torch hunt,' " said he, " of which, pars 
 ma na fui, and which ended with a ' catastrophe.' It took 
 place in Tennessee, where I was for awhile sojourning. I am 
 not much of a hunter, as you all know; but happening to reside 
 in a ' settlement,' where there were some celebrated hunters, 
 and in the neighbourhood of which was an abundance of game, 
 I was getting very fond of it. I had heard, among other things, 
 of this ' torch hunting,' in fact, had read many interesting 
 descriptions of it, but I had never witnessed the sport myself ; 
 and was therefore eager, above all things, to join in a torch 
 hunt. 
 
 " The opportunity at length offered. A party was made up 
 to go hunting, of which I was one. 
 
 " There were six of us in all ; but it was arranged that we 
 sbould separate into three pairs, each taking its own torch and 
 a separate course through the woods. In each pair one was to 
 carry the light, while the other managed the ' shooting iron.' 
 We were all to meet at one appointed rendezvous when the 
 hunt was over. 
 
 " These preliminaries being arranged and the torches made 
 ready, we separated. My partner and I plunged into the deep 
 forest. 
 
THE AMERICAN DEER. 197 
 
 " The night was dark as pitch dark nights are the best 
 and when we entered the woods we had to grope our way. Of 
 course, we had not yet set fire to our torch, as we had not 
 reached the place frequented by the deer. 
 
 " My companion was an old hunter, and by right should have 
 carried the gun ; but it was arranged differently, out of compli 
 ment to me the stranger. He held in one hand the huge fry 
 ing-pan, while in a bag over his shoulder was a bushel or more 
 of dry pine-knots. 
 
 "On arriving at the place where it was expected deer would 
 be found, we set fire to our torch, and in a few moments the 
 blaze threw its glaring circle around us, painting with vermilion 
 the trunks of the great trees. 
 
 " In this way we proceeded onward, advancing slowly and 
 with as little noise as possible. We talked only in whispers, 
 keeping our eyes turned upon all sides at once. But we walked 
 and walked, up hill and down hill, for, I should say, ten miles at 
 the least ; and not a single pair of bright orbs answered to our 
 luminary. Not a deer's eye reflected the blaze of our torch. 
 
 " We had kept the fire replenished and burning vividly to no 
 purpose, until hardly a knot remained in the bag. 
 
 " I had grown quite tired in this fruitless search. So had iny 
 companion, and both of us felt chagrin and disappointment. 
 We felt this the more keenly as there had been a " supper-wager" 
 laid between us and our friends, as to what party would kill the 
 greatest number of deer, and we fancied once or twice that we 
 heard shots far off in the direction the others had gone. We 
 were likely to come back empty handed, while they, no doubt, 
 would bring a deer each, perhaps more. 
 
 " We were returning towards the point from which we had 
 started, both of us in a most unamiable mood, when all at once 
 an object right before us attracted my attention, and brought 
 me to a sudden halt. I did not wait to ask any questions. A 
 
198 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 pair of small round circles glistened in the darkness like two 
 little discs of fire. Of course they were eyes. Of course they 
 were the eyes of a deer. 
 
 " I could see no body, for the two luminous objects shone as 
 if set in a ground of ebony. But I did not stay to scan in what 
 they were set. My piece was up. I glanced hastily along the 
 barrel. I sighted between the eyes. I pulled the trigger. I 
 fired. 
 
 " As I did so, I fancied that I heard my companion shouting 
 to me, but the report hindered me from hearing what he said. 
 
 " When the echoes died away, however, his voice reached me, 
 in a full, clear tone, pronouncing these words : 
 
 " Tarnation, doctor ! You've shot Squire Robbins's bull ! ' " 
 
 11 At the same time the bellowing of the bull, mingling with 
 his own loud laugh, convinced me that the hunter had spoken 
 the truth. 
 
 " He was a good old fellow, and promised to keep dark : but 
 it was necessary to make all right with ' Squire Robbins.' So 
 the affair soon got wind, and my torch-hunt became, for a time, 
 the standing joke of the ' settlement/ " 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 As we were now approaching the regions where the common 
 fallow deer ceased to be met with, and where its place is sup 
 plied by two other species, these last became the subject of our 
 talk. The species referred to are the " black tails," and " long 
 tails" (Iscrvus macrotis and leucurus). 
 
/' / ' DEER HUNT IX A " DUG-OUT." 199 
 
 Ike and Redwood were well acquainted with both kinds, as 
 they had often trapped beaver in the countries where these deer 
 are found ; and they gave us a very good account of the 
 habits of these animals, which showed that both species were in 
 many respects similar to 'the Cervus Virginianus. Their form, 
 however, as well as their size, colour, and markings, leave no 
 doubt of their being specifically distinct, not only from the latter, 
 but from each other. Indeed there are two varieties of the 
 black tails, differing in some respects, although both have the 
 dark hair upon the tail, and the long ears, which so much dis 
 tinguish them from other deer. The great length of their ears 
 gives to their heads a " mulish " look hence they are often 
 known among the trappers by the name of " mule deer." Ike 
 and Redwood spoke of them by this name although they also 
 knew them as " black tails," and this last is the designation most 
 generally used. They receive it on account of the colour of the 
 hair upon the upper side of their tail tips, which is of a jetty 
 blackness, and is very full and conspicuous. 
 
 The two species have been often confounded with each other, 
 though in many respects they are totally unlike. The black tails 
 are larger, their legs shorter and their bodies more " chunky," 
 and altogether of stouter build. In running, they bound with 
 all their feet raised at once ; while those of the long-tailed 
 species run more like the common fallow deer by trotting a few 
 steps, then giving a bound, and trotting as before. 
 
 The ears of the black tails stand up full half the height of 
 their antlers, and their hair, of a reddish-brown colour, is coarser 
 than the hair of the Cervus Virginianus, and more like the coat 
 of the elk ( Cervus Canadensis). Their hoofs, too, are shorter 
 and wider, and in this respect there is also a similarity to the 
 elk. The flesh of the black tails is inferior to that of the fallow 
 deer, while the long-tailed kind produces a venison very similar 
 to the latter. 
 
200 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 Both species inhabit woodlands occasionally, but their favour 
 ite habitat is the prairie, or that species of undulating country 
 where prairie and forest alternate, forming a succession of groves 
 and openings. Both are found only in the western half of the 
 continent that is, in the wild regions extending from the 
 Mississippi to the Pacific. In longitude, as far east as the Missis 
 sippi, they are rarely seen ; but as you travel westward, either 
 approaching the Rocky Mountains, or beyond those to the 
 shores of the Pacific, they are the common deer of the country. 
 The black-tailed kind is more southern in its range. It is found 
 in the Californias, and the valleys of the Rocky Mountains, as 
 far south as Texas ; while to the north it is met with in 
 Oregon, and on the eastern side of the Rocky Mountains, as high 
 as the fifty-fourth parallel. The long-tailed species is the most 
 common deer of Oregon and the Columbia River, and its range 
 also extends east of the Rocky Mountains, though not so far as 
 the longitude of the Mississippi. 
 
 The hunter-naturalist, who had some years before made a 
 journey to Oregon, and of course had become well acquainted 
 with the habits of the Cervus hucurus, gave us a full account of 
 them, and related a stirring adventure that had befallen him 
 while hunting " long-tails " upon the Columbia. 
 
 " The long-tailed deer," began he, " is one of the smallest of 
 the deer kind. Its weight rarely exceeds lOOlbs. It resembles 
 in form and habits the common fallow deer, the chief distinction 
 being the tail, which is a very conspicuous object.. This appen 
 dage is often found to measure eight inches in length ! 
 
 " While running, the tail is held erect, and kept constantly 
 switching from side to side, so as to produce a singular and 
 somewhat ludicrous effect upon the minds of the spectator. 
 
 " The gait of this animal is also peculiar. It first takes two 
 ambling steps that resemble a trot, after these it makes a long 
 bound, which carries it about twice the distance of the steps, 
 
DEER HUNT IN A " DUG-OUT." 201 
 
 and then it trots again. No matter how closely pursued, it never 
 alters this mode of progression. 
 
 "Like the fallow deer it produces spotted fawns, which are 
 brought forth in the spring, and change their colour to that of 
 the deer itself in the first winter. About the first of November 
 they gather into herds, and remain together until April, when 
 they separate, the females secreting themselves to bring forth 
 their young. 
 
 " The long-tailed deer is often found in wooded countries ; 
 though its favourite haunts are not amid the heavy timber of the 
 great forests, but in the park-like openings that occur in many 
 parts of the Rocky Mountain valleys. 
 
 " Sometimes whole tracts of country are met with in these 
 regions, whose surface exhibits a pleasing variety of woodland 
 and prairie ; sloping hills appear with coppices upon their crests 
 and along their sides. Among these natural groves may be seen 
 troops of the long-tailed deer, browsing along the declivities of 
 the hills, and, by their elegant attitudes and graceful movements, 
 adding to the beauty of the landscape. 
 
 " Some years ago I had an opportunity of hunting the long- 
 tailed deer. I was on my way across the Rocky Mountains to 
 Fort Vancouver, when circumstances rendered it necessary that 
 I should stop for some days at a small trading post on one of 
 the branches of the Columbia. I was, in fact, detained, wait 
 ing for a party of fur-traders with whom I was to travel, and 
 who required some time to get their packs in readiness. 
 
 " The trading-post was a small place, with miserable accom 
 modations, having scarcely room enough in its two or three 
 wretched log-cabins to lodge half the company that happened 
 at the time to claim its hospitality. As my business was simply 
 to wait for my travelling companions , I was of course ennuye 
 almost to death m such a place. There was nothing to be seen 
 around but packs of beaver, otter, mink, fox, and bear skins ; 
 
 9* 
 
202 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 and nothing to be heard but the incessant chattering of Cana 
 dian voyageurs, in their mixed jargon of French, English, and 
 Indian. To make matters still more unpleasant, there was very 
 little to eat, and nothing to drink but the clear water of the little 
 mountTam-stream upon which the fort was built. 
 
 "The, surrounding country, however, was beautiful ; and the 
 lovely landscapes that on every side met the eye almost compen 
 sated for the discomforts of the post. The surface of the coun 
 try watt what is termed rolling gentle undulations here and 
 there rising into dome-shaped hills of low elevation. These 
 were crowned with copses of shrubby trees, principally of the 
 wild filbert or hazel (corylus} with several species of rosa and 
 raspb'jy,ry (rubus) and bushes of the juneberry (amelanchier) , 
 with their clusters of purplish-red fruit. The openings between 
 were covered with a sward of short gramma grass, and the 
 wholf; landscape presented the appearance of a cultivated park ; 
 BO that one involuntarily looked along the undulating outlines of 
 the hills for some noble mansion or lordly castle. 
 
 " It is just in such situations that the fallow-deer delights to 
 dwdil ; and these are the favourite haunts of its near congeners, 
 the long-tails. I had ascertained this from the people at the 
 post ; and the fact that fresh venison formed our staple and 
 daily food was proof sufficient that some species of deer was to 
 be found in the neighbourhood. I was not long, therefore, after 
 my arrival, in putting myself in train for a hunt. 
 
 " Unfortunately, the gentlemen of the company were too busy 
 to go along with me ; so also were the numerous engages ; and 
 I set out taking only my servant, a bois brule, or half-breed, who 
 happened, however, to be a good guide for such an expedition, 
 as well as a first-rate hunter. "': 
 
 " Setting out, we kept down the stream for some distance, 
 walking along its bank. We saw numerous deer-tracks in the 
 mud, where, the animals had gone to and from the water. These 
 
DEER HUNT IN A " DUG-OUT." 203 
 
 tracks were almost fresh, and many of them, as my servant 
 averred, must have been made the previous night by the animals 
 coming to drink a common habit with them, especially in hot 
 weather. 
 
 " But, strange to say, we walked a mile or more without get 
 ting a glimpse of a single deer, or any sort of animal. I was 
 beginning 'to get discouraged, when my man proposed that we 
 should leave the stream, and proceed back upon the hills. The 
 deer, he believed, would be found there. 
 
 " This was resolved upon ; and we accordingly struck out for 
 the high ground. We soon climbed up from the river bottom, 
 and thread*ed our way amidst the fragrant shrubbery of ame- 
 lanchiers and wild roses, cautiously scrutinising every new vista 
 that opened before us. 
 
 " We had not gone far before we caught sight of several 
 deer ; we could also hear them at intervals, behind the copses 
 that surrounded us, the males uttering a strange whistling 
 sound, similar to that produced by blowing into the barrel of a 
 gun, while this was occasionally replied to by the goat-like bleat 
 of the females. 
 
 " Strange to say, however, they were all very shy, and not 
 withstanding much cautious crouching and creeping among the 
 bushes, we wandered about for nearly two-thirds of the day with 
 out getting a shot at any one of them. 
 
 " What had made them so wary we could not at the time 
 tell, but we afterwafds learned that a large party of Flathead 
 Indians had gone over the ground only a few days before, and 
 had put the deer to a three days' chase, from which they had 
 not yet recovered. Indeed, we saw Indian "sign" all along 
 the route, and at one place came upon the head and horns of a 
 fine buck, which, from some fancy or other of the hunter, had 
 been left suspended from the branch of a tree, and had thus 
 escaped being stripped by the wolves. 
 
204 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 ; * At sight of this trophy, my companion appeared to be in 
 ecstacies. I could not understand what there was in a worthless 
 set of antlers to produce such joyful emotions ; but as Blue Dick 
 such was the sobriquet of my servant was not much given 
 to idle exhibitions of feeling, I knew there must be something 
 In it. 
 
 41 ' Now, master," said he, ' if I had something else, I could 
 promise you a shot at the long-tails, shy. as they are/ 
 
 " ' Something else ! What do you want ?' I inquired. 
 
 " ' Something that ought to grow about yar, else I'm mightily 
 mistaken in the sign. Let me try down yonder,' and Dick 
 pointed to a piece of low swampy ground that lay to one side 
 of our course. 
 
 " I assented, and followed him to the place. 
 
 " We had hardly reached the border of the wet ground, when 
 an exclamation from my companion told me that the ' something J 
 he wanted was in sight. 
 
 " ' Yonder, master : the very weed : see yonder.' 
 
 " Dick pointed to a tall herbaceous plant that grew near the 
 edge of the swamp. Its stem was -fully eight feet in height, with 
 large lobed leaves, and a wide-spreading umbel of pretty white 
 flowers. I knew the plant well. It was that which is known in 
 some places as masterwort, but more commonly by the name of 
 cow parsnep. Its botanical name is Heracleum lanatum. I 
 knew that its roots possessed stimulant and carminative pro 
 perties ; but that the plant had anything to do with deer-hunt 
 ing, I was ignorant. 
 
 "Dick, however, was better acquainted with its uses in that 
 respect ; and his hunter-craft soon manifested itself, 
 
 " Drawing his knife from its sheath, he cut one of the joints 
 from the stem of the heracleum, about six inches in length. This 
 be commenced fashioning somewhat after the manner of $ 
 penny-trumpet. 
 
DUG-OUT." 205 
 
 " In a few minutes he bad whittled it to the proper form arid 
 dimensions, after which he put up his knife, and applying the 
 pipe to his lips, blew into it. The sound produced was so exactly 
 like that which I had already heard to proceed from the deer 
 that I was startled by the resemblance. 
 
 " .Not having followed his rnanreuvres, I fancied for a moment 
 that we had got into close proximity with one of the long-tails. 
 My companion laughed, as he pointed triumphantly to his new 
 made ' call.' 
 
 " ' Now, master/ said he, ' we'll soon " rub out v one of the 
 long-tail bucks.' 
 
 " So saying, he took up the antlers, and desired me to follow 
 him. 
 
 " We proceeded as before, walking quickly but cautiously 
 among the thickets, and around their edges. We had gone 
 only a few hundred paces further, when the hollow whistle of 
 a buck sounded in our ears. 
 
 " Now,' muttered Dick, ' we have him. Squat down, master, 
 under the bush so. 7 
 
 " I did as desired, hiding myself under the leafy branches of 
 the wild rose-trees. My companion cowered down beside me in 
 such an attitude that he himself was concealed, while the buck's 
 head and antlers were held above the foliage, and visible from 
 several points where the ground was open. 
 
 " As soon as we were fairly placed, Dick applied Ihe call to 
 his lips, and blew his mimic note several times in succession. 
 We heard what appeared to be an echo, but it was the response 
 of a rival ; and shortly after we could distinguish a hoof-stroke 
 upon the dry turf, as if some animal was bounding toward 
 us. 
 
 " Presently appeared a fine buck, at an opening between two 
 copses, about one hundred paces from the spot where we lay. 
 It had halted, thrown back upon its flanks until its haunches 
 
206 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 almost touched the ground, while its full large eye glanced over 
 the opening, as if searching for some object. 
 
 " At this moment Dick applied the reed to his lips, at the 
 same time moving the horns backward and forward, in imitation 
 of a buck moving his head in a threatening manner. 
 
 "The stranger now perceived what appeared to him' the 
 branching horns of a rival, hearing, at the same time, the well- 
 known challenge. This was not to be borne, and rising erect 
 on all-fours, with his brow antlers set forward, he accepted the 
 challenge, and came bounding forward. 
 
 " At the distance of twenty paces or so, he again halted, as 
 if still uncertain of the character of his enemy ; but that halt 
 was fatal to him, for by Dick's directions I had made ready my 
 rifle, and taking sight at 'his breast, I pulled trigger. The 
 result was as my companion had predicted, and the buck was 
 ' rubbed out.' 
 
 " After skinning our game, and hanging the meat out of 
 reach of barking wolves, we proceeded as before ; and soon 
 after another buck was slain in a manner very similar to that 
 described. 
 
 " This ended our day's hunt, as it was late before Dick had 
 bethought him of the decoy ; and taking the best parts of both 
 the long-tails upon our shoulders, we trudged homeward to the 
 post. 
 
 " Part of our road, as we returned, lay along the stream, and 
 we saw several deer approaching the water, but cumbered as we 
 were, we failed in getting a shot. An idea, however, was sug 
 gested to my companion that promised us plenty of both sport 
 and venison for the next hunt which was to take place by night. 
 
 " This idea he communicated to me for my approval. I 
 readily gave my consent, as I saw in the proposal the chances 
 of enjoying a very rare sport. That spcrt was to be a fire-hunt 
 but not as usually practised by backwoodsmen, by carrying a 
 
DEER HUNT IN A " miG-OUT." 207 
 
 torch through the woods. Our torch was to float upon the 
 water, while we were snugly seated beside -it ; in other words, 
 we would carry our torch in a canoe, and floating down stream, 
 would shoot the deer that happened to be upon the banks drink 
 ing or cooling their hoofs in the water. I had heard of the plan, 
 but had never practised it, although I was desirous of so doing. 
 Dick had often killed deer in this way, and therefore knew all 
 about it. It was agreed, then, that upon the following night 
 we should try the experiment. 
 
 " During the next day, Dick and I proceeded in our prepara* 
 tions without saying anything to any one. It was our design 
 to keep our night hunt a secret, lest we might be unsuccessful, 
 and get laughed at for our pains. On the other hand, should 
 we succeed in killing a goodly number of long-tails, it \\^ald be 
 time enough to let it be known how we had managed matters. 
 
 " We had little difficulty in keeping our designs to ourselves. 
 Every one was busy with his own affairs, and took no heed of 
 our manoeuvres. 
 
 "Our chief difficulty lay in procuring a boat ; but for the 
 consideration of a few loads of powder, we at length borrowed 
 an old canoe that belonged to one of the Flathead Indians a 
 sort of hanger-on of the post. 
 
 " This craft was simply a log of the cotton-wood, rudely hol 
 lowed out by means of an axe, and slightly rounded at the ends 
 to produce the canoe-shape. It was that species of water craft 
 popularly known throughout Western America as a ' dug out,' 
 a phrase that explains itself. It was both old and rickety, but 
 after a short inspection, Blue Dick declared it would do ' fust 
 rate.' 
 
 " Our next move was to prepare a torch. For this we had 
 to make an excursion into the neighboring hills, where we found 
 the very material we wanted the dry knots of the pitch-pine 
 tree. 
 
208 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 " A large segment of birch bark was then sought for and 
 obtained, and our implements were complete. 
 
 " At twilight all was ready, and stepping into our dug-out, 
 we paddled silently down stream. 
 
 "As soon as we got out of the neighbourhood of the post, 
 we lighted our torch. This was placed iu a large fryingpan out 
 upon the bow, and was in reality rather a fire of pine knots than 
 a torch. It blazed up brightly, throwing a glare over the sur 
 face of the stream, and reflecting in red light every object upon 
 both banks. We, on the other hand, were completely hidden 
 from view by means of the birch-bark screen, which stood up 
 between us and the torch. 
 
 " As soon as we were fairly under-way, I yielded up the paddle 
 to Dick, who now assigned to himself the double office, of 
 guiding the dug-out and keeping the torch trimmed. I was to 
 look to the shooting ; so, placing my trusty rifle across my 
 thighs, I sat alternately scanning both banks as we glided along. 
 
 " I shall never forget the romantic effect which was produced 
 upon my mind during that wild excursion. The scenery of the 
 river upon which we had launched our craft was at all times of 
 a picturesque character : under the blaze of the pine-wood its 
 trees and rocks tinted with a reddish hue, while the rippling 
 flood below ran like molten gold the effect was heightened to 
 a degree of sublimity which could not have failed to impress the 
 dullest imagination. It was the autumn season, too, and the 
 foliage, which had not yet commenced falling, had assumed those 
 rich varied tints so characteristic of the American sylva vari 
 ous hues of green arid golden, and yellow and deep red were 
 exhibited upon the luxuriant frondage that lined the banks of 
 the stream, and here and there drooped like embroidered cur 
 tains down to the water's edge. It was a scene of that wild 
 beauty, that picturesque sublimity, which carries one to the con 
 templation of its Creator. 
 
DEER HUNT IN A " DUG-OUT." 209 
 
 " ' Yonder V muttered a voice, that roured me from my 
 reverie. It was Dick who spoke ; and in the darK shadow of 
 the birch-bark I could see one of his arms extended, and point 
 ing to the right bank. 
 
 " My eyes followed the direction indicated ; they soon rested 
 upon two small ojects, that from the darker background of the 
 foliage, appeared bright and luminous. These objects were 
 round, and close to each other ; and at a glance I knew lher~ 
 to be the eyes of some animal, reflecting the light of our torch 
 
 " My companion whispered me that they we.? the eyes of a 
 deer. I took sight with my rifle, aiming as nearly as I could 
 midway between the luminous spots. I pulled trigger, and my 
 true piece cracked like a whip. 
 
 " The report was not loud enough to drown the noises that 
 came back from the shore. There was a rustling of leaves, fol 
 lowed by a plunge, as of some body falling into the water. 
 
 " Dick turned the head of the dug-out, and paddled her up to 
 the bank. The torch, blazing; brightly, lit up the scene ahead of 
 us, and our eyes were gratified by the sight of a fine buck, that 
 had fallen dead into the river. He was about being drawn into 
 the eddy of the current, but Dick prevented this, and, seizing 
 him by the antlers, soon deposited him safely in the bottom of 
 the dug-out. 
 
 " Our craft was once more headed down the stream, and we 
 scrutinised every winding of the banks in search of another pair 
 of gleaming eyes. In less than half an hour these appeared, 
 and we succeeded in killing a second long-tail a doe and 
 dragged her also into the boat. 
 
 " Shortly after, a third was knocked over, which we found 
 standing out in the river upon a small point of sand. This 
 prayed to be a young spike-buck, his horns not having as yet 
 Dranciied off into antlers. 
 
 11 About a quarter of a mile farther down, a fourth deer was 
 
210 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 shot at, and missed, the dug-out having grazed suddenly against 
 a rock just as I was pulling trigger, thus rendering my aim 
 unsteady. 
 
 * 1 need hardly say that this sport was extremely exciting ; 
 and we had got many miles from the post, without thinking 
 either of the distance or the fact that we should be under the 
 disagreeable necessity of paddling the old Flathead's canoe every 
 inch of the way back again. Down stream it was all plain 
 sailing ; and Dick's duty was light enough, as it consisted merely 
 in keeping the dug-out head foremost in the middle of the river. 
 The current ran at the rate of three miles an hour, and therefore 
 drifted us along with sufficient rapidity. 
 
 "The first thing that suggested a return to either of us, was 
 the fact tbat our pine-knots had run out : Dick had just piled 
 the last of them in the frying-pan. 
 
 " At this moment, a noise sounded in our ears that caused us 
 some feelings of alarm : it was the noise of falling water. It 
 was not new to us, for, since leaving the post, we had passed the 
 mouths of several small streams, that debouched into the one 
 upon which we were, in most cases over a jumble of rocks, thus 
 forming a series of noisy rapids. But that which we now heard 
 was directly ahead of us, and must, thought we, be a rapid or 
 fall of the stream itself ; moreover, it sounded louder than any 
 we had hitherto passed. 
 
 " We lost little time in conjectures. The first impulse of my 
 companion, upon catching the sound, was to stop the progress of 
 the dug-out, "which in a few seconds he succeeded in doing ; but 
 by this time our torch had shown us that there was a sharp 
 turning in the river, with a long reach of smooth water below. 
 The cascade, therefore, could not be in our stream, but in some 
 tributary that fell into it near the bend. 
 
 " On seeing this, Dick- turned his paddle, and permitted the 
 dug-out once more to float with the current. 
 
DEER HUNT IN A "DUG-OUT." 21] 
 
 ts The next moment we passed the mouth of a good-sized creek, 
 whose waters, having just leaped a fall of several feet, ran into 
 the river, covered with white froth and bubbles. We could see 
 the fall at a little distance, through the branches of the trees ; 
 and as we swept on, its foaming sheet reflected the light of our 
 torch like shining metal. 
 
 " We had scarcely passed this point, when my attention was 
 attracted by a pair of fiery orbs that glistened out of some 
 low bushes upon the left bank of the river. I saw that 
 they were the eyes of some animal, but what kind of animal I 
 could not guess. I knew they were not the eyes of a deer. 
 Their peculiar scintillation, their lesser size, the wide space 
 between them all convinced me they were not deer's eyes. 
 Moreover, they moved at times, as if the head of the animal 
 was carried about in irregular circles. This is never the case 
 with the eyes of the deer, which either pass hurriedly from point 
 to point or remain with a fixed and steadfast gaze. 
 
 "I knew, therefore, it was no deer ; but no matter what; it 
 was some wild creature, and all such are alike the game of the 
 prairie-hunter. 
 
 " I took aim, and pulled trigger. While doing so, I heard 
 the wice of my companion warning me, as I thought, not to fire. 
 I wondered at this admonition, but it was then too late to heed 
 it, for it had been uttered almost simultaneously with the report 
 of my rifle. 
 
 " I first looked to the bank, to witness the effect of my shot. 
 To my great surprise, the eyes were still there, gleaming from 
 the bushes as brightly as ever. 
 
 " Had I missed my aim ? It is true, the voice of my compa 
 nion had somewhat disconcerted me ; but I still believed that 
 my bullet must have sped truly, as it had been delivered with a 
 good aim. 
 
 "As I turned to Dick for an explanation, a new sound fell 
 
212 THE HUNTEHS* FEAST. 
 
 upon my ears that explained all, at the same time causing me no 
 slight feeling of alarm. It was a sound not unlike that some 
 times uttered by terrified s\viue, but still louder and more 
 threatening. I knew it well I knew it was the snort of the 
 grizzly bear ! 
 
 " Of all American animals, the grizzly bear is the most to be 
 dreaded. Armed or unarmed, man is no match for him, and 
 even the courageous hunter of these parts shuns the encounter. 
 This was why my companion had admonished me not to fire. I 
 thought I had missed it : it was not so. My bullet had hit and 
 stung the fierce brute to madness ; and a quick cracking among 
 the bushes was immediately followed by a heavy plunge : the 
 b^ar was in the water ! 
 
 '* ' Good heavens, he's after us !' cried Dick in accents of 
 alarm, at the same time propelling the dug-out with all his 
 might. 
 
 "It proved true enough that the bear was after us, and the 
 very first plunge had brought his nose almost up to the side ot 
 the canoe. However, a few well-directed strokes of the paddle 
 set us in quick motion, and we were soon gliding rapidly down 
 stream, followed by the enraged animal, that every now and then 
 uttered one of his fierce snorts. 
 
 " What rendered our situation a terrible one was, that we 
 could not now see the bear, nor tell how far he might be from 
 us. All to the rear of the canoe was of a pitchy darkness, in 
 consequence of the screen of birch-bark. No object could be 
 distinguished in that direction, and it was only by hearing him 
 that we could tell he was still some yards off. The snorts, how 
 ever, were more or less distinct, as heard amid the varying roar 
 of the waterfall ; and sometimes they seemed as if the snout 
 from which they proceeded was close up to our stern. 
 
 " We knew that if he once laid his paw upon the canoe, we 
 should either be sank or compelled to leap out and swim for it. 
 
DEER HUNT IN A " DUG-OUT." 213 
 
 We knew, moreover, that such an event would be certain death 
 to one of us at least. 
 
 " I need hardly affirm, that my companion used his paddle 
 with all the energy of despair. I assisted him as much as was 
 in my power with the butt-end of my gun, which was now 
 empty. On account of the hurry and darkness, I had not 
 attempted to reload it. 
 
 " We had shot down stream for a hundred yards or so, 
 and were about congratulating ourselves on the prospect of an 
 escape from the bear, when a new object of dread presented 
 itself to our terrified imaginations. This object was the sound 
 of falling water ; but not as before, coming from some tributary 
 stream. No. It was a fall of the river upon which we were 
 floating, and evidently only a very short distance below us ! 
 
 " We were, in fact, within less than one hundred yards of it. 
 Our excitement, in consequence of being pursued by the bear, 
 as well as the fact that the sough of the cascade above still 
 filled our ears, had prevented us from perceiving this new 
 danger until we had approached it. 
 
 " A shout of terror and warning from my companion seemed 
 the echo of one I had myself uttered. Both of us understood 
 the peril of our situation, and both, without speaking another 
 word, set about attempting to stop the boat. 
 
 " We paddled with all our strength he with the oar, whilst 
 I used the flat butt of my rifle. We had succeeded in bringing 
 her to a sort of equilibrium, and were in hopes of being able to 
 force her toward the bank, when all at once we heard a heavy 
 object strike against the stern. At the same moment, the bow 
 rose up into the air, and a number of the burning pine-knots fell 
 back into the bottom of the canoe. They still continued to 
 blaze ; and their light now falling towards the stern, showed us 
 a fearful object. The bear had seized hold of the dug-out, and 
 his fierce head and long curving claws were visible over the 
 edge? 
 
214 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 " Although the little craft danced about upon the water, and 
 was likely to be turned keel upward, the animal showed no inten 
 tion of relaxing its hold ; but, on the contrary, seemed every 
 moment mounting higher in the canoe. 
 
 " Our peril was now extreme. We knew it, and the knowledge 
 half paralysed us. 
 
 " Both of us started up, and for some moments, half-sat, half- 
 crouched, uncertain how to act. Should we use the paddles, and 
 get the canoe ashore, it would only be to throw ourselves into 
 the jaws of the bear. On the other hand, we could not remain 
 as we were, for in a few seconds we should be drifted over the 
 falls; and how high these were we knew not. We had never 
 heard of them : they might be fifty feet they might be a hun 
 dred ! High enough, they were, no doubt, to precipitate us 
 into eternity. 
 
 " The prospect was appalling, and our thoughts ran rapidly. 
 Quick action was required. I could think of no other than to 
 lean sternward, and strike at the bear with my clubbed rifle, at 
 the same time calling upon my companion to paddle for the shore. 
 We preferred, under all circumstances, risking the chances of a 
 laud encounter with our grizzly antagonist. 
 
 *' I had succeeded in keeping the bear out of the canoe by 
 several well-planted blows upon the snout; and Dick was equally 
 successful in forcing the dug-out nearer to the bank, when a sharp 
 crack reached my ears, followed by a terrified cry from my com 
 panion. 
 
 " I glanced suddenly round, to ascertain the cause of these 
 demonstrations. Dick held in his hands a short round stick, 
 which I recognized as the shaft of the paddle. The blade had 
 snapped off, and was floating away on the surface ! 
 
 "We were now helpless. The manege of the canoe was no 
 longer possible. Over the falls she must go ! 
 
 " We thought of leaping out, but it was too late. We were 
 almost upon the edge, and the black current that bore our craft 
 
Ill 
 
DEER HUNT IN A "DUG-OUT." 215 
 
 swiftly along, would have carried our bodies with like velocity. 
 We could not make a dozen strokes before we should be swept 
 to the brink : it was too late. 
 
 " We both saw this; and each knew the feelings of the other, 
 for we felt alike. Neither spoke ; but, crouching down and 
 holding the gunwales of the canoe, we awaited the awful 
 moment. 
 
 " The bear seemed to have some apprehension as well as our 
 selves ; for, instead of continuing his endeavours to climb into 
 the canoe, he contented himself with holding fast to the stern, 
 evidently under some alarm. 
 
 " The torch still blazed, and the canoe was catching fire ; 
 perhaps this it was that alarmed the bear. 
 
 The last circumstance gave us at the moment but little con 
 cern ; the greater danger eclipsed the less. We had hardly 
 noticed it, when we felt we were going over ! 
 
 11 The canoe shot outward as if propelled by some projectile 
 force ; then came a loud crash, as though we had dropped upon 
 a hard rock. Water, and spray, and froth were dashed over 
 our bodies ; and the next moment, to our surprise as well as 
 delight, we felt ourselves still alive, and seated in the canoe, 
 which was floating gently in still smooth water. 
 
 *' It was quite dark, for the torch had been extinguished ; 
 but even in the darkness, we could perceive the bear swimming 
 and floundering near the boat. To our great satisfaction, we 
 saw him heading for the shore, and widening the distance 
 between himself and us with all the haste he could make. The 
 unexpected precipitation over the falls had cooled his courage, 
 if not his hostility. 
 
 " Dick and I headed the canoe, now half full of water, for 
 the opposite bank, which we contrived to reach by using the 
 rifle and our hands for paddles. Here we made the little vessel 
 fast to a tree, intending to leave it there, as we could not by 
 
216 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 any possibility get it back over the fall. Having hung our 
 game out of reach of the wolves, we turned our faces up stream 
 and, after a long and wearisome walk, succeeded in getting back 
 to the post. 
 
 " Next morning, a party went down for the venison, with the 
 intention also of carrying the canoe back over the fall. The 
 craft, however, was found to be so much injured, that it would 
 not hang together during the portage, aiKLwas therefore aban 
 doned. This was no pleasant matter to me, for it afterwards 
 cost me a considerable sum before I could square with the old 
 Flathead for his worthless dug-out." 
 
 CHAPTER XXY. 
 
 OLD IKE AND THE GRIZZLY. 
 
 A >s adventure ending in a grizzly bear story, drew the 
 
 ionversation upon that celebrated animal, and we listened to the 
 many curious facts related about it, with more than usual interest. 
 
 The grizzly bear ( Ursus ferox) is, beyond all question, the 
 most formidable of the wild creatures inhabiting the continent 
 of America jaguar arid cougar not excepted. Did he possess 
 the swiftness of foot of either the lion, or tiger of the Old 
 World, he would be an assailant as dangerous as either ; for he 
 is endowed with the strength of the former, and quite equals 
 the latter in ferocity. Fortunately, the horse outruns him; 
 were it not so, many a human victim would be his, for he can 
 easily overtake a man on foot. As it is, hundreds of well- 
 authenticated stories attest the prowesg of this fierce creature. 
 There is not a " mountain man " in America, who cannot relate 
 
OLD IKE AND THE GRIZZLY. 21 1 
 
 a string of perilous adventures about the " grizzly bar ;" and 
 the instances are far from being few, in which human life has 
 been sacrificed in conflicts with this savage boast. 
 
 The grizzly bear is an animal of large dimensions : specimens 
 have been killed and measured quite equal to the largest size of 
 the polar bear, though there is much variety in the sizes of 
 different individuals. About 500 Ibs. might be taken as the 
 average weight. 
 
 In shape, the grizzly bear is a much more compact animal 
 than either the black or polar species : his ears are larger, his 
 arms stouter, and his aspect fiercer. His teeth are sharp and 
 strong ; but that which his enemies most dread is the armature 
 of his paws. The paws themselves are so large, as frequently 
 to leave in the mud a track of twelve inches in length, by eight 
 in breadth ; and from the extremities of these formidable fists 
 protrude horn-like claws full six inches long ! Of course we are 
 speaking of individuals of the largest size. 
 
 These claws are crescent-shaped, and would be still longer, but 
 in all cases nearly an inch is worn from their points. 
 
 The animal digs up the ground in search of marmots, bur 
 rowing squirrels, and various esculent roots ; and this -habit 
 accounts for the blunted condition of his claws. They are sharp 
 enough, notwithstanding, to peel the hide from a horse or buf 
 falo, or to drag the scalp from a hunter a feat that has been 
 performed by grizzly bears on more than one occasion. 
 
 The colour of this animal is most generally brownish, with 
 white hairs intermixed, giving that greyish or grizzled appear 
 ance whence the trivial name, grizzly. But although this is 
 the most common colour of the species, there are many varieties. 
 Some are almost white, others yellowish red, and still others 
 nearly black. The season, too, has much to do with the colour; 
 and the pelage is shaggier and longer than that of the Ursus 
 Americanus. The eyes are small in proportion to the size of the 
 animal, but dark and piercing. 
 
 10 
 
218 
 
 The geographical range of the grizzly bear is extensive. It is 
 well known that the great chain of the Rocky Mountains com 
 mences on the shores of the Arctic Ocean, and runs southwardly 
 through the North American continent. In these mountains, 
 the grizzly bear is found, from their northern extremity, at least 
 as far as that point where the Rio Grande makes its great bend 
 towards the Gulf of Mexico. 
 
 In the United States and Canada, this animal has never been 
 seen in a wild state. This- is not strange. The grizzly bear has 
 no affinity with the forest. Previous to the settling of these ter 
 ritories, they were all forest-covered. The grizzly is rarely found 
 under heavy timber, like his congener the black bear ; and unlike 
 the latter, he is not a tree-climber. The black bear "hugs" 
 himself up a tree, and usually destroys his viotim by compression. 
 The grizzly does not possess this power, so as to enable him to 
 ascend a tree-trunk ; and for such a purpose, his huge dull claws 
 are worse than useless. His favourite haunts are the thickets of 
 Corylus rubus, and Amelanckiers, under the shade of which he 
 makes his lair, and upon the berries of which he partially sub 
 sists. He lives much by the banks of streams, hunting among 
 the willows, or wanders along the steep and rugged bluffs, where 
 scrubby pine and dwarf cedar (Jwniperus prostrata), with its 
 rooting branches, forms an almost impenetrable underwood. In 
 short, the grizzly bear of America is to be met with in situations 
 very similar to those which are the favourite haunts of the 
 African lion, which, after all, is not so much the king of the for 
 est, as of the mountain and the open plain. 
 
 The grizzly bear is omnivorous. Fish, flesh, and fowl are eaten 
 by him apparently with equal relish. He devours frogs, lizards, 
 and other reptiles. 
 
 He is fond of the larvse of insects ; these are often found in 
 large quantities adhering to the under sides of decayed logs. 
 To get at them, the grizzly bear will roll over logs of such size 
 and weight, as would try the strength of a yoke of oxen. 
 
OLD IKE AND THE GRIZZLY. 219 
 
 He can "root " like a hog, and will often plough up acres of 
 prairie in search of the wapatoo and Indian turnip. Like the 
 black bear, he is fond of sweets ; and the wild-berries, consist 
 ing of many species of currant, gooseberry, and service berry, 
 are greedily gathered into his capacious maw. 
 
 He is too slow of foot to overtake either the buffalo, elk, or 
 deer, though he sometimes comes upon these creatures unawares; 
 and he will drag the largest buffalo to the earth, if he can only 
 get his claws upon it. 
 
 Not, unfrequently he robs the panther of his repast, and will 
 drive a whole pack of wolves from the carrion they have just 
 succeeded in killing. 
 
 Several attempts have been made to raise the young grizzlies, 
 but these have been all abortive, the animals proving anything 
 but agreeable pets. As soon as grown to a considerable size, 
 their natural ferocity displays itself, and their dangerous quali 
 ties usually lead to the necessity for their destruction. 
 
 For a long time the great polar bear has been the most cele 
 brated animal of his kind ; and most of the bear adventures 
 have related to him. Many a wondrous tale of his prowess 
 and ferocity has been told by the whaler and arctic voyager, 
 in which this creature figures as the hero. His fame, however, 
 is likely to be eclipsed by his hitherto less known congener the 
 grizzly. The golden lure which has drawn half the world to 
 California, has also been the means of bringing this fierce animal 
 more into notice ; for the mountain-valleys of the Sierra Nevada 
 are a favourite range for this species. Besides, numerous " bear- 
 scrapes " have occurred to the migrating bands who have crossed 
 the great plains and desert tracts that stretch from the Missis 
 sippi to the shores of the South Sea. Hundreds of stories of 
 this animal, more or less true, have of late attained circulation 
 through the columns of the press and the pages of the traveller's 
 note-book, until the grizzly bear is becoming almost as much an 
 
220 THE HUNTERS* FfcAST. 
 
 object of interest as the elephant, the hippopotamus, or the king 
 of the beasts himself. 
 
 Speaking seriously, he is a dangerous assailant. White hunt 
 ers never attack him unless when mounted and well armed ; and 
 the Indians consider the killing a grizzly bear a feat equal to 
 the scalping of a human foe. These never attempt to hunt him, 
 unless when a large party is together ; and the hunt is, among 
 some tribes, preceded by a ceremonious feast and a bear- 
 dance. 
 
 It is often the lot of the solitary trapper to meet with this 
 four-footed enemy, and the encounter is rated as equal to that 
 with two hostile Indians. 
 
 Of course, both Redwood and Ike had met with more than 
 one " bar scrape," and the latter was induced to relate one of 
 his best. 
 
 *' Strengers," began he, "when you scare up a grizzly, take 
 my advice, and gie 'im a wide berth that is, unless yur unkim- 
 mun well mounted. Ov coorse, ef yur critter kin be depended 
 upon, an' thur's no brush to 'tangle him, yur safe enuf ; as no 
 grizzly, as ever I seed, kin catch up wi' a hoss, whur the ground's 
 open an' clur. F'r all that, whur the timmer's clost an' brushy, 
 an' the ground o' that sort whur a hoss mout stummel, it are 
 allers the safest plan to let ole Eph'm slide. I've seed a grizzly 
 pull down as good a hoss as ever tracked a parairy, whur the 
 critter hed got botherd in a thicket. The fellur that straddled 
 him only saved himself by hoekin' on to the limb o' a tree. 
 'Twant two minnits afore this child kirn up hearin' the rum 
 pus. I hed good sight o' the bar, and sent a bullet sixty to 
 the pound into the varmint's brain-pan, when he immediately 
 cawalloped over. But 'twur too late to save the hoss. He wur 
 rubbed out. The bar had half skinned him, an' wur tarrin at 
 his guts 1 Wagh I" 
 
 Here the trapper unsheathed his clasp-knife, and having cut a 
 
OLD IKE AND THE GRIZZLY. 221 
 
 " chunk " from a plug of real " Jeemees's River," stuck it into 
 his cheek, and proceeded with his narration. 
 
 "I reck'n, I've seed a putty consid'able o'the grizzly bar in 
 my time. If them thur chaps who writes about all sort o' var 
 mint, had seed as much o' the grizzly as I hev, they mout a gin 
 a hul book consarnin 1 the critter. Ef I hed a plug o' bacca for 
 every grizzly I've rub'd out, it 'ud keep my jaws waggin' for a 
 good twel'month, I reck'n. Ye es, strangers, I've done some 
 bar-killin' I hev that, an' no mistake. Haint I, Mark ? 
 
 " Wai, I wur a gwine to tell you ov a sarcumstance that hap 
 pened to this child about two yeern ago. It wur upon the 
 Platte, atween Chimbly Rock an' Larainies'. 
 
 " I wur engaged as hunter an' guide to a carry van o' emi 
 grant folk that wur on thur way to Oregon. 
 
 " Ov coorse I allers kept a-head o' the carry van an picked the 
 place for thur camp. 
 
 " Wai, one afternoon I hed halted whur I seed some timmer, 
 which ur a scace article about Chimbly Rock. This, thort I, 'II 
 do for campin'-ground ; so I got down, pulled the saddle off o' 
 my ole mar, an staked the critter upon the best patch o' grasj 
 that wur near, intendin' she shed hev her gutfull afore the camp 
 cattle kim up to bother her. 
 
 " I hed shot a black-tail buck, an' after kindlin' a fire, I 
 roasted a griskin' o' him, an' ate it. 
 
 " Still thur wan't no sign o' the carry van, an' after hangin 1 
 the buck out o' reach o' the wolves, I tuk up my rifle, an' set 
 out to rackynoiter the neighbourhood. 
 
 " My mar bein' some'at jaded, I let her graze away, an' went 
 afoot : an' that, let me tell you, strengers, ar about the foolichest 
 thing you kin do upon a parairy. I wan't long afore I proved 
 it, bit I'll kum to that by'm by. 
 
 " Wai, I fust clomb a conside'able hill, that gin me a vie^ 
 beyont. Thur wur a good-sized parairy layin' torst the soutl 
 
222 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 an* west. Thur war no trees 'ceptin' an old cottonwood hyur 
 an' thur on the hillside. 
 
 "About a mile off I seed a flock of goats what you'd 
 call antelopes, though goats they ur, as sure as goats is 
 goats. 
 
 " Thur waunt no kiver near them not a stick, for the parairy 
 wur as bar as yur hand ; so I seed, at a glimp, it 'ud be no use 
 a try in* to approach, unless I tuk some plan to decoy the 
 critters. 
 
 " I soon thort o' a dodge, an' went back to camp for my 
 blanket, which wur a red Mackinaw. This I knew 'ud be the 
 Tery thing to fool the goats with, an' I set out torst them. 
 
 " For the fust half-a-mile or so, I carried the blanket under 
 my arm. Then I spread it out, an' walked behind it until I wur 
 'ithiii three or four hundred yards o' the animals. I kept my 
 eye on 'em through a hole in the blanket. They wur a growin' 
 scary, an' bed begun to run about in circles ; so when I seed 
 this, I knew it wur time to stop. 
 
 "Wai, I hunkered down, an' still keepin' the blanket spread 
 out afore me, I hung it upon a saplin' that I had brought from 
 the camp. I then stuck the saplin' upright in the ground ; an' 
 mind ye, it wan't so easy to do that, for the parairy wur hard 
 friz, an' I hed to dig a hole wi' my knife. Howsomdever, I got 
 the thing rigged at last, an' the blanket hangiu' up in front 
 kivered my karkidge most complete. I hed nothin' more to do 
 but wait till the goats shed come 'ithin range of my shootin'- 
 iron. 
 
 " Wai, that wan't long. As ye all know, them goats is a 
 mighty curious animal as curious as weemen is an' after 
 runniu' backward an' forrard a bit, an' tossin' up thur heads, an' 
 sniffin' the air, one o' the fattest, a young prong-horn buck, 
 trotted up 'ithiu fifty yards o' me. 
 
 " I jest squinted through the sights, an' afore that goat hed 
 
t 
 
 OLD IKE AND THE GRIZZLY. 223 
 
 time to wink twice, I hit him plum atween the eyes. Ov coorse 
 he wur thro wed in his tracks. 
 
 " Now, you'd a jumped up, an' frightened the rest away 
 that's what you'd a done, strengers. But you see I knowed 
 better. I knowed that so long's the critters didn't see my 
 karkidge, they wan't a gwine to mind the crack o' the gun. So 
 I laid still, in behopes to git a wheen more o' them. 
 
 "As I hed calc'lated at fust, they didn't run away, an' 1 
 slipped in my charge as brisk as possible. But jest as I wur 
 raisin' to take sight on a doe that hed got near enough, the hull 
 gang tuk scare, an' broke off as ef a pack of parairy wolves 
 wur arter 'em. 
 
 " I wur clean puzzled at this, for I knowed I hedn't done 
 anythin' to frighten 'em, but I wan't long afore I diskivered the 
 cause o' thur alarm. Jest then I heerd a snift, like the coughin' 
 o' a glandered hoss ; an' turnin' suddintly round, I spied the 
 biggest bar it hed ever been my luck to set eyes on. He wur 
 comin' direct torst me, an' at that rninnit wan't over twenty 
 yards from whur I lay. I knowed at a glimp he wur a grizzly I 
 
 " 'Tain't no use to say I wan't skeart ; I wur skeart, an' 
 mighty bad skeart, I tell ye. 
 
 " At fust, I thort o' jumpin' to my feet, an ; makin' tracks ; 
 but a minnit o' reflexshun showed me that 'ud be o' little use. 
 Thur wur a half o' mile clur parairy on every side o' me, an' I 
 knowd the grizzly kud catch up afore I hed made three hundred 
 yards in any direction. I knowed, too, that ef I started, the 
 varmint 'ud be sartin to foller. It wur plain to see the bar 
 meant mischief ; I kud tell that from the glint o' his eyes. 
 
 " Thur wan-'t no time to lose in thinkin' about it. The brute 
 wur still comin 1 nearer ; but I noticed that he wur a gwine 
 slower an' slower, every now an' agin risin' to his hind-feet, 
 clawin' his nose, an' sniffin' the air. 
 
 " I seed that it wur the red blanket that puzzled him ; an' 
 
224 THE HUNTERS'" FEAST. 
 
 seem' this, I crep' closter behint it, an' cached as much o' my 
 karkidge as it 'ud kiver. 
 
 " When the bar hed got 'ithin about ten yards o' the spot, he 
 kim to a full stop, an' reared up as he hed did several times, 
 with his belly full torst me. The sight wur too much for this 
 niggur, who never afore had been bullied by eyther Injun or bar. 
 
 " 'Twur a beautiful shot, an' I kudn't help tryin' it. ef 't bed 
 been my last ; so I poked my rifle though a hole in the blanket, 
 a,n' sent a bullet atween the varmint's ribs. 
 
 " That wur, perhaps, the foolichest an' wust shot this child 
 ever made. Hed I not fired it, the bar mout a gone off, feard 
 o' the blanket ; but I did fire, an' my narves bein' excited, I 
 made a bad shot. 
 
 " I had ta'en sight for the h$art, an' I only hit the varmint's 
 shoulder. 
 
 " OY coorse, the bar bein' now wounded, bekim savage, and 
 cared no longer for the blanket. He roared out like a bull, 
 tore at the place whur I hed hit him, an' then kim on as fast as 
 his four legs 'ud carry him. 
 
 " Things looked squally. I throwed away my emp'y gun, an> 
 drawed my bowie, expectin' nothin' else than a regular stand-up 
 tussel wi' the bar. I knowed it wur no use turnin' tail now ; so 
 I braced myself up for a desp'rate fight. 
 
 " But just as the bar hed got 'ithin ten feet o' me, an idee 
 suddintly kim into my head. I hed been to Santa Fe, among 
 them yaller-hided Mexikins, whur I hed seed two or three bull 
 fights. I hed seed them mattydoors fling thur red cloaks over 
 a bull's head, just when you'd a thort they wur a gwine to be 
 gored to pieces on the fierce critter's horns. 
 
 " Jest then, I remembered "thur trick ; an' afore the bar cud 
 close on me, I grabbed the blanket, spreadin' it out as I tuk holt. 
 
 " Strengers, that wur a blanket an' no mistake ! It wur as 
 fine a five-point Mackinaw as ever kivered the hump-ribs o' a 
 
 
OLD IKE AND THE GRIZZLY. 225 
 
 nor'-west trader. I used to wear it Mexikin-fashun when it 
 rained ; an' in coorse, for that purpose, thur wur a hole in the 
 middle to pass the head through. 
 
 " Wai, jest as the bar sprung at me, I flopped the blan'ket 
 straight in his face. I seed his snout a passin' through the hole, 
 but I seed no more ; for I feeled the critter's claws touchin' me, 
 an' I lot go. 
 
 " Now, thunk I, wur my time for a run. The blanket rnout 
 blin' him a leetle, an' I mout git some start. 
 
 " With this thort, I glid past the animal's rump, an' si ruck 
 out over the parairy. 
 
 "The direction happened to be that that led torst the c&mp, 
 half a mile off ; but thur wur a tree nearer, on the side (/ the 
 hill. Ef I kud reach that, I knowd I 'ud be safe enuf, as the 
 grizzly bar it don't climb. 
 
 " For the fust hundred yards I never looked round ; then I 
 only squinted back, runniV all the while. 
 
 " I kud jest see that the bar appeared to, be still a tossin' the 
 blanket, and not fur from whur we hed parted kumpny. 
 
 " I thort this sorne'at odd ; but I didn't stay to see what it 
 meant till I hed put another hundred yards atween us. Then I 
 half turned, an' tuk a good look ; an' if you believe me, 
 strengers, the sight I seed thur 7 ud a made a Mormon larf. 
 Although jest one minuit afore, I wur putty nigh skeart out o' 
 my seven senses, that sight made me larf till I wur like to bring 
 on a colic. 
 
 " Thur wur the bar wi' his head right athrough the blanket. 
 One minnit, he 'ud rear up on his hind-feet, an' then the thing 
 hung roun' him like a Mexikin greaser. The next minnit, he 
 'ud be down on all-fours, an' tryin' to foller me ; an' then the 
 Mackinaw ; ud trip him up, an over he 'ud whammel, and kick to 
 get free all the while routin' like a mad buffalo. Jehosophat 1 
 it wur the funniest sight this child ever seed. Wagh I 
 
 10* 
 
THE HUXTERS 7 FEAST. 
 
 "Wai, I watched the game awhile only a leetle while ; for 
 I knowed that if the bar could git clur o' the rag, he motit still 
 overtake me, an' drive me to the tree. That I didn't wan't, 
 eyther, so I tuk to 'my- heels again, and soon reached camp. 
 
 "Thur I saddled my mar, and then rid back to get my gun, 
 an', perhaps, to give ole Eph'm a fresh taste o' lead. 
 
 " When I climbed the hill again, the bar wur still out on the 
 parairy, an' I cud see that the blanket wur a-hanging around 'im. 
 Howsomdever, he wur makin' off torst the hills, thinkin', maybe, 
 he'd bed enuf o' my kumpny. 
 
 " I wan't a gwine to let 'im off so easy, for the skear he hed 
 'gin me ; besides, he wur traillin' my Mackinaw along wi' 'im. 
 So I galluped to whur my gun lay, an' havin' rammed home a 
 ball, I then galluped arter ole grizzly. 
 
 "I soon overhauled him, an' he turned on me as savagerous 
 as ever. But this time, feeling secure on the mar's back, my 
 narves wur steadier ; an' I shot the bar plum through the skull, 
 which thro wed him in his tracks wi' the blanket wrapped about 
 ; im. 
 
 " But s- ; ch a blanket as that wur then ay, sich a blanket ! 
 I never seed sich a blanket ! Thur wunt a square foot o' it that 
 wan't torn to raggles. Ah, strengers, you don't know what it 
 are to lose a five-point Mackinaw ; no, that you don't. Cuss 
 the bar 1" 
 
A BATTLE WITH GRIZZLY BEARS. 221 
 
 CHAPTER XXYI. 
 
 A BATTLE WITH GRIZZLY BEARS. 
 
 AN adventure with grizzly bears which had befallen the 
 " captain " was next related. He had been travelling with a 
 strange party the " scalp hunters," in the mountains near 
 Santa Fe, when they were overtaken by a sudden and heavy fall 
 of snow that rendered further progress impossible. The "canon," 
 a deep valley in which they had encamped, was difficult to get 
 through at any time, but now the path, on account of the deep 
 soft snow, was rendered impassable. When morning broke they 
 found themselves fairly " in the trap." 
 
 " Above and below the valley was choked with snow five 
 fathoms deep. Yast fissures barrancas were filled with the 
 drift ; and it was perilous to attempt penetrating in either 
 direction. Two men had already disappeared. 
 
 " On each side of our camp rose the walls of the canon, almost 
 vertical, to the height of a hundred feet. These we might have 
 climbed had the weather been soft, for the rock was a trap for 
 mation, and offered numerous seams and ledges ; but now there 
 was a coating of ice and snow upon them that rendered the 
 ascent impossible. The ground had been frozen hard before the 
 storm came on, although it was now freezing no longer, and the 
 snow would not bear our weight. All our efforts to get out of 
 the valley proved idle ; and we gave them over, yielding our 
 selves, in a kind of reckless despair, to wait for- we scarce 
 knew what. 
 
 " For three days we sat shivering around the fires, now and 
 
228 
 
 then casting looks of gloomy inquiry around the sky. The same 
 dull grey for an answer, mottled with flakes slanting earthward, 
 for it still continued ,to snow. Not a bright spot cheered the 
 aching eye. 
 
 " The little platform on which we rested a piece of two or 
 three acres was still free from the snow-drift, on account of its 
 exposure to the wind. Straggling pines, stunted and leafless, 
 grew over its surface, in all about fifty or sixty trees. From 
 these we obtained our fires ; but what were fires when we had 
 no meat to cook upon them ? ^ >-. 
 
 " We were now in the third day without food ! Without 
 food, though not absolutely without eating the men had bolted 
 their gun-covers, and the cat-skin flaps of their bullet-pouches, 
 and were now seen the last shift but one stripping the 
 parfleche from the soles of their moccasins ! 
 
 " The women, wrapped in their tilmas, nestled closely in the 
 embrace of father, brother, husband, and Ipver'; for all these 
 affections were present. The last string of tasajo, hitherto econ 
 omized for their sake, had been parcelled out to them in the 
 morning. That was gone, and whence was their next morsel to 
 come ? At long intervals, 'Ay de mi ! Dios de mi alma ! ' were 
 heard only in low murmurs, as some colder blast swept down the 
 canon. In the face of those beautiful creatures might be read 
 that uncomplaining patience that high endurance so character 
 istic of the Hispano-Mexican women. 
 
 " Even the stern men around them bore up with less fortitude. 
 Rude oaths were uttered from time to time, and teeth ground 
 together, with that strange wild look that heralds insanity. 
 Once or twice I fancied that I Jaserved a look of still stranger, 
 still wilder expression, when the black ring forms around the 
 eye when the muscles twitch and quiver along gaunt famished 
 jaws when men gaze guilty-like at each other. God ! it was 
 fearful ! The half-robber discipline, voluntary at the best, had 
 
A BATTLE WITH GRIZZLY BEARS. . 229 
 
 vanished under the levelling-rod of a common suffering, and I 
 trembled to think 
 
 " ' It clars a leetle, out tharawa ! ' 
 
 " It was the voice of the trapper, Garey, who had risen and 
 stood pointing towards the East. 
 
 "In an instant we were all upon our feet, looking in the 
 direction indicated. Sure enough, there was a break in the 
 lead-coloured sky a yellowish streak, that widened out as we 
 continued gazing the flakes fell lighter and thinner, and in two 
 hours more it had ceased snowing altogether. 
 
 " Half-a-dozen of us, shouldering our rifles, struck down the 
 valley. We would make one more attempt to trample a road 
 through the drift. It was a vain one. The snow was over our 
 heads, and after struggling for two hours, we had not gained 
 above two hundred yards. Here we caught a glimpse of what 
 lay before us. As far as the eye could reach, it rested upon the 
 same deep impassable masses. Despair and hunger paralyzed 
 our exertions, and dropping off one by one, we returned to the 
 camp. 
 
 " We fell down around the fires in sullen silence. Garey con 
 tinned pacing back and forth, now glancing up at the sky, and 
 at times kneeling down, and running his hand over the surface 
 of the snow. At length he approached the fire, and in his slow 
 drawling manner, remarked 
 
 " ' It's a gwine to friz, I rekin.' 
 
 " 'Well ! and if it does ?' asked one of his comrades, without 
 caring for an answer to the question. 
 
 " ' Wai, an iv it does,' repeated the trapper, we'll walk out o> 
 this hyar jug afore sun-up, an' upon a good hard trail too/ 
 
 " The expression of every face was changed, as if by magic. 
 Several leaped to their feet. Gode, the Canadian, skilled in 
 enow-craft, ran to a bank, and drawing his hand along the 
 v imbing, shouted back 
 
230 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 
 
 " ' C'est vrai ; il gele ; il gelc P 
 
 " A cold wind soon after set in, and, cheered by the brighten 
 ing prospect, we began to think of the fires, that during our late 
 moments of reckless indifference, had been almost suffered to 
 burn out. The Delawares, seizing their tomahawks, commenced 
 hacking at the pines, while others dragged forward the fallen 
 trees, lopping off their branches with the keen scalping-knife. 
 
 " At this moment a peculiar cry attracted our attention, and, 
 looking around, we perceived one of the Indians drop suddenly 
 upon his knees, striking the ground with his hatchet. 
 
 " ' What is it ? what is it ?' shouted several voices, in almost 
 as many languages. 
 
 " ' Yam-yam! yam-yam!' replied the Indian, still digging at 
 the frozen ground. 
 
 " ' The Injun's right ; it's man-root /' said Garey, picking up 
 some leaves which the Delaware had chopped off. 
 
 " I recognised a plant well known to the mountain-man a 
 rare, but wonderful convolvulus, the Iponea leptophylla. The 
 name of ' man root ' is given to it by the hunters from the simi 
 larity of its root in shape, and sometimes in size, to the body of 
 a man. It is esculent, and serves to sustain human life. 
 
 " In an instant, half-a-dozen men were upon their knees, chip 
 ping and hacking the hard clay, but their hatchets glinted off 
 as from the surface of a rock. 
 
 " ' Look hyar ! ' cried Garey ; ' ye 're only spoilin' yer tools. 
 Cut down a wheen 'o these saplins, and make a fire over him I* 
 
 " The hint was instantly followed, and in a few minutes a 
 dozen pieces of pine were piled upon the spot, and set on fire. 
 
 " We stood around the burning branches with eager anticipa 
 tion. Should the root prove a ' full-grown man,' it would make 
 a supper for our whole party ; and with the cheering idea of 
 supper, jokes were ventured upon the first we had heard for 
 some time the hunters, tickled with the novelty of unearthing 
 
A BATTLE WITH GRIZZLY BEARS. 231 
 
 the ' old man ' ready roasted, and speculating whether he would 
 prove a ' fat old hoss.' 
 
 " A hollow crack sounded from above, like the breaking of 
 a dead tree. We looked up. A large object an animal was 
 whirling outward and downward from a ledge that projected 
 half way up the cliff. In an instant it struck the earth, head 
 foremost, with a loud ' bump/ and, bounding to the height of 
 several feet, came back with a somersault on its legs, and stood 
 firmly. 
 
 " An involuntary ' hurrah !' broke from the hunters, who all 
 recognised, at a glance, the ' Carnero Cimmaron, or ' bighorn/ 
 He had cleared the precipice at two leaps, lighting each time on 
 his huge crescent-shaped horns. 
 
 " For a moment, both parties hunters and game seemed 
 equally taken by surprise, and stood eyeing each other in mute 
 wonder. It was but for a moment. The men made a rush for 
 their rifles, and the animal, recovering from his trance of aston 
 ishment, tossed back his horns, and bounded across the platform. 
 In a dozen springs he had reached the selvidge of the snow, 
 and plunged into its yielding bank ; but, at the same instant, 
 several rifles cracked, and the white wreath was crimsoned 
 behind him. He still kept on, however, leaping and breaking 
 through the drift. 
 
 " We struck into his track, and followed with the eagerness 
 of hungry wolves. We could tell by the numerous gouts that 
 he was shedding his life-blood, and about fifty paces farther on 
 we found him dead. 
 
 " A shout apprised our companions of our success, and we 
 had commenced dragging back the prize, when wild cries reached 
 tis from the platform, the yells of the men, the screams of 
 women, mingled with oaths and exclamations of terror ! 
 
 " We ran on to the entrance of the track. On reaching it, 
 a sight was before us that caused the stoutest to tremble. 
 
232 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 Hunters, Indians, and women were running to and fro in frantic 
 confusion, uttering their varied cries. We knew our enemy at 
 a glance, the dreaded monsters of the mountains the grizzly 
 bears ! 
 
 " There were five of them five in sight there might be 
 others in the background. Five were enough to destroy our 
 whole party, caged as we were, and weakened by famine. 
 
 They had reached the cliff in chase of the Cimmaron, and hun 
 ger and disappointment were visible in their horrid aspects. Two 
 of them had already crawled close to the scarp, and were paw 
 ing over and snuffing the air, as if searching for a place to 
 descend. The other three reared themselves up on their hams, 
 and commenced manoeuvring with their fore-arms, in a human 
 like and comical pantomime ! 
 
 " We were in no condition to relish this amusement. Every 
 man hastened to arm himself, those who had emptied their rifles 
 hurriedly re-loading them. 
 
 " ' For your life don't P cried Garey, catching at the gun of 
 one of the hunters. 
 
 " The caution came too late ; half-a-dozen bullets were already 
 whistling upwards. 
 
 " The effect was just what the trapper had anticipated. The 
 bears, maddened by the bullets, which had harmed them no 
 more than the pricking of as many pins, dropped to their all- 
 fours again, and, with fierce growls, commenced descending the 
 cliff. 
 
 " The scene of confusion was now at its height. Several of 
 the men, less brave than their comrades, ran off to hide them 
 selves in the snow, while others commenced climbing the low- 
 pine trees I 
 
 " 'Cache the gals !' cried Garey. ' Hyar, yer darned Spanish 
 greasers 1 if yer wont fight, hook on to the weemen a wheen o' 
 yer, and to.it them to the snow. Cowardly slinks, wagh 1' 
 
A BATTLE WITH GRIZZLY BEARS. 233 
 
 " ' See to them, doctor/ I shouted to the German, who, T 
 thought, might be best spared from the fight' ; and the next 
 moment the doctor, assisted by several Mexicans, was hurrying 
 the terified girls towards the spot where we had left the Cim- 
 maron. 
 
 " Many of us knew that to hide, under the circumstances, 
 would be worse than useless. The fierce but sagacious brutes 
 would have discovered us one by one, and destroyed us in detail. 
 ' They must be met and fought 1' that was the word ; and we 
 resolved to carry it into execution. 
 
 " There were about a dozen of us who ' stood up to it' all 
 the Delawares and Shawanoes, with Garey and the mountain 
 men. 
 
 " We kept firing at the bears as they ran along the ledges 
 in their zig zag descent, but our rifles were out of order, our 
 fingers were numbed with cold, and our nerves weakened with 
 hunger. Our bullets drew blood from the hideous brutes, yet 
 not a shot proved deadly. It only stung them into fiercer rage. 
 
 " It was a fearful moment when the last shot was fired, and 
 still n'ot an enemy the less. We flung away the guns, and, 
 clutching the hatchets and hunting-knives, silently awaited our 
 grizzly foes. 
 
 " We had taken our stand close to the rock. It was our 
 design to have the first blow, as the animals, for the most part, 
 came stern-foremost down the cliff. In this we were disappointed. 
 On reaching a ledge some ten feet from the platform, the fore 
 most bear halted, and seeing our position, hesitated to descend. 
 The next moment, his companions, maddened with wounds, 
 came tumbling down upon the same ledge, and with fierce 
 growls, the live huge bodies were precipitated into our 
 midst. 
 
 "Then came the desperate struggle, which I cannot describe, 
 the shouts of the hunters, the wilder yells of our Indian allies, 
 
234 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 the hoarse worrying of the bears, the ringing of tomahawks 
 from skulls like flint, the deep, dull ' thud' of the stabbiug-knife, 
 and now and then a groan, as the crescent claw tore up the 
 clinging muscle. God ! it was a fearful scene ! 
 
 " Over the platform bears and men went rolling and struggling, 
 in the wild battle of life and death. Through the trees, and 
 into the deep drift, staining the snow with their mingled blood I 
 Here, two or three men were engaged with a single foe there, 
 some brave hunter stood battling alone; Several were sprawl 
 ing upon the ground. Every moment, the bears were lessening 
 the number of their assailants ! 
 
 " I had been struck down at the commencement of the struggle. 
 On regaining my feet, I saw the animal that had felled me hug 
 ging the prostrate body of a man. 
 
 " It was Gode. I leaned over the bear, clutching its shaggy 
 skin. I did this to steady myself ; I was weak and dizzy; so 
 were we all. I struck with all my force, stabbing the animal 
 on the ribs. 
 
 " Letting go the Frenchman, the bear turned suddenly, and 
 reared upon me. I endeavoured to avoid the encounter, and 
 ran backward, fending him off with my knife. 
 
 " All at once I came against a snow-drift, and fell over on my 
 back. Next moment, the heavy body was precipitated upon me, 
 the sharp claws pierced deep into my shoulder I inhaled the 
 monster's fetid breath ; and striking wildly with my right arm, 
 still free, we rolled over and over in the snow. 
 
 "I was blinded by the dry drift. I felt myself growing 
 weaker and weaker ; it was the loss of blood. I shouted a 
 despairing shout but it could not have been heard at ten paces' 
 distance. Then there was a strange hissing sound in my ears 
 a bright light flashed across my eyes ; a burning object passed 
 over my face, scorching the skin ; there was a smell as of singing 
 hair ; I could hear voices, mixed with the roars of my adver- 
 
A BATTLE WITH GRIZZLY BEARS. 235 
 
 sary ; and all at once the claws were drawn out of my flesh, the 
 weight was lifted from my breast, and I was alone ! 
 
 " I rose to my feet, and rubbing the snow out of my eyes, 
 looked around. I could see no one. I was in a deep hollow 
 made by our struggles, but I was alone ! 
 
 " The snow all around me was dyed to a crimson ; but what 
 had become of my terrible antagonist ? Who had rescued me 
 from his deadly embrace ? 
 
 " I staggered forward to the open ground. Here a new scene 
 met my gaze : a strange-looking man was running across the 
 platform, with a huge firebrand the bole of a burning pine-tree 
 which he waved in the air. He was chasing one of the bears, 
 that, growling with rage and pain, was making every effort to 
 reach the cliffs. Two others were already half-way up, and 
 evidently clambering with great difficulty, as the blood dripped 
 back from their wounded flanks. 
 
 " The bear that was pursued soon took to the rocks, and, 
 urged by the red brand scorching his shaggy hams, was soon 
 beyond the reach of his pursuer. The latter now made towards 
 a fourth, that was still battling with two or three weak antago 
 nists. This one was ' routed ' in a twinkling, and with yells of 
 terror followed his comrades up the bluff. The strange man 
 looked around for the fifth. It had disappeared. Prostrate, 
 wounded men were strewed over the ground, but the bear was 
 nowhere to be seen. He had doubtless escaped through the snow. 
 
 " I was still wondering who was the hero of the firebrand, 
 arid where he had come from. I have said he was a strange- 
 looking man. He was so and like no one of our party that I 
 could think of. His head was bald no, not bald, but naked 
 there was not a hair upon it, crown or sides, and it glistened in 
 the clear light like polished ivory. I was puzzled beyond 
 expression, when a man Garey who had been felled upon the 
 platform by a blow from one of the bears, suddenly sprang to 
 his feet, exclaiming 
 
236 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. . 
 
 " * Go it, Doc ! Three chyars for the doctor !' 
 
 " To my astonishment, I now recognised the features of that 
 individual, the absence of whose brown locks had produced such 
 a metamorphosis as, I believe, was never effected by means ot 
 borrowed hair. 
 
 " ' Here's your scalp, Doc,' cried Garey, running up with the 
 wig ; ' by the livin' thunder ! yer saved us all ; ' and the hunter 
 seized the German in his wild embrace. 
 
 " Wounded men were all around, and commenced crawling 
 together. But where was the fifth of the bears ? Four only had 
 escaped by the cliff. 
 
 " ' Yonder he goes ?' cried a voice, as a light spray, rising 
 above the snow-wreath, showed that some animal was struggling 
 through the drift. 
 
 " Several commenced loading their rifles, intending to follow, 
 and, if possible, secure him. The Doctor armed himself with a 
 fresh pine ; but before these arrangements were completed, a 
 strrfnge cry came from the spot, that caused our blood to run 
 cold again. The Indians leaped to their feet, and, seizing their 
 tomahawks, rushed to the gap. They knew the meaning of that 
 cry it was the death-yell of their tribe ! 
 
 " They entered the road that we had trampled down in the 
 morning, followed by those who had loaded their guns. We 
 watched them from the platform' with anxious expectation, but 
 before they reached the spot, we could see that the ' stoor ; was 
 slowly settling down. It was plain that the struggle had ended. 
 
 " We still stood waiting in breathless silence, and watching 
 the floating spray that noted their progress through the drift. 
 At length they had reached the scene of the struggle. There 
 was an ominous stillness, that lasted for a moment, and then the 
 Indian's fate was announced in the sad, wild note that came 
 wailing up the valley. It was the dirge of a Shawauo warrior 1 
 
 " They had found their brave comrade dead, with his scalping- 
 knife buried in the heart of bis terrible antagonist ! * * 
 
A BATTLE WITH GRIZZLY BEARS. 237 
 
 " It was a costly supper, that bear-meat, but, perhaps, the 
 sacrifice had saved many lives. We would keep the ' cimnaaron' 
 for to-morrow ; next day, the man-root ; and the next what 
 next ? Perhaps the man ! 
 
 " Fortunately, we were not driven to this extremity. The 
 frost had again set, and the surface of the snow, previously 
 moistened by the sun and rain, soon became caked into ice 
 strong enough to bear us, and upon its firm crust we escaped 
 out of the perilous pass, and gained the warmer region of the 
 plains in safety ." 
 
238 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 CHAPTER XXYII. 
 
 THE SWANS OF AMERICA. 
 
 IN our journey we had kept far enough to the north to avoid 
 the difficult route of the Ozark Hills ; and we at length 
 encamped upon the Marais de Cygnes, a branch of the Osage 
 River. Beyond this we expected to fall in with the buffalo, and 
 of course we were full of pleasant anticipation. Near the point 
 where we had pitched our camp, the banks of the river were 
 marshy, with here and there small lakes of stagnant water. In 
 these a large number of swans, with wild geese and other aquatic 
 birds, were swimming and feeding. 
 
 Of course our guns were put in requisition, and we succeeded 
 in killing a brace of swans, with a grey goose (Anser Cana- 
 densis), and a pair of ducks. The swans were very large ones 
 of the Trumpeter species and one of them was cooked for 
 supper. It was in excellent condition, and furnished a meal for 
 the whole of our party 1 The other swan, with the goose and 
 ducks, were stowed away for another occasion. 
 
 While " discussing " the flesh of this great and noble bird, we 
 also discussed many of the points in its natural history. 
 
 " White as a swan " is a simile old as language itself. It 
 would, no doubt, puzzle an Australian, used to look upon those 
 beautiful and stately birds as being a very different complexion. 
 The simile holds good, however, with the North American 
 species, all three of which for there are three of them are 
 almost snow-white. 
 
 We need not describe the form or general appearance of the 
 
THE SWANS OF AMERICA. 239 
 
 swan. These are familiar to every one. The long, upright, and 
 gracefully-curving neck ; the finely-moulded breast, the upward- 
 tending tail-tip, the light " dip/' and easy progression through 
 the water, are points that everybody has observed, admired, and 
 remembered. These are common to all birds of the genus 
 Cygnus, and are therefore not peculiar to the swans of America. 
 
 Many people fancy there are but two kinds of swans the 
 white and black. It is not long since the black ones have been 
 introduced to general notoriety, as well as to general admiration. 
 But there are many distinct species besides species differing from 
 each other in size, voice, and other peculiarities. In Europe 
 alone, there are four native swans, specifically distinct. 
 
 It was long believed that the common American swan (C. 
 Americanus) was identical with the common European species, 
 so well known in England. It is now ascertained, however, not 
 only that these two are specifically distinct, but that in North 
 America there exists two other species, differing from the C. 
 Americanus, and from each other. These are the Trumpeter ( C. 
 buccinnator) and the small swan of Bewick (C. Bewickii), also 
 an inhabitant of European countries. 
 
 The common American species is of a pure white, with black 
 bill, legs, and feet. A slight tinge of brownish red is found on 
 some individuals on the crown of the head, and a small patch of 
 orange-yellow extends from the angles of the mouth to the eye. 
 On the base of the bill is a fleshy tubercle or knob, and the 
 upper mandible is curved at the top. 
 
 The young of this species are of a bluish-grey colour, with 
 more of the brown-red tinge upon the head. The naked yellow 
 patch, extending from the angles of the mouth to the eye, in the 
 young birds, is covered with feathers, and their bills are flesh 
 coloured. This description answers in every respect for the 
 swan of Bewick ; but the latter species is only three-fourths the 
 size of the former ; and, besides, it has only eighteen tail feathers 
 
240 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 while the American swan has twenty. Their note is also entirely 
 unlike. 
 
 The " Trumpeter " is different from either. He is the largest, 
 being frequently met with of nearly six feet in length, while the 
 common swan rarely exceeds five. The bill of the Trumpeter is 
 not tuberculated ; and the yellow patch under the eye is want 
 ing. The bill, legs, and feet are entirely black. All the rest is 
 white, with the exception of the head, which is usually tinged 
 with chestnut or red-brown. When young, he is of a greyish 
 white, with a yellow mixture, and the head of deeper red-brown. 
 His tail feathers are twenty-four in number ; but there is a 
 material difference between him and his congeners in the arrange 
 ment of the wind-pipe. In the Trumpeter this enters a protu 
 berance that stands out on the dorsal aspect of the sternum, 
 which is wanting in both the other kinds. It may be that this 
 arrangement has something to do with his peculiar note, which 
 differs altogether from that of the others. It is much fuller and 
 louder, and at a distance bears a considerable resemblance to the 
 trumpet or French horn. Hence the trivial name by which the 
 species is known to the hunters. 
 
 All the American swans are migratory that is, they pass 
 from north to south every autumn, and back again from south 
 to north in the beginning of spring. 
 
 The period of their migration is different with the three species. 
 The Trumpeter is the earliest, preceding all other birds, with the 
 exception of the eagles. The C. Amcricanus comes next ; and, 
 lastly the small swans, which are among the very latest of migra 
 tory birds. 
 
 The Trumpeters seek the north at the breaking up of the ice. 
 Sometimes they arrive at a point in their journey where this has 
 not taken place. In such cases they fly back again until they 
 reach some river or lake from which the ice has disappeared, 
 where they remain a few days, and wait the opening of the 
 
THE SWANS OF AMERICA. 241 
 
 waters further north. When they are thus retarded and sent 
 back, it is always in consequence of some unusual and unreason 
 able weather. 
 
 The swans go northward to breed. Perhaps they feel more 
 secure in the inhospitable wastes that lie within the Arctic circle. 
 The Trumpeters breed as far south as latitude 61, but most of 
 them retire within the frigid zone. 
 
 The small swans do not nest so far south, but pursue their 
 course still onward to the Polar Sea. Here they build immense 
 nests by raising heaps of peat moss, six feet in length by four in 
 width, and two feet high. In the top of these heaps is situated 
 the nest, which consists of a cavity a foot deep, and a foot and 
 a half in diameter. 
 
 The Trumpeters and American swans build in marshes and the 
 islands of lakes. Where the muskrat (Fiber zibethicus) abounds, 
 his dome-shaped dwelling' at that season, of course, deserted 
 serves often as the breeding-place both for the swans and wild 
 geese. On the top of this structure, isolated in the midst of 
 great marshes, these birds are secure from all their enemies the 
 eagle excepted. 
 
 The eggs of the Trumpeter are very large, one of them being 
 enough to make a good meal for a man. The eggs of the Ame 
 rican species are smaller and of a greenish appearance, while 
 those of the Bewick swan are still smaller, and of a brownish- 
 white colour, with a slight clouding of darker hue. 
 
 Six or seven eggs is the usual " setting." The cygnets, when 
 half or full grown, are esteemed good eating, and are much 
 sought after by the hunters and Indians of the fur countries. 
 
 When the cygnets are full grown, and the frost makes its 
 appearance upon the lakes and rivers of the hyperborean regions, 
 the swans begin to shift southwards. They do not migrate 
 directly, as in the spring, but take more time on their journey, 
 and remain longer in the countries through which they pass. 
 
 11 
 
242 
 
 This no doubt arises from the fact that a different motive or 
 instinct now urges them. In the spring they are under the 
 influence of philoprogenitiveness. Now they range from lake to 
 lake and stream to stream in search only of food. Again, as in 
 the spring, the Trumpeters lead the van winging their way to 
 the great lakes, and afterwards along the Atlantic coast, and by 
 the line of the Mississippi, to the marshy shores of the Mexican 
 Sea. 
 
 It may be remarked that this last-mentioned species the 
 Trumpeter is rare upon the Atlantic coast, where the common 
 swan is seen in the greatest plenty. Again, the Trumpeter does 
 not appear on the Pacific or by the Columbia River, where the 
 common swan is met with, but the latter is there outnumbered 
 by the small species (C. Bewickii) in the ratio of five to one. 
 This last again is not known in the fur countries of the interior, 
 where the C. Americanus is found, but where the Trumpeter 
 exists in greatest numbers. Indeed the skins of the Trumpeter 
 are those which are mostly exported by the Hudson's Bay Com 
 pany, and which form an important article of their commerce. 
 
 The swan is eagerly hunted by the Indians who inhabit the 
 fur countries. Its skin brings good price from the traders, and 
 its quills are valuable. Besides, the flesh is a consideration 
 with these people, whose life, it must be borne in mind, is one 
 continuous struggle for food ; and who, for one-half the year, live 
 upon the very verge of starvation. 
 
 The swan, therefore, being a bird that weighs between twenty 
 and thirty pounds, ranks among the large game, and is hunted 
 with proportionate ardour. Every art the Indian can devise is 
 made use of to circumvent these great birds, and snares, traps, 
 and decoys of all kinds are employed in the pursuit. 
 
 But the swans are among the shiest of all God's creatures ; 
 they fly so rapidly, unless when beating against the wind, that 
 it requires a practised shot to hit them on the wing. Even when 
 
THE SWANS OF AMERICA. 243 
 
 moulting their feathers, or when young, they can escape 
 fluttering over the surface of the water faster than a canoe can 
 be paddled. 
 
 The most usual method of hunting them is by snares. 
 These are set in the following manner : 
 
 A lake or river is chosen, where it is known the swans are in 
 the habit of resting for some time on their migration southward 
 for this is the principal season of swan-catching. 
 
 Some time before the birds make their appearance, a number 
 of wicker hedges are constructed, running perpendicularly out 
 from the bank, and at the distance of a few yards from each 
 other. In the space between, as well as in openings left in the 
 fences themselves, snares are set. These snares are made of 
 the intestines of the deer, twisted into a round shape and 
 looped. They are placed so that several snares may embrace 
 the opening, and the swans cannot pass through without being 
 caught. 
 
 The snare is fastened to a stake, driven into the mud with 
 sufficient firmness to hold the bird when caught and struggling. 
 That the snare may not be blown out of its proper place by the 
 wind, or carried astray by the current, it is attached to the 
 wattles of the hedge by some strands of grass. These, of 
 course, are easily broken, and give way the moment a bird 
 presses against the loop. 
 
 The fences or wattle-hedges are always constructed projecting 
 out from the shore for it is known that the swans must keep 
 close to the land while feeding. Whenever a lake or river is 
 sufficiently shallow to make it possible to drive in stakes, the 
 hedges are continued across it from one side to the other. 
 
 Swans are also snared upon their nests. When a nest is 
 found, the snare is set so as to catch the bird upon her return to 
 the eggs. These birds, like many others, have the habit of 
 entering the nest on one side, and going out by the other, and it 
 is upon the entrance side that the snare is set. 
 
244 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 The Indians have a belief that if the hands of the persons 
 setting the snare be not clean, the bird will not approach it, but 
 rather desert her eggs, even though she may have been hatching 
 them for some time. 
 
 It is, indeed, true that this is a habit of many birds, and may 
 be so of the wild swan. Certain it is that the nest is always 
 reconnoitred by the returning bird with great caution, and any 
 irregularity appearing about it will render her extremely shy of 
 approaching it. 
 
 Swans are shot, like other birds, by " approaching " them 
 under cover. It requires very large shot to kill them the same 
 that is used for the deer, and known throughout America as 
 " buck shot." In England this size of shot is termed " swan 
 shot." 
 
 It is difficult to get within range of the wild swan. He is by 
 nature a shy bird ; and his long neck enables him to see over 
 the sedge that surrounds him. Where there happens to be no 
 cover and this is generally the case where he haunts it is 
 impossible to approach him. 
 
 Sometimes the hunter floats down upon him with his canoe 
 hidden by a garniture of reeds and bushes. At other times he 
 gets near enough in the disguise of a deer or other quadruped 
 for the swan, like most wild birds, is less afraid of the lower 
 animals than of man. 
 
 During the spring migration, when the swan is moving north 
 ward, the hunter, hidden under some rock, bank, or tree, 
 frequently lures him from his high flight by the imitation of his 
 well-known " hoop." This does not succeed so well in the 
 autumn. 
 
 When the swans arrive prematurely on their spring journey, 
 they resort sometimes in considerable flocks to the springs and 
 waterfalls, all other places being then ice-bound. At this time 
 the hunters conceal themselves in the neighbourhood, obtain the 
 desired proximity, and deal destruction with their guns. 
 
THE SWANS OF AMERICA. 245 
 
 A related an account of a swan hunt by torch -light, 
 
 which he had made some years before. 
 
 " I was staying some days," said he, " at a remote settlement 
 upon one of the streams that run into the Red river of the 
 north. It was in the autumn season, and the Trumpeter swans 
 had arrived in the neighbourhood on their annual migration to 
 the south. I had been out several times after them with my 
 gun, but was unable to get a shot at them in consequence of 
 their shyness. I had adopted every expedient I could think of 
 calls, disguises, and decoys but all to no purpose. I resolved, 
 at length, to try them by torch-light. 
 
 " It so happened that none of the hunters at the settlement 
 had ever practised this method ; but as most of them had 
 succeeded, by some means or other, in decoying and capturing 
 several swans by other means, my hunter-pride was touched, and 
 I was most anxious to show that I could kill swans as well as 
 they. I had never seen swans shot by torch-light, but I had 
 employed the plan for killing deer, as you already know, and I 
 was determined to make a trial of it upon the swans. 
 
 "I set secretly about it, resolved to steal a march upon my 
 neighbours, if possible. My servant alone was admitted into my 
 confidence, and we proceeded to make the necessary arrange 
 ments. 
 
 " These were precisely similar to those already described in 
 my hunt of the long-tails, except that the canoe, instead of being 
 ' a dug out,' was a light craft of birch bark, such as are in use 
 among the Chippewas and other Indians of the northern coun 
 tries. The canoe was obtained from a settler, and filled with 
 torchwood and other necessary articles, but these were clandes 
 tinely put on board. 
 
 " I was now ready, and a dark night was all that was wanted 
 to enable me to carry out my plan. 
 
 " Fortunately I soon obtained this to my heart's satisfaction. 
 
246 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 A night arrived as dark as Erebus ; and with my servant using 
 the paddle, we pushed out and shot swiftly down-stream. 
 
 " As soon as we had cleared the 'settlement,' we lit our pine- 
 knots in the frying pan. The blaze refracted from the concave 
 and blackened surface of the bark, cast a brilliant light over the 
 semicircle ahead of us, at the same time that we, behind the 
 screen of birch bark, were hid in utter darkness. I had heard 
 that the swans, instead of being frightened by torch-light, only 
 became amazed, and even at times curious enough to approach, 
 it, just as the deer and some other animals do. This proved to 
 be correct, as we had very soon a practical illustration of it. 
 
 " We had not gone a mile down the river when we observed 
 several white objects within the circle of our light ; and paddling 
 a little nearer, we saw that they were swans. We could distin 
 guish their Jong, upright necks ; and saw that they had given up 
 feeding, and were gazing with wonder at the odd object that 
 was approaching them. 
 
 " There were five of them in the flock ; and I directed my 
 servant to paddle towards that which seemed nearest, and to use 
 his oar with as much silence as possible. At the same time I 
 looked to the caps of my double-barrelled gun. 
 
 " The swans for a time remained perfectly motionless, sitting 
 high in the water, with their long necks raised far above the 
 surface. They appeared to be more affected by surprise than 
 fear. 
 
 " When we had got within about a hundred yards of them, 
 I saw that they began to move about, and close into one 
 another ; at the same time was heard proceeding from them a 
 strange sound resembling very much the whistle of the fallow 
 deer. I had heard of the singing of the swan, as a prelude to 
 death, and I hoped that that which now reached my ears was a 
 similar foreboding. 
 
 "In order to make it so, I leaned forward, levelled my 
 
THE SWANS OF AMERICA. 247 
 
 * > ' ^ ' ' ^ * 
 
 9 
 
 double-barrel both barrels being cocked and waited the 
 moment. 
 
 " The birds had ' clumped ' together, until their long serpent- 
 like necks crossed each other. A few more noiseless strokes of 
 the paddle brought me within reach, and aiming for the heads 
 of three that * lined,' I pulled both triggers at once. 
 
 "The immense recoil flung me back, and the smoke for a 
 moment prevented us from seeing the effect. 
 
 " As soon as it had been wafted aside, our eyes were feasted 
 by the sight of two large white objects floating down .the current, 
 while a third, evidently wounded, struggled along the surface, 
 and was beating the water into foam with its broad wings. 
 
 " The remaining two had risen high into the air, and were 
 heard uttering their loud trumpet notes as they winged their 
 flight through the dark heavens. 
 
 " We soon bagged our game, both dead and wounded, and 
 saw that they were a large ' gander ' and two young birds. 
 
 " It was a successful beginning ; and having replenished our 
 torch, we continued to float downwards in search of more. Half 
 a mile further on, we came in sight of three others, one of which 
 we succeeded in killing. 
 
 "Another 'spell' of paddling brought us to a third flock, 
 out of which I got one for each barrel of my gun ; and a short 
 distance below I succeeded in killing a pair of the grey wild 
 geese. 
 
 " In this way we kept down the river for at least ten miles I 
 should think, killing both swans and geese as we went. Indeed, 
 the novelty of the thing, the wild scenery through which we 
 passed rendered more wild and picturesque by the glare of the 
 torch and the excitement of success, all combined to render the 
 sport most attractive ; and but that our ' pine-knots ' had run 
 out, I would have continued it until morning. 
 
 "The failure of these at length brought our shooting to a ter- 
 
248 THE HUNTER'S FEAST. 
 
 mination, and we were compelled to put about, and undertake 
 the less pleasant, and much more laborious task of paddling ten 
 miles up-stream. The consciousness, however, of having per 
 formed a great feat in the language of the Canadian hunters, 
 a grand ' coup,' made the labor seem more light, and we soon 
 arrived at the settlement, and next morning triumphantly 
 paraded our game-bag in front of our ' lodge.' 
 
 " Its contents were twelve Trumpeter swans, besides three of 
 the 'hoopers.' We had also a pair of Canada geese ; a snow- 
 goose, and three brant, these last being the produce of a single 
 shot. . 
 
 " The hunters of the settlement were quite envious, and could 
 not understand what means I had employed to get up such a 
 * game-bag.' I intended to have kept that for some time a secret ; 
 but the frying-pan and the piece of blackened bark were found, 
 and these betrayed my stratagem ; so that on the night after, 
 a dozen canoes, with torches at their bows, might have been seen 
 floating down the waters of the stream." 
 
HUNTING THE MOOSE. 249 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 
 HUNTING THE MOOSE. 
 
 WHILE crossing the marshy bottom through which our road 
 led, a singular hoof-track was observed in the mud. Some were 
 of opinion that it was a track of the great moose-deer, but the 
 hunter-naturalist, better informed, scouted the idea declaring 
 that moose never ranged so far id the south. It was no doubt 
 a very large elk that had made the track, and to this conclusion 
 all at length came. 
 
 The great moose-deer, however, was an interesting theme, and 
 we rode along conversing upon it. 
 
 The moose (Cervus alces) is the largest of the deer kind. The 
 male is ordinarily as large as a mule ; specimens have been killed 
 of still greater dimensions. One that has been measured, stood 
 seventeen hands, and weighed 1200 Ibs. ; it was consequently 
 larger than most horses. The females are considerably smalfei 
 than the males. 
 
 The colour of the moose, like that of other animals of the deei 
 kind, varies with the season ; it varies also with the sex. The 
 male is tawny-brown over the back, sides, head, and thighs ; thif 
 changes to a darker hue in winter, and in very old animals it ia 
 nearly black ; hence the name " black elk," which is given in 
 some districts to the moose. The under parts of the body are 
 light-coloured, with a tinge of yellow or soiled white. 
 
 The female is of a sandy-brown colour above, and beneath 
 almost white. The calves are sandy brown, but never spotted, 
 as are the fawns of the common deer. 
 
 The moose is no other than the elk of Northern Europe ; but 
 11* 
 
250 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 the elk of America (Cervus Canadensis), as already stated, is 
 altogether a different animal. These two species may be mis 
 taken for each other, in the season when- their antlers are young, 
 or in the velvet ; then they are not unlike to a superficial obser 
 ver. But the animals are rarely confounded only the names. 
 The American elk is not found indigenous in the eastern hemi 
 sphere, although he is the ornament of many a lordly park. 
 
 The identity of the moose with the European elk is a fact that 
 leads to curious considerations. A similar identity exists 
 between the caribou of Canada and the reindeer of Northern 
 Europe they are both the Cervus tarandus of Pliny. So also 
 with the polar bear of both hemispheres, the arctic fox, and seve 
 ral other animals. Hence we infer, that there existed at some 
 period either a land connection, or some other means of commu 
 nication, between the northern parts of both continents. 
 
 Besides being the largest, the moose is certainly the most 
 ungraceful of the deer family. His head is long, out of all pro 
 portion ; so, too, are his legs ; while his neck is short in an 
 inverse ratio. His ears are nearly a foot in length, asinine, 
 broad, and slouching ; his eyes are small ; and his muzzle 
 square, with a deep sulcus in the middle, which gives it the 
 appearance of being bifid. The upper lip overhangs the under 
 by several inches, and is highly prehensile. A long tuft of 
 coarse hair grows out of an excrescence on the throat, in the 
 angle between the head and neck. This .uft is observed both 
 in the male and female, though only when full grown. In the 
 young, the excrescence is naked. 
 
 An erect mane, somewhat resembling that of a cropped Shet 
 land pony, runs from the base of the horns over the withers, and 
 some way down the back. This adds to the stiff and ungainly 
 appearance of the animal. 
 
 The horns of the moose are a striking characteristic : they are 
 palmated or flattened out like shovels, while along the edge rise 
 
HUNTING THE MOOSE. 251 
 
 the points or antlers. The width from horn to horn at their tops 
 is often more than four feet, and the breadth of a single one, ant 
 lers included, is frequently thirty inches. A single pair has been 
 known to weigh as much as 60 Ib. avoirdupois ! 
 
 Of course this stupendous head-dress gives the moose quite 
 an imposing appearance ; and it is one of the wonders of the 
 naturalist what can be its object. 
 
 The horns are found only on the males, and attain their full 
 size only when these have reached their seventh year. In the 
 yearlings appear two knobs, about an inch in length ; in two- 
 year-olds, these knobs have become spikes a foot high ; in the 
 third year they begin to palmate, and antlers rise along their 
 edges ; and so on, until the seventh year, when they become 
 fully developed. They are annually caducous, however, as with 
 the common deer, so that these immense appendages are the 
 growth of a few weeks ! 
 
 The haunts and habits of the moose differ materially from 
 those of other deer. He cannot browse upon level ground 
 without kneeling or widening his legs to a great extent : this dif 
 ficulty arises from the extreme length of his legs, and the short 
 ness of his neck. He can do better upon the sides of steep hills, 
 and he is often seen in such places grazing upward. 
 
 Grass, however, is not his favourite food : he prefers the twigs 
 and leaves of trees such as birch, willow, and maple. There is 
 one species of the last of which he is extremely fond ; it is that 
 known as striped maple (Acer stria turn), or, in the language of 
 hunters, " moose- wood." He peels off the bark from old trees 
 of this sort, and feeds upon it, as well as upon several species of 
 mosses with which the arctic regions abound. It will be seen 
 that in these respects he resembles the giraffe : he may be 
 regarded as the giraffe of the frigid zone. 
 
 The moose loves the forest; he is rarely found in the open 
 ground on the prairie, never. 
 
252 
 
 On open level ground, he is easily overtaken by the hunter ; 
 as he makes but a poor run in such a situation. His feet are 
 tender, and his wind short ; besides, as we have already said, he 
 cannot browse there without great inconvenience. He keeps in 
 the thick forest and the impenetrable swamp, where he finds the 
 food most to his liking. 
 
 In summer, he takes to the water, wading into lakes and 
 rivers, and frequently swimming across both. This habit renders 
 him at that season an easy prey to his enemies, the Indian hun 
 ters, for in the water he is easily killed. Nevertheless, he loves 
 to bury himself in the water, because along the shores of lakes 
 and margins of rivers he finds the tall reed-grass, and the pond- 
 lily the latter a particular favourite with him. In this way, 
 too, he rids himself of the biting gnats and stinging mosquitoes 
 that swarm there ; and also cools his blood, fevered by parasites, 
 larvae, and the hot sun. 
 
 The female moose produces one, two, and sometimes three 
 calves at a birth; this is in April or May. The period of 
 gestation is nine months. 
 
 During the summer, they are seen in families that is, a bull 
 a cow, and two calves. Sometimes the group includes three or 
 four cows ; but this is rare. 
 
 Occasionally, when the winter comes on, several of these 
 family parties unite, and form herds of many individuals. When 
 the snow is deep, one of these herds will tread down a space of 
 several acres, in which they will be found browsing on the bark 
 and twigs of the trees. A place of this sort is termed by the 
 hunters a " moose-yard ;" and in such a situation the animals 
 become an easy prey. They are shot down on the spot, and 
 those that attempt to escape through the deep snow are over 
 taken and brought to bay by dogs. This only can happen, how 
 ever, when the snow is deep and crusted with frost ; otherwise, 
 the hunters and their dogs, as well as their heavier game, would 
 
HUNTING THE MOOSE. - 253 
 
 sink in it. When the snow is of old standing, it becomes icy 
 on the surface through the heat of the sun, rain, and frost; 
 then it will bear the hunter, but not the deer. The latter break 
 through it, and as these animals are tender-hoofed, they are 
 lacerated at every jump. They soon feel the pain, give up the 
 attempt to escape, and come to bay. 
 
 It is dangerous for dogs to approach them when in this mood. 
 They strike with the hoofs of their forefeet, a single blow of 
 which often knocks the breath out of the stoutest deer-hound. 
 There are many records of hunters having been sacrificed in a 
 similar manner. 
 
 Where the moose are plentiful, the Indians hunt them by 
 pounding. This is done simply by inclosing a large tract of 
 woods, with a funnel-shaped entrance leading into the inclosure. 
 The wide mouth of the entrance embraces a path which the 
 deer habitually take ; upon this they are driven by the Indians, 
 deployed in a wide curve, until they enter the funnel, and the 
 pound itself. Here there are nooses set, in which many are 
 snared, while others are shot down by the hunters who follow. 
 This method is more frequently employed with the caribou, 
 which are much smaller, and more gregarious than the moose- 
 deer. 
 
 We have already said that the moose are easily captured in 
 summer, when they resort to the lakes and rivers to wade and 
 swim. The biting of gnats and mosquitoes renders them less 
 fearful of the approach of man. The Indians then attack them 
 in their canoes,* and either shoot or spear them while paddling 
 alongside. 
 
 They are much less dangerous to assail in this way than the 
 elk or even the common deer (Cervus Virginianus), as the latter, 
 when brought in contact with the frail birch-canoe, often kick 
 up in such a manner as to upset it, or break a hole through its 
 side. On the contrary, the moose is frequently caught by the 
 
254 
 
 antlers while swimming, and in this way carried alongside with 
 out either difficulty or danger. 
 
 Although in such situations these huge creatures are easily 
 captured, it is far otherwise as a general rule. Indeed, few ani 
 mals are more shy than the moose. Its sight is acute ; so, too, 
 with its sense of smell ; but that organ in which it chiefly con 
 fides is the ear. It can hear the slightest noise to a great 
 distance ; and the hunter's foot among the dead leaves, or upon 
 the frozen snow-crust, often betrays him long before he can 
 creep within range. They are, however, frequently killed by 
 the solitary hunter stealing upon them, or " approaching," as it 
 is termed. To do this, it is absolutely necessary to keep to lee 
 ward of them, else the wind would carry to their quick ears 
 even the cautious tread of the Indian hunter. 
 
 There is one other method of hunting the moose often prac_ 
 tised by the Indians that is, trailing them with raquets, or 
 snow-shoes, and running them down. As I had partaken of 
 this sport I was able to give an account of it to my companions. 
 
 "In the winter of 18 , I had occasion to visit a friend who 
 lived in the northern part of the state of Maine. My friend 
 was a backwood settler ; dwelt in a comfortable log-house ; 
 raised corn, cattle, and hogs ; and for the rest, amused himself 
 occasionally with a hunt in the neighbouring woods. This he 
 could do without going far from home, as the great forests of 
 pine, birch, and maple trees on all sides surrounded his solitary 
 clearing, and his nearest neighbour was about twenty miles off. 
 Literally, my friend lived in the woods, and the sports of the 
 chase were with him almost a necessity; at all events, they were 
 an every-day occupation. 
 
 " Up to the time of my visit, I had never seen a moose except 
 in museums. I had never been so far north upon the American 
 Continent ; and it must be remembered, that the geographical 
 range of the moose is confined altogether to the cold countries. 
 
HUNTING THE MOOSE. 255 
 
 It is only in the extreme northern parts of the United States 
 that he appears at all. Canada, with the vast territories Of the 
 Hudson's Bay Company, even to the shores of the Arctic Sea, 
 is the proper habitat of this animal. 
 
 " I was familiar with bears ; cougars I had killed ; elk and 
 fallow-deer I had driven ; 'coons and possums I had treed ; in 
 short, I had been on hunting terms with almost every game in 
 America except the moose. I was most eager, however, to have 
 a shot at one of these creatures, and I well remember the delight 
 I experienced when my friend informed me there were moose in 
 the adjacent woods. 
 
 "On the day after my, arrival, we set forth in search of them, 
 each armed with a hunting-knife and a heavy deer-gun. We 
 went a-foot ; we could not go otherwise, as the snow lay to the 
 depth of a yard, and a horse would have plunged through it 
 with difficulty. It was an old snow, moreover, thickly crusted, 
 and would have maimed our horses in a few minutes. We, with 
 our broad rackets, could skim along without sinking below the 
 surface. 
 
 " I know not whether you have ever seen a pair of rackets, 
 or Indian snow-shoes, but their description is easy. You have 
 seen the rackets used in ball-play. Wei], now, fancy a hoop, 
 not of circular form, but forced into an elongated pointed ellipse,, 
 very much after the shape of the impression that a capsized 
 boat would make in snow : fancy this about three feet long, and 
 a foot across at its widest, closely netted over with gut or deer- 
 thong, with bars in the middle to rest the foot upon, and a small 
 hole to allow play to the toes, and you wHl have some idea of a 
 snow-shoe. Two of these right and left make a pair. They 
 are simply strapped on to your boots, and then their broad sur 
 face sustains you, even when the snow is comparatively soft, but 
 perfectly when it is frozen. 
 
 " Thus equipped, my friend and I set out a pied, followed by 
 
THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 a couple of stout deer-hounds. We made directly for a part of 
 the woods where it was known to my friend that the striped 
 maple grew in great plenty. It has been stated already, that 
 the moose are particularly fond of these trees, and there we would 
 be most likely to fall in with them. 
 
 " The striped maple is a beautiful deciduous little tree or shrub, 
 growing to the height of a dozen feet or so in its natural habitat. 
 When cultivated, it often reaches thirty feet. There is one at 
 Schoubrunn, near Yienna, forty feet high, but this is an excep 
 tion, and is the largest known. The usual height is ten or 
 twelve feet, and it is more often the underwood of the forest 
 than the forest itself. When thus situated, under the shade of 
 loftier trees, it degenerates almost to the character of a shrub. 
 
 " The trunk and branches of the striped maple are covered 
 with a smooth green bark, longitudinally marked with light and 
 dark stripes, by which the tree is easily distinguished from others, 
 and from which it takes its name. It has other trivial names in 
 different parts of the country. In New York state, it is called 
 'dogwood;' but improperly so, as the real dog-wood (Cornus 
 florida] is a very different tree. It is known also as ' false dog 
 wood,' and ' snake-barked maple.' The name Tuoose-wood is 
 common among the hunters and frontiers-men for reasons already 
 given. Where the striped maple is indigenous, it is one of the 
 first productions that announces the approach of spring. Its 
 buds and leaves, when beginning to unfold, are of a roseate hue, 
 and soon change to a yellowish green ; the leaves are thick, cor 
 date, rounded at the base, with three sharp lobes at the other 
 extremity, and finely serrated. They are usually four or five 
 inches in length and breadth. The tree flowers in May and 
 June, and its flowers are yellow-green, grouped on long pedun 
 cles. The fruit, like all other maples, consists of samara or 
 ' keys ;' it is produced in great abundance, aud is ripe in Septem 
 ber or October; 
 
HUNTING THE MOOSE. 257 
 
 " The wood is white and finely grained ; it is sometimes used 
 by cabinet-makers as a substitute for holly, in forming the lines 
 with which they inlay mahogany. 
 
 " In Canada, and those parts of the United States where it 
 gi ows in great plenty, the farmers in spring turn out their cattle 
 and horses to feed upon its leaves and young shoots, of which 
 these animals are extremly fond ; the more so as it is only in 
 very cold regions that it grows, and the budding of its foliage 
 even precedes the springing of the grass. Such is the tree which 
 forms the favourite browsing of the moose. 
 
 " To return to my narrative. 
 
 " After we had shuffled about two miles over the snow, my 
 friend and I entered a tract of heavy timber, where the striped 
 maple formed the underwood. It did not grow regularly, but 
 in copses or small thickets. We had already started some small 
 game, but declined following it, as we were bent only on a 
 moose-chase. 
 
 " We soon fell in with signs that indicated the propinquity of 
 the animals we were in search of. In several of the thickets, 
 the maples' were stripped of their twigs and bark, but this had 
 been done previous to the falling of the snow. As yet, there 
 were no tracks : we were not long, however, before this welcome 
 indication was met with. On crossing a glade where there was 
 but little snow, the prints of a great split hoof were seen, which 
 my friend at once pronounced to be those of the moose. 
 
 " We followed this trail for some distance, until it led into 
 deeper snow and a more retired part of the forest. The tracks 
 were evidently fresh ones, and those, as my friend asserted, of 
 an old bull. 
 
 " Half-a-mile further on, they were joined by others ; and the 
 trail became a broken path through the deep snow, as if it had 
 been made by farm-cattle following each other in single file. 
 Four moose had passed, as my friend skilled in woodcraft 
 
25S THE HUNTERS' FEAST 
 
 confidently asserted, although I conld not have told that from 
 the appearance of the trail. He went still farther in his 
 ' reckoning/ and stated that they were a bull, a cow, and two 
 nine-months' calves. 
 
 " ' You shall soon see/ he said, perceiving that I was some 
 what incredulous. * Look here !' he continued, bending down 
 and pressing the broken snow with his fingers ; ' they are quite 
 fresh made within an hour. Speak low the cattle can't be 
 far off. Yonder, as I live ! yonder they are hush !' 
 
 " My friend, as he spoke, pointed to a thicket about three 
 hundred yards distant ; I looked in that direction, but at first 
 could perceive nothing more than the thickly-growing branches 
 of the maples. 
 
 " After a moment, however, I could trace among the twigs 
 the long dark outlines of a strange animal's back, with a huge 
 pair of palmated horns rising above the underwood. It was 
 the bull-moose there was no mistaking him for any other crea 
 ture. Near him other forms three of them were visible : 
 these were of smaller stature, and I could see that they were 
 hornless. They were the cow and the calves ; and the herd was 
 made up, as my companion had foretold, of these four individuals. 
 
 " We had halted on the moment, each of us holding one of 
 the dogs, and endeavouring to quiet them, as they already 
 scented the game. We soon saw that it was of no use remain 
 ing where we were, as the herd was fully three hundred yards 
 from us, far beyond the reach of even our heavy deer- 
 guns. 
 
 " It would be of no use, either, to attempt stealing forward. 
 There was no cover that would effectually conceal us, for the 
 timber around was not large, and we could not, therefore, make 
 shift with the tree-trunks. 
 
 " There was no other mode, then, but to let the dogs free of 
 their leashes, and dash right forward. We knew we would not 
 
BUNTING THE MOOSE. 259 
 
 get a shot until after a run ; but this would not be long, thought 
 we, as the snow was in perfect order for our purpose. 
 
 " Our dogs were therefore unleashed, and went off with a 
 simultaneous ' growl,' while my friend and I followed as fast as 
 we could. 
 
 " The first note of the deer-hounds was a signal for the herd, 
 and we could hear their huge bodies crashing through the under 
 wood, as they started away. 
 
 " They ran across some open ground, evidently with the inten 
 tion of gaining the heavy timber beyond. On this ground there 
 was but little snow ; and as we came out through the thicket 
 we had a full view of the noble game. The old bull was in the 
 lead, followed by the others in a string. I observed that none 
 of them galloped a gait they rarely practise but all went in a 
 shambling trot, which, however, was a very fast one, equal to 
 the speed of a horse. They carried their heads horizontally, 
 with their muzzles directed forward, while the huge antlers of the 
 bull leaned back upon his shoulders as he ran. Another pecu 
 liarity that struck me the divisions of their great split hoofs, 
 as they lifted them from the ground, met with a cracking sound, 
 like the bursting of percussion-caps ; and the four together 
 rattled as they ran, as though a string of Fourth of July crackers 
 had been touched off. I have often heard a similar cracking 
 from the hoofs of farm-cattle ; but with so many hoofs together, 
 keeping up the fire incessantly, it produced a very odd impres 
 sion upon me. 
 
 " In a short time they were out of sight, but we could hear 
 the baying of the dogs as the latter closed upon them, and we 
 followed, guided by the trail they had made. 
 
 "We had skaited along for nearly a mile, when the howl of 
 the hounds began to sound through the woods with more abrupt 
 and fiercer echoes. We knew by this that the moose had been 
 brought to bay, and we hurried forward, eager to have a shot. 
 
260 THE HCJNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 " On arriving at the place, we found that the old bull had 
 made a stand, and he was successfully engaged in keeping off the 
 dogs, both with feet and horns. The others had gone forward, 
 and were out of view. 
 
 " The bull, on seeing us approach, once more took the trot, 
 and, followed by the dogs, was soon out of sight. ' , 
 
 " On reaching the spot where he had made his temporary 
 halt, we found that his trail there parted from that of the other 
 three, as he had taken almost an opposite direction. Whether 
 he had done so considerately, in order to lead the dogs away 
 from his weaker companions, I know not ; perhaps our sudden 
 appearance had terrified him into confusion, and he had struck 
 out without looking before him. 
 
 " We did not reflect on these points at the time. My friend, 
 who probably was thinking more about the meat than the sport, 
 without halting a moment, followed the trail of the cow and 
 calves ; while I, guided by different motives, took after the bull. 
 I was in too great a hurry to heed some admonitions which were 
 given by my friend as we parted company. As our trails sepa 
 rated, I heard him shouting to me to mind what I was about ; 
 but the courses we followed soon carried us beyond ear-shot or 
 sight of each other. 
 
 " I followed the chase about half a mile farther, guided by 
 the tracks, as well as by the baying of the hounds. Again this 
 assumed the fierce angry tone that denoted a battle going on 
 between the dogs and the deer. 
 
 " As I neared the spot, the voices of the former seemed to 
 grow feebler ; then there was a continued howling, as if the 
 hounds were being roughly handled, and one of them I noticed 
 was altogether silent. 
 
 " On arriving on the scene, which I did soon after, I learned 
 the cause of this change of tune. One of the dogs met me run 
 ning back on the trail on three legs only, and wofully mangled. 
 
HUNTING THE MOOSE. 261 
 
 The moose was standing in a snow-pit, which had been trodden 
 out by the animals while battling, and near his feet lay the other 
 dog, mutilated in a most fearful manner, and evidently quite 
 dead. The bull, in his rage, still continued to assail the dead 
 body of the hound, rising and pouncing down upon it with his 
 fore-hoofs until the ribs cracked under the concussion ! 
 
 "On seeing me, he again struck into the snow, and made off ; 
 I saw, however, that his limbs were much lacerated by the fro 
 zen crust, and that he ran slowly, leaving red tracks behind 
 him. 
 
 " I did not stop by the dogs one being dead, and the survivor 
 but little better but kept on after the game. 
 
 " We had now got into a tract where the snow lay of more 
 than usual depth, and my snow-shoes enabled me to skim along 
 faster than the moose himself, that I could easily perceive was 
 growing feebler at every plunge. I saw that I was gaining 
 upon him, and would soon be alongside. The woods through 
 which we were passing were pretty open, and I could note every 
 movement of the chase. 
 
 " I had got within a hundred yards of him, and was thinking 
 of firing at him as he ran, when all at once he came to a stop, and 
 wheeling suddenly round, stood facing me. His huge antlers 
 were thrown back until they touched his withers ; his mane 
 stood erect ; all the hair upon his body seemed to bristle for 
 ward ; and his whole attitude was one of rage and defiance : he 
 was altogether as formidable-looking an enemy as it had ever 
 been my lot to encounter. 
 
 " My first thought on getting near enough was to raise my 
 rifle and fire, which I did. I aimed for his chest, that was fair 
 before me ; but I shot wide, partly because my fingers were 
 numbed with cold, and partly because the sun at the moment 
 flashed in my eyes as I glanced along the barrel. I hit the 
 moose, however, but in a part that was not mortal in the 
 shoulder. 
 
262 
 
 " The shot enraged him, and without waiting fo'r me to reload, 
 he dashed madly forward towards me ; a few plunges brought 
 him up, and I had no resource but to get behind a tree. 
 
 " Fortunately there were some large pines in the neighbour 
 hood, and behind one of these I took shelter not, however, 
 before the enraged animal had almost impaled me upon his 
 antlers. As I slipped behind the trunk, he was following me so 
 close that his korus came in contact with the tree, causing it to 
 vibrate by the terrific shock. He himself drew back a pace or 
 two, and then stopped and stood fast, eyeing the tree with sullen 
 rage ; his eyes glared, and his long stiff hair seemed to quiver 
 as he threatened. 
 
 " In the hope that he would allow me time, I again bethought 
 me of loading my gun. What was my chagrin to find that I had 
 not a grain of powder about me ! My friend and I had started 
 with but one powder-flask, and that he had carried with him. 
 My gun was as useless as a bar of iron. 
 
 "What was to be done? I dared not approach the bull with 
 my knife ; my life would not have been worth five minutes' pur 
 chase. His horns and great sharp hoofs were weapons superior 
 to mine. He might throw me down at the first outset, gore me 
 to death, or trample me in the snow. I dared not risk such an 
 encounter. 
 
 " After reflecting for some time, I concluded that it would be 
 wiser for me to leave the moose where he was, and take the back 
 track without him. But how was J to get away from the spot ? 
 I was still behind the tree, and the enraged bull was within 
 three feet of it on the other side, without showing any symptoms 
 of retiring. Should I step either to one side or the other, he 
 would launch himself upon me, and the result would be my 
 certain destruction. 
 
 " I now began to perceive that I was in a fix regularly 
 ' treed/ in fact ; and the knowledge was anything but cheering. 
 I did not know how long I might be kept so ; .perhaps the 
 
HUNTING THE MOOSE. 283 
 
 moose might not lea-ve me at all, or until hunger had -done its 
 work. The wound I had given him had certainly rendered him 
 desperate and vengeful, and he appeared as if determined to 
 protract the siege indefinitely. 
 
 " After remaining nearly an hour in this situation, I began to 
 grow angry and impatient. I had shouted to frighten the bull, 
 but to no purpose ; I had shouted, and at the top of my voice, 
 in hopes that I might be heard by my friend, but there was no 
 response except the echoes of my own voice, borne hoarsely 
 through the aisles of the winter forest. I grew impatient of my 
 odd captivity, and determined to stand it no longer. 
 
 " Ou stealing a glance behind me, I perceived a tree as large 
 as the one which sheltered me. I resolved to make for that one, 
 as it would at least not render my situation worse should I reach 
 it in safety. This I effected, but not without having my speed 
 put to the test, for the moose followed so close as almost to 
 touch me with his brow-antlers. Once behind this new tree, I 
 was no better off than before, except that it brought me some 
 twenty paces nearer home. The moose still stood in front of me 
 only a few feet distant, and threatening as fiercely as ever. 
 
 " After waiting some minutes for my breath, I selected a third 
 tree in the right direction, and made for it in a similar manner, 
 the moose following as before. 
 
 " Another rest and another run brought me behind a fresh 
 tree, and another and another, until I must have made a full 
 mile through the woods, still followed by my implacable and 
 untiring enemy. I knew, however, that I was going homeward, 
 for I guided myself by the trail which we had made in the chase. 
 
 " I was in hopes that I might make the whole back-journey 
 in this way, when, all once I perceived that the heavy timber 
 came to an end, and a wide, almost open tract intersected the 
 country : over this the trees were small stunted pines, far apart, 
 and offering no hope of shelter from my relentless persecutor. 
 
264 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 "I had no alternative now but to remain where I was, an 
 await the arrival of my friend, who, I presumed, would com 
 after rne as soon as he had finished his own hunt. 
 
 " With this dubious hope, I kept my stand, although I wa 
 ready to drop Vith fatigue. To add to my misery, it commence' 
 snowing. I saw this with feelings akin to terror, for I kne^ 
 that the snow would soon blind the trail ; and how, then, wa 
 my friend to follow it, and find me ? The bull still stood befor 
 ine in the same threatening attitude, occasionally snorting 
 striking the ground with his hoofs, and ready to spring after m 
 whenever I should move. Ever as I changed the attitude of ru 
 body, he would start forward again, until I could almost touc 
 him with the muzzle of my gun. 
 
 " These manoeuvres on his part suggested to me an exper; 
 ment, and I wondered that I had not thought of it before, 
 was not long in resolving to carry it out. I was armed with ; 
 stout hunting-knife, a bowie : it was pointed as sharp as ; 
 needle ; and could I only have ventured near enough to the bull 
 I would soon have settled the dispute with him. The idea no\ 
 occurred to me of converting my bowie into a lance by splicing i 
 upon the barrel of my gun. With this I had hopes of bein; 
 able to reach my powerful assailant without coming within rang 
 either of his hoofs or horns. 
 
 " The lance was soon made, a pair of buckskin gaiters whic 
 I wore furnished me with thongs. My gun happened to be 
 long rifle ; and the knife, spliced firmly to the muzzle, rec 
 dered it a formidable weapon, so that in a few minutes 
 stood in a better attitude than I had assumed for hour 
 before. 
 
 " The affair soon came to an issue. As I had anticipated, b; 
 showing myself a little to one side of the tree, the bull spran< 
 forward, and I was enabled, by a dexterous thurst, to plant th 
 knife between his ribs. It entered his heart, and the nex 
 
II 
 
 If 
 
 l 
 
 I 
 
 If 
 
 
HUNTING THE MCOSE. 265 
 
 moment I saw him rolling over, and kicking the crimsoned snow 
 around him in the struggles of death. 
 
 "I had scarcely completed my victory, when a loud whoop 
 sounded in my ears, and looking up, I saw my friend making 
 towards me across the open ground. He had completed his 
 chase, having killed all three, cut them up, and hung their meat 
 upon the trees, to be sent for on our return to the house. 
 
 " By his aid the bull was disposed of in a similar manner ; 
 and being now satisfied with our day's sport though my friend 
 very much regretted the loss of his fine dog we commenced 
 shuffling homeward. 
 
 
 II 
 
266 THE HUNTERS' FEAST 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 THE PRAIRIE WOLF AND WOLF KILLER. 
 
 AFTER crossing the Marais de Cygnes River the country 
 became much more open. There was a mixture of timber and 
 prairie land the latter, however, constantly gaining the ascen 
 dancy as we advanced farther west. The openings became 
 larger, until they assumed the appearance of vast meadows, 
 inclosed by groves, that at a distance resembled gr"eat hedges. 
 Now and then there were copses that stood apart from the 
 larger tracts of forests, looking like islands upon the surface of 
 a great sea, and by the name of "islands" these detached 
 groves are known among the hunters and other denizens of 
 prairie land. Sometimes the surface was undulating, or, as it is 
 there termed, " rolling," and our road was varied, ascending or 
 descending, as we crossed the gentle declivities. The timber 
 through which we had up to this time been passing consisted of 
 ash, burr oak, black walnut, chestnut oak, buck eye, the Ameri 
 can elm, hickory, hack berry, sumach, and, in low moist places, 
 the sycamore, and long-leaved willow. These trees, with many 
 others, form the principal growth of the large forests, upon the 
 banks of the Mississippi, both east and west. 
 
 As we advanced westward, Besai^on called our attention to 
 the fact that all these kinds of timber, one by one, disappeared 
 from the landscape, and in their place a single species alone 
 made up the larger growth of the forest. This was the cele 
 brated "cotton-wood," a species of poplar (Populus angula,' 
 tus). I say celebrated, because, being almost the only tree of 
 
THE PRAIRIE WOLF AND WOLF KILLER. 26 Y 
 
 large size which is found throughout the region of the great 
 plains, it is well known to all hunters and prairie travellers, who 
 regard it with a peculiar veneration. A grove of cotton-wood is 
 always a glad sight to those who traverse the limitless levels of 
 the prairie. It promises shelter from the wind or sun, wood for 
 the camp-fire, and, above all, water to slake the thirst. As the 
 ocean mariner regards the sight of the welcome port, with similar 
 feelings of joy the mariner of the " prairie-sea" beholds, over 
 the broad waste, the silvery foliage of the cotton-wood grove, 
 regarding it as his temporary home his place of rest and 
 refuge. 
 
 After travelling through hundreds of small prairies, separated 
 from each other by groves of cotton-wood, we arrived at a high 
 point on the waters ok .the "Little Osage," another tributary 
 of the larger river of that name. As yet we had met with no 
 traces of the buffalo, and were beginning to doubt the correct 
 ness of the information we had received at St. Louis, when we 
 fell in with a band of Kanzas Indians a friendly tribe who 
 received us in the most courteous manner. From them we 
 learned that the buffalo had been upon the Little Osage at an 
 earlier period in that same year, but that harassed and deci 
 mated by their own hunters, they had roamed much farther 
 west, arid'were now supposed to be on the other side of the 
 "Neosho," or Grand River a northern tributary of the 
 Arkansas. 
 
 This was anything but pleasant news. We should have at 
 least another hundred miles to travel before coming up with our 
 game ; but there was no thought of going back until we had 
 done so. No, One and all declared, that rather than give up 
 the object of our expedition, we would travel on to the Rocky 
 Mountains themselves, risking the chances of being scalped by 
 hostile Indians. 
 
 There was a good deal of bravado in this, it is true ; but we 
 
268 
 
 were fully determined that we would not go back without our 
 buffalo hunt. 
 
 Thanking our Kanzas friends for their courtesy, we parted 
 from them, and headed westward for the Neosho. 
 
 As we proceeded, timber became scarce, until at length it was 
 found only on the banks of streams widely distant from each 
 other. Sometimes not a tree was in sight for the whole day's 
 journey. We were now fairly on the prairies. 
 
 We crossed the Neosho at length still no buffalo. 
 
 We kept on, and crossed several other large streams, all flow 
 ing south-easterly to the Arkansas. Still no buffalo. 
 
 We began to yearn exceedingly for a sight of the great game. 
 The few deer that were killed from time to time offered us but 
 poor sport, and their meat was not sufficient for our supply. 
 
 Of bacon we were heartily tired, and we longed for fresh buf- 
 Salo beef. The praises lavished by our guides upon the delicacy 
 of this viand their talk over the camp-fire, about " fat cow " 
 and " boudins " and " hump-ribs " quite tantalized our palates, 
 and we were all eager to try our teeth upon these vaunted 
 titbits. No buffalo appeared yet, and we were forced to chew 
 our bacon, as well as our impatience, for several days longer. 
 
 A great change now took place in the appearance of the coun 
 try. The timber became still more scarce, and the soil drier and 
 more sandy. Species of cactus (opuntia) appeared along the 
 route, with several other plants new to the eyes of most of us, 
 and which to those of Besancon were objects of extreme interest. 
 But that which most gratified us was the appearance of a new 
 herbage, different entirely from what we had been passing over, 
 and this was hailed by our guides with exclamations of joy. It 
 was the celebrated " buffalo grass." The trappers declared we 
 would not have much farther to go until we found the buffaloes 
 themselves, for, wherever this grass existed in plenty, the buf 
 falo, unless driven off by hunting, were sure to be found. 
 
THE PRAIRIE WOLF AND WOLF KILLER. 269 
 
 The buffalo grass is a short grass, not more than a few inches 
 in height, with crooked and pointed culms, often throwing out 
 suckers that root again, and produce other leaves and culms, and 
 in this way form a tolerably thick sward. When in flower or 
 seed, it is headed by numerous spikes of half an inch in length, 
 and on these the spikelets are regular and two rowed. 
 
 It is a species of Sesleria, (S. dactyloides), but Besanon 
 informed us that it possesses characters that cause it to differ 
 from the genus, and to resemble the Chondrosium. 
 
 The buffalo grass is not to be confounded with another cele 
 brated grass of the Texan and North Mexican prairies, the 
 "gramma" of the Spaniards. This last is a true Chondrosium, 
 and there are several species of it. The Chondrosium faneum 
 is one of the finest fodders in the world for the food of cattle, 
 almost equal to unthrashed oats. 
 
 The buffalo grass forms the favourite and principal fodder of 
 the buffaloes whenever it is in season, and these animals roam 
 over the prairies in search of it. 
 
 Of course with this knowledge we were now on the qui vive. 
 At every new rise that we made over the swells of the prairie 
 our eyes were busy, and swept the surface on every side of us, 
 and in the course of a few days we encountered several false 
 alarms. 
 
 There is an hallucination peculiar to the clear atmosphere of 
 these regions. Objects are not only magnified, but frequently 
 distorted in their outlines, and it is only an old hunter that 
 knows a buffalo when he sees one. By others a bush is often 
 taken for a wild bull, and with us a brace of carrion crows, 
 seated upon the crest of a ridge, were actually thought to be 
 buffaloes, until they suddenly took wing and rose into the air, 
 thus dispelling the allusion ! 
 
 Long before this time we had encountered that well-known 
 animal of the great plains the " prairie wolf," (Lv,pw 
 latrans] . 
 
270 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 The prairie-wolf inhabits the vast and still unpeopled (crrito* 
 ries that lie between the Mississippi River and the shores of the 
 Pacific Ocean. Its range extends beyond -what is strictly 
 termed " the prairies/'' It is found in the wooded and moun 
 tainous ravines of California and the Rocky Mountain districts. 
 It is common throughout the whole of Mexico, where it is known 
 as the "coyote." I have seen numbers of this species on the 
 battle-field, tearing at corpses, as far south as the valley of 
 Mexico itself. Its name of prairie-wolf is, therefore, in some 
 respects inappropriate, the more so, as the larger wolves are 
 also inhabitants of the prairie. No doubt this name was given 
 it, because the animal was first observed in the prairie country 
 west of the Mississippi by the early explorers of that region. 
 In the wooded countries east of the great river, the common 
 large wolf is only known. 
 
 Whatever doubt there may be of the many varieties of the 
 large wolf being distinct species, there can be none with regard 
 to the Lupus latrans. It differs from all the others in size, and 
 in many of its habits. Perhaps it more nearly resembles the 
 jackal than any other animal. It is the New-World representa 
 tive of that celebrated creature. 
 
 In size, it is just midway between the large wolf and fox. 
 With much of the appearance of the former, it combines all the 
 sagacity of the latter. It is usually of a greyish colour, lighter 
 or darker, according to circumstances, and with a tinge of cin 
 namon or brown. 
 
 As regards its cunning, the fox is " but a fool to it." It can 
 not be trapped. Some experiments made for the purpose show 
 results that throw the theory of instinct quite into the back 
 ground. It has been known to burrow under a " dead-fall," and 
 drag off the bait without springing the trap. The steel-trap it 
 avoids, no matter how concealed ; and the cage-trap has been 
 found " no go." 
 
 Farther illustrations of the cunning of the prairie-wolf might 
 
THE PRAIRIE WOLF AND WOLF KILLER. 2*11 
 
 be found in its mode of decoying within reach the antelopes and 
 other creatures on which it preys. 
 
 Of course this species is as much fox as wolf, for in reality a 
 small wolf is a fox, and a large fox is a wolf. To the traveller 
 and trapper of the prairie regions, it is a pest. It robs the for 
 mer of his provisions often stealing them out of his very tent ; 
 it unbaits the traps of the latter, or devours the game already 
 secured in them. 
 
 It is a constant attendant upon the caravans or travelling- 
 parties that cross the prairie-land. A pack of prairie-wolves 
 will follow such a party for hundreds of miles, in order to secure 
 the refuse left at the camps. They usually lie down upon the 
 prairie, just out of range of the rifles of the travellers ; yet they 
 do not observe this rule always, as they know there is not much 
 danger of being molested. Hunters rarely shoot them, not 
 deeming their hides worth having, and not caring to waste a 
 charge upon them. They are more cautious when following a 
 caravan of California emigrants, where there are plenty of 
 " greenhorns " and amateur-hunters ready to fire at any 
 thing. 
 
 Prairie-wolves are also constant attendants upon the " gangs" 
 of buffalo. They follow these for hundreds of miles 
 in fact, the outskirts of the buffalo herd are, for the time being, 
 their home. They lie down on the prairie at a short distance 
 from the buffaloes, and wait and watch, in hopes that some of 
 these animals may get disabled or separated from the rest, or 
 with the expectation that a cow with her new-dropped calf may 
 fall in the rear. In such cases, the pack gather round the unfor 
 tunate individual, and worry it to death. A wounded or super 
 annuated bull sometimes " falls out," and is attacked. In this 
 case the fight is more desperate, and the bull is sadly mutilated 
 before he can be brought to the ground. Several wolves, too, 
 are laid hors de combat during the struggle. 
 
2^2 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 The prairie traveller may often look around him without see 
 ing a single wolf ; but let him fire off his gun, and. as if by 
 magic, a score of them will suddenly appear. They start from 
 their hiding-places, and rush forward in hopes of sharing in the 
 produce of the shot. 
 
 At night, they enliven the prairie-camp with their dismal howl 
 ing, although most travellers would gladly dispense with such 
 music. Their note is a bark like that of a terrier-dog, repeated 
 three times, and then prolonged into a true wolfs howl. I have 
 heard farm-house dogs utter a very similar bark. From this 
 peculiarity, some naturalists prefer calling them the " barking 
 wolf," and that (Lupus latrans) is the specific appellation given 
 by Say, who first described them. 
 
 Prairie-wolves have all the ferocity of their race, but no crea 
 ture could be more cowardly. Of course no one fears them 
 under ordinary circumstances, but they have been known to 
 make a combined attack upon persons disabled, and in severe 
 weather, when they themselves were rendered unusually savage 
 by hunger, as already stated. But they are not regarded with 
 fear either by traveller or hunter ; and the latter disdains to 
 waste his charge upon such worthless game. 
 
 Our guide, Ike, was an exception to this rule. He was the 
 only one of his sort that shot prairie-wolves, and he did so, " on 
 sight." I believe if it had been the last bullet in his pouch, and 
 an opportunity bad offered of sending it into a prairie-wolf, he 
 would have despatched the leaden missile. We asked him how 
 many he had killed in his time. He drew a small notched stick 
 from his " possible sack," and desired us to count the notches 
 upon it. We did so. There were one hundred and forty-five 
 in all. 
 
 " Have you killed one hundred and forty-five, then ?" cried 
 we, astonished at the number. 
 
 " Yes, i'deed," replied he, with a quiet chuckle, " that many 
 
THE PRAIRIE WOLF AND WOLF KILLER. 213 
 
 dozen ; for every 7 un of them nutches count twelve. I only 
 make a nutch when I've throwed the clur dozen," 
 
 " A hundred and forty-five dozen !" we repeated in astonish 
 ment ; and yet I have no doubt of the truth of the trapper's 
 statement, for he had no interest in deceiving us. I am satisfied 
 from what I knew of him, that he had slain the full number 
 stated one thousand seven hundred and forty ! 
 
 Of course we became curious to learn the cause of his anti 
 pathy to prairie-wolves ; for we knew he had an antipathy, and 
 it was that that had induced him to commit such wholesale 
 havoc upon these creatures. It was for this circumstance he 
 had obtained the sobriquet of " wolf-killer." By careful man 
 agement, we at last got him upon the edge of the story, and 
 quietly pushed him into it. He gave it to us as follows : 
 
 " Wai, strangers, about ten winters agone, I wur travellin' 
 from Bent's Fort on the Arkensaw, to 'Laramie on the Platte, 
 all alone b' myself. I had undertuk the journey on some busi 
 ness for Bill Bent no matter now what. 
 
 " I had crossed the divide, and got within sight o' the Black 
 Hills, when one night I had to camp out on the open parairy 
 without either bush or stone to shelter me. 
 
 " That wur, perhaps, the coldest night this nigger remembers, 
 thur wur a wind kim down from the mountains that wud a frozt 
 the har off an iron dog. I gathered my blanket around me, bu) 
 that wind whistled through it as if it had been a rail-fence. 
 
 " 'Twan't no use lyin' down, for I couldn't a slep, so I sot up 
 
 " You may ask why I hadn't a fire ? I'll tell you why 
 Fust, thur wan't a stick o' timber within ten mile of me ; and. 
 secondly, if thur had been I dasen't a made a fire. I wui 
 travellin' as bad a bit o' Injun ground as could been found in all 
 the country, and I'd seen Injun sign two or three times that 
 same day. It's true thur wur a good grist o' buffler chips about, 
 tol'ably dry, and mout have made some sort o' a fire out o' that ; 
 
 12* 
 
2T4 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 last I did make a fire arter a fashion. I did it this "a 
 
 way. 
 
 " Seeing that with the cussed cold I wan't agoin' to get a 
 wink o' sleep, I gathered a wheen o' the buffler chips. I then 
 dug a hole in the ground with my bowie, an' hard pickin ? that 
 wur ; but I got through the crust at last, and made a sort o' 
 oven about a fut, or a fut and a half deep. At the bottom I 
 laid some dry grass and dead branches o' sage plant, and then 
 settin' it afire, I piled the bnffler-chips on top. The thing burnt 
 tol'able well, but the smoke o' the buffler-dung would a choked 
 a skunk. 
 
 " As soon as it had got fairly under way, I hunkered, an' sot 
 down over the hole, in sich a position as to catch all the heat 
 under my blanket, an', then I was comf table enough. Of coorse 
 no Injun kud see the smoke arter night, an it would a tuk sharp 
 eyes to have sighted the fire, I reckon. 
 
 " Wai, strengers, the critter I rode wur a young mustang 
 colt, about half-broke. I had bought him from a Mexikin at 
 Bent's only the week afore, and it wur his fust journey, leastwise 
 with me. Of coorse I had him on the lariat ; but up to this 
 time I had kept the eend o' the rope in my hand, because I had 
 that same day lost my picket pin ; an' thinkin as I wan't agoin' 
 to sleep, I mout as well hold on to it. 
 
 " By 'm by, however, I begun to feel drowsy. The fire 
 atween my legs promised to keep me from freezin,' an' I thort I 
 mout as well take a nap. So I tied the lariat round my ankles, 
 sunk my head atween my knees, an' in the twinklin o' a goat's 
 tail I wur sound. I jest noticed as I wur goin' off, that the 
 mustang wur out some yards, nibblin' away at the dry grass o' 
 the parairy. 
 
 " I guess I must a slep about an hour, or tharabouts I wont 
 be sartint how long. I only know that I didn't wake o' my 
 own accor4- I wur awoke ; an' when I did awoke, I still thort 
 
THE PRAIRIE WOLF AND WOLF KILLER. 215 
 
 I wur a dreamin'. It would a been a rough dream ; but unfort'- 
 nately for me, it wan't a dream, but a jenwine reality. 
 
 " At fust, I cudn't make out what wur the matter wi ; me no 
 how ; an' then I thort I wur in the hands o' the Injuns, who 
 were draggin' me over the parairy ; an' sure enough I wur a 
 drag-gin' that a way, though not by Injuns. Once or twice I 
 lay still for jest a second or two, an' then away I went agin, 
 trailin' and bumpin' over the ground, as if I had been tied to 
 the tail o' a gallopin' hoss. All the while there wur a yellin' in 
 my ears as if all the cats an' dogs of creation were arter me. 
 
 " Wai, it wur some time afore I compre'nded what all this 
 rough usage meant. I did at last. The pull upon my ankles 
 gave me the idea. It wur the lariat that wur round them. My 
 mustang had stampedoed, and wur draggiu' me at full gallop 
 acrosst the parairy ! 
 
 " The barkin', an' howlin', an' yelpiu' I heerd, wur a pack o' 
 parairy-wolves. Half-famished, they had attacked the mustang, 
 and started him. 
 
 " All this kim into my mind at once. You'll say it wur easy 
 to lay hold on the rope, an' stop the hoss. So it mout appear 
 but I kin tell you that it ain't so easy a thing. It wan't so to 
 me. My ankles were in a noose, an' wur drawed clost together. 
 
 Of coorse, while I wur movin' along, I couldn't get to my 
 feet ; an' whenever the mustang kim to a halt, an' I had half- 
 gathered myself, afore I kud reach the rope, away went the 
 critter agin, flingin' me to the ground at full length. Another 
 thing hindered me. Afore goin' to sleep, I had put my blanket 
 on Mexikin-fashion that is, wi' my head through a slit in the 
 centre an' as the drag begun, the blanket flopped about my 
 face, an' half-smothered me. Perhaps, however, an' I thort so 
 arterwurd, that blanket saved me many a scratch, although it 
 bamfoozled me a good bit. 
 
 "I got the blanket off at last, arter I had made about a mile, 
 
276 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 I reckon, and then for the fust time I could see about me 
 Such a sight! The moon wur up, an' I kud see that the ground 
 wur white with snow. It had snowed while I wur asleep; but 
 that wan't the sight the sight wur, that clost up an' around 
 me the hul parairy wur kivered with wolves cussed parairy- 
 wolves 1 I kud see their long tongues lollin' out, an' the smoke 
 steamin' from their open mouths. 
 
 "Bern' now no longer hampered by the blanket, I made the 
 best use I could o' my arms. Twice I got hold o' the lariat, but 
 afore I kud set myself to pull up the runnin' hoss, it wur j irked 
 out o' my hand agin. 
 
 "Somehow or other, I had got clutch o' my bowie, and at the 
 next opportunity I made a cut at the rope, and heerd the clean 
 'snig' o' the knife. Arter that I lay quiet on the parairy, an' I 
 b'lieve I kinder sort o' fainted. 
 
 "'Twan't a long faint no how; for when I got over it, I kud 
 see the mustang about a half a mile off, still runnin' as fast as his 
 legs could carry him, an' most of the wolves howlin' arter him. 
 A few of these critters had gathered about me, but gettin' to my 
 feet, I made a dash among them wi' the shinin' bowie, and sent 
 them every which way, I reckon. 
 
 "I watched the mustang until he wur clur out o' sight, an' 
 then I wur puzzled what to do. Fust, I went back for my 
 blanket, which I soon rekivered, an' then I follered the back 
 track to get my gun an' other traps whur I had camped. The 
 trail wur easy, on account o' the snow, an' I kud see whur I had 
 slipped through it all the way. 
 
 "Having got my possibles, I then tuk arter the mustang, and 
 follered for at least ten miles on his tracks, but I never see'd 
 that mustang agin. Whether the wolves hunted him down or 
 not, I can't say, nor I don't care if they did, the scarey brute ! I 
 see'd their feet all the way arter him in the snow, and 1 know'd 
 it wur no use follering further. It wur plain I wur put down on 
 
THE PRAIRIE WOLF AND WOLF KILLER. 21 T 
 
 the parairy, so I bundled my possibles, and turned bead for 
 Laramie's afoot. I had a three days' walk o' it, and prehaps I 
 didn't cuss a few. 
 
 "I wur right bad used. Thur warn't a bone in my body that 
 didn't ache, as if I had been passed through a sugar-mill; and 
 my clothes and skin were torn consid'ably. It mout a been wuss, 
 but for the blanket an' the sprinkle o' snow that made the ground 
 a leetle slickerer. 
 
 "Howsomever, I got safe to the Fort, whur I wur soon rigged 
 out in a fresh suit o' buckskin an' a hoss. 
 
 'But I never arterward see'd a parairy-wolf within range o* 
 my rifle, that I didn't let into him, an' as you see, I've throwed 
 a good wheen in their tracks since then. Wagh! Haint I? 
 Mark?" 
 
278 
 
 CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 HUNTING THE TAPIR. 
 
 AT one of our prairie-camps our English comrade furnished 
 us with the following account of that strange creature, the tapir. 
 
 " No one who has turned over the pages of a picture-book of 
 mammalia will be likely to forget the odd-looking animal known 
 as the tapir. Its long proboscis-like snout, its stiff-maned neck, 
 and clumsy hog-like body, render the tout ensemble of this 
 creature so peculiar, that there is no mistaking it for any other 
 animal. 
 
 " When full grown, the tapir, or anta, as it is sometimes 
 called, is six feet in length by four in height its weight being 
 nearly equal to that of a small bullock. Its teeth resemble those 
 of the horse ; but instead of hoofs, its feet are toed the fore 
 ones having four toes, while the hind feet have only three each. 
 The eyes are small and lateral, while the ears are large and 
 pointed. The skin is thick, somewhat like that of the hippopo 
 tamus, with a very thin scattering of silky hairs over it ; but 
 along the ridge of the neck, and upon the short tail, the hairs 
 are longer and more profuse. The upper jaw protrudes far 
 beyond the extremity of the under one. It is, moreover, highly 
 prehensile, and enables the tapir to seize the roots upon which it 
 feeds with greater ease. In fact, it plays the part of the 
 elephant's proboscis to a limited degree. 
 
 " Although the largest quadruped indigenous to South Ame 
 rica, the tapir is not very well known to naturalists. Its haunts 
 are far beyond the borders of civilization. It is, moreover, a shy 
 
HUNTING THE TAPIR. 279 
 
 and solitary creature, and its active life is mostly nocturnal y 
 hence no great opportunity is offered for observing its habits. 
 The chapter of its natural history is therefore a short one. 
 
 " The tapir is an inhabitant of the tropical countries of Ame 
 rica, dwelling near the banks of rivers and marshy lagoons. It 
 is the American representative of the rhinoceros and hippopota 
 mus, or, more properly, of the maiba, or Indian tapir ( Tapirus 
 Indicus) of Sumatra, which h/is but lately become known to 
 naturalists. The latter, in fact, is a near congener, and very 
 much resembles the tapir of South America. 
 
 " The tapir is amphibious that is, it frequents the water, can 
 swim and dive Well, and generally seeks its food in the water or 
 tne soft marshy sedge ; but when in repose, it is a land animal, 
 making its haunt in thick coverts of the woods, and selecting a 
 dry spot for its lair. Here it will remain couched and asleep 
 during the greater part of the day. At nightfall, it steals forth, 
 and following an old and well-used path, it approaches the bank* 
 of some river, and plunging in, swims off in search of its food 
 the roots and stems of several species of water-plants. In this 
 business it occupies most of the hours of darkness ; but at day 
 break, it swims back to the place where it entered the water, 
 and going out, takes the ' back track' where it sleeps until sun 
 set again warns it forth. 
 
 " Sometimes during rain, it leaves its den even at mid-day. 
 On such occasions, it proceeds to the river or the adjacent 
 swamp, where it delights to wallow in the mud, after the manner 
 of the hogs, and often for hours together. Unlike the hog, how 
 ever, the tapir is a cleanly animal. After wallowing, it never 
 returns to its den until it has first plunged into the clear water, 
 and washed the rnud thoroughly from its skin. 
 
 " It usually travels at a trot, but when hard pressed, it can 
 gallop. Its gallop is peculiar. The fore-legs are thrown far in 
 advance, and the head is carried between them in a very 
 
280 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 awkward manner, somewhat after the fashion of a frolicsome 
 donkey. 
 
 " The tapir is strictly a vegetable feeder. It lives upon flags 
 and roots of aquatic plants. Several kinds of fruits, and young 
 succulent branches of trees, form a portion of its food. 
 
 " It is a shy, timid animal, without any malice in its charac 
 ter ; and although possessed of great strength, never uses it 
 except for defence, and then only in endeavours to escape. It 
 frequently suffers itself to be killed without making any defence, 
 although with its great strength and well-furnished jaws it might 
 do serious hurt to an enemy. 
 
 "The hunt of the tapir is one of the amusements, or rather 
 employments of the South American Indians. Not that the flesh 
 of this animal is so eagerly desired by them : on the contrary, 
 it is dry, and has a disagreeable taste, and there are some tribes 
 who will not eat of it, preferring the monkeys, macaws, and the 
 armadillo. But the part most prized is the thick, tough skin, 
 which is employed by the Indians in making shields, sandals, 
 and various other articles. This is the more valuable in a coun 
 try where the thick-skinned and leather-yielding mammalia are 
 almost unknown. 
 
 " Slaying the tapir is no easy matter. The creature is shy ; 
 and having the advantage of the watery element, is often enabled 
 to dive beyond the reach of pursuit, and thus escape by conceal 
 ing itself. Among most of the native tribes of South America, 
 the young hunter who has killed a tapir is looked upon as 
 having achieved something to be proud of. 
 
 " The tapir is hunted by bow and arrow, or by the gun 
 Sometimes the ' gravatana/ or blow-tube, is employed, with its 
 poisoned darts. In any case, the hunter either lies in wait for 
 his prey, or with a pack of dogs drives it out of the underwood, 
 and takes the chances of a ' flying shpt.' 
 
 " When the trail of a tapir has been discovered, its capture 
 
HUNTING THE TAPIR. 281 
 
 becomes easy. It is well known to the hunter that this animal, 
 when proceeding from its lair to the water and returning, 
 always follows its old track until a beaten path is made, which 
 is easily discernible. 
 
 " This path often betrays the tapir, and leads to its destruc 
 tion. 
 
 " Sometimes the hunter accomplishes this by means of a pit 
 fall, covered with branches and palm-leaves ; at other times, he 
 places himself in ambuscade, either before twilight or in the early 
 morning, and shoots the unsuspecting animal as it approaches 
 on its daily round. 
 
 " Sometimes, when the whereabouts of a tapir has been dis 
 covered, a whole tribe sally out, and take part in the hunt. 
 Such a hunt I myself witnessed on one of the tributaries of the 
 Amazon. 
 
 " In the year 18 , I paid a visit to the Jurunas up the Xingu. 
 Their maloccas (palm-hut villages) lie beyond the falls of that 
 river. Although classed as * wild Indians,' the Jurunas are a 
 mild race, friendly to the traders, and collect during a season 
 considerable quantities of seringa (Indian-rubber), sarsaparilla, 
 as well as rare birds, monkeys, and Brazil-nuts the objects of 
 Portuguese trade. 
 
 " I was about to start back for Para, when nothing would 
 serve the tuxava, or chief, of one of the maloccas, but that I 
 should stay a day or two at his village, and take part in some 
 festivities. He promised a tapir-hunt. 
 
 " As I knew that among the Jurunas were some skilled hun 
 ters, and as I was curious to witness an affair of this kind, I con 
 sented. The hunt was to come off on the second day of my stay. 
 
 "The morning arrived, and the hunters assembled, to the 
 number of forty or fifty, in an open space by the malocca ; and 
 having got their arms and equipments in readiness, all repaired 
 to the praya, or narrow beach of sand, which separated the 
 
282 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 river -from the fti'ok underwood of the forest. Here some 
 twenty or thirty ubas (canoes hollowed out of tree-trunks,' 
 floated on the water, ready to receive the hunters. They were 
 of different sizes; some capable of containing half-a-dozen, while 
 others were meant to carry only a single person. 
 
 "In a few minutes the ubas were freighted with their living 
 cargoes, consisting not only of the hunters, but of most of the 
 women and boys of the malocca, with a- score or two of dogs. 
 
 "These dogs were curious creatures to look at. A stranger, 
 ignorant of the customs of the Jurunas, would have been at 
 some loss to account for the peculiarity of their colour. Such 
 dogs I had never seen before. Some were of a bright scarlet, 
 others were yellow, others blue, and some mottled with a 
 variety of tints ! 
 
 "What could it mean? But I knew well enough. The dogs 
 "were dyed! 
 
 "Yes, it is the custom among many tribes of South American 
 Indians to dye not only their own bodies, but the hairy coats 
 of their dogs, with brilliant colours obtained from vegetable 
 juices, such as the red huitoc, the yellow raucau (annato), and 
 the blue of the wild indigo. The light gray, often white, hair 
 of these animals favours the staining process; and the effect 
 produced pleases the eye of their savage masters. 
 
 "On my eye the effect was strange and fantastical. I could 
 not restrain my laughter when I first scanned these curs in their 
 fanciful coats. Picture to yourself a pack of scarlet, and orange, 
 and purple dogs! 
 
 "Well, we were soon in the ubas, and paddling up stream. 
 The tuxava and I occupied a canoe to ourselves. His only 
 arms were a light fusil, which I had given him as a present. 
 It was a good piece, and he was proud of it. This was to be 
 its first trial. I had a rifle for my own weapon. The rest were 
 armed variously: some had guns, others native bows and arrows; 
 
HUNTING THE TAPIS. 283 
 
 some carried the gravatana, with arrows dipped in the-curari 
 poison; some had nothing but machetes, or cutlasses, for clearing 
 the underwood, in case the game had to be driven from the 
 tnickets. 
 
 "There was a part of the river, some two or three miles above 
 the malocca, where the channel was wider than usual several 
 miles in breadth at this place. Here it was studded with 
 islands, known to be a favourite resort of the tapirs. This was 
 to be the scene of our hunt. 
 
 "We approached the place in about an hour; but on the way 
 I could* not help being struck with the picturesqueness of our 
 party.. No 'meet' in the hunting-field of civilized countries 
 could have equalled us in that respect. The ubas, strung out in 
 a Icng irregular line, sprang up stream in obedience to the 
 vigorous strokes of the rowers, and these sang in a sort of 
 irregular concert, as they plied their paddles. The songs were 
 improvised: they told the feats of the hunters already performed, 
 and promised others yet to be done. I could hear the word 
 'tapira' (tapir), often repeated. The women lent their shrill 
 voices to the chorus; and now and then interrupted the song 
 with peals of merry laughter. The strange-looking flotilla the 
 bronzed bodies of the Indians, more than half nude their 
 waving black hair their blue-bead belts and red cotton armlets 
 the bright tangas (aprons), of the women their massive 
 necklaces the macaw feathers adorning the heads of the 
 hunters their odd arms and equipments all combined to form a 
 picture which, even to me, accustomed to such sights, was full of 
 interest. 
 
 "At length we arrived among the islands, and then the noise 
 ceased. The canoes were paddled as slowly and silently as 
 possible. I now began to understand the plan of the hunt. It 
 was first to discover an island upon which a tapir was supposed 
 to be, and then encompass it with the hunters in their canoes, 
 
284 
 
 while a party landed with the dogs, to arouse the game and drive 
 it toward the water. 
 
 " This plan promised fair sport. 
 
 " The canoes now separated ; and in a short while each of 
 them was seen coursing quietly along the edge of some islet, one 
 of its occupants leaning inward, and scrutinizing the narrow belt 
 of sand that bordered the water. 
 
 " In some places no such sand-belt appeared. The trees hung 
 over, their branches even dipping into the current, and forming 
 a roofed and dark passage underneath. In such places a tapir 
 could have hidden himself from the sharpest-eyed hunters, and 
 herein lies the chief difficulty of this kind of hunt. 
 
 " It was not long before a low whistle was heard from one of 
 the ubas, a sign for the others to come up. The traces of a tapir 
 had been discovered. 
 
 " The chief, with a stroke or two of his palm-wood paddle, 
 brought our canoe to the spot. 
 
 " There, sure enough, was the sign the tracks of a tapir in 
 the sand leading to a hole in the thick underwood, where a 
 beaten-path appeared to continue onward into the interior of 
 the island, perhaps to the tapir-den. The tracks were fresh 
 had been made that morning in the wet sand no doubt the 
 creature was in its lair. 
 
 " The island was a small one, with some five or six acres of 
 surface. The canoes shot off in different directions, and in a 
 few minutes were deployed all around it. At a given signal, 
 several hunters leaped ashore, followed by their bright-coloured 
 assistants the dogs ; and then the chopping of branches, the 
 shouts of the men, and the yelping of their canine companions, 
 were all heard mingling together. 
 
 " The island was densely wooded. The uaussu and piriti 
 palms grew so thickly, that their crowned heads touched each 
 other, forming a close roof. Above these, rose the taller 
 
HUNTING THE TAPIR 285 
 
 I 
 
 summits of the great forest-trees, cedrelas, zamangs, and the 
 beautiful long-leaved silk cotton (bombax); but beneath, a 
 perfect net-work of sipos or creepers and lianes choked up the 
 path, and the hunters had to clear every step of the way with 
 their machetes. Even the dogs, with all their eagerness, could 
 make only a slow and tortuous advance among the thorny vines 
 of the smilax, and the sharp spines that covered the trunks of 
 the palms. 
 
 "In the circle of canoes that surrounded the island, there was 
 perfect silence; each had a spot to guard, and each hunter sat, 
 with arms ready, and eyes keenly fixed on the foliage of the 
 underwood opposite his station. 
 
 "The uba of the chief had remained to watch the path where 
 the tracks of the tapir had been observed. We both sat with 
 guns cocked, and ready; the dogs and hunters were distinctly 
 heard in the bushes approach the centre of the islet. The 
 former gave tongue at intervals, but their yelping grew louder, 
 and was uttered with a fiercer accent. Several of them barked 
 at once, and a rushing was heard towards the water. 
 
 " It came in our direction, but not right for us ; still the 
 game was likely to issue at a point within range of our guns. A 
 stroke of the paddle brought us into a better position. At the 
 same time several other canoes were seen shooting forward to 
 the spot. 
 
 " The underwood crackled and shook ; reddish forms appeared 
 among the leaves ; and the next moment a dozen animals, resem 
 bling a flock of hogs, tumbled out from the thicket, and flung 
 themselves with a splash into the water. 
 
 " ' No tapir no capivara/ cried the chief ; but his voice 
 was drowned by the reports of guns and the twanging of bow 
 strings. Half a dozen of the capivaras were observed to fall on 
 the sandy margin, while the rest plunged forward, and diving 
 beyond the reach of pursuit, were seen no more. 
 

 
 286 TEE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 " This was a splendid beginning of the day's sport ; for half 
 a dozen at a single volley was no mean game, even among 
 Indians. 
 
 " But the nobler beast, the tapir, occupied all our thoughts ; 
 and leaving the capivaras to be gathered in by the women, the 
 hunters were back at their post in a few seconds. 
 
 " There was no doubt that a tapir would be roused. The 
 island had all the appearance of being the haunt of one or more 
 of these creatures, besides, the tracks were evidence of their 
 recent presence upon the spot. The beating, therefore, pro 
 ceeded as lively as ever, and the hunters and dogs had penetrated 
 to the centre of the thicket. 
 
 " Again the quick angry yelping of the latter fell upon the 
 ear ; and again the thick cover rustled and shook. 
 
 " ' This time the tapir,' said the chief to me in an undertone, 
 adding the next moment in a louder voice : ' Look yonder I' 
 
 "I looked in the direction pointed out. I could perceive 
 something in motion among the leaves a dark brown body, 
 smooth and rounded, the body of a tapir I 
 
 " I caught only a glimpse of it, as it sprang forward into the 
 opening. It was coming at a full gallop* with its head carried 
 between its knees. The dogs were close after, and it looked not 
 before it, but dashed out and ran towards us as though blind. 
 
 " It made for the water, just a few feet from the bow of our 
 canoe. The chief and I fired at the same time. I thought my 
 bullet took effect, and so thought the chief did his ; but tiw 
 tapir, seeming not to heed the shots, plunged into the stream, 
 and went under. 
 

 
 HUNTING THE TAPIR. 287 
 
 * The next moment the whole string of dyed dogs came sweep- 
 fug out of the thicket, and leaped forward to where the game 
 hud Disappeared. 
 
 " There was blood upon the water. The tapir is hit, then, 
 thought I ; and was about to point out the blood to the chief, 
 when on turning I saw the latter poiang himself knife in hand, 
 near the stern of the canoe. He was about to spring out of it. 
 His eye was fixed on some object under the water. 
 
 "I looked in the same direction. The waters of the Xingu 
 are as clear as crystal : against the sandy bottom, I could trace 
 the dark brown body of the tapir. It was making for a deeper 
 channel of the river, but evidently dragging itself along with 
 difficulty. One of its legs was disabled by our shots. 
 
 " I had scarcely time to get a good view of it before the chief 
 sprang into the air, and dropped head foremost into the water. 
 I could see a struggle going on at the bottom turbid water 
 came to the surface and then up came the dark head of the 
 savage chief. 
 
 " ' Ugh !' cried he, as he shook the water from his thick 
 tresses, and beckoned me to assist him ' Ugh ! Senhor, you 
 eat roast tapir for dinner. Si bueno here tapir.' 
 
 " I 'pulled him into the boat, and afterwards assisted to haul 
 up the huge body of the slain tapir. 
 
 " As was now seen, both our shots had taken effect ; but it 
 was the rifle bullet that had broken the creature's leg, and the 
 generous savage acknowledged that he would have had but little 
 chance of overtaking the game under water, had it not been 
 previously crippled. 
 
288 THE HUNTERS' FITAST 
 
 "The hunt of the day proved a very successful one. Twc 
 more tapirs were killed ; several capivaras ; and a paca which 
 is an animal much prized by the Indians for its flesh as well as 
 the teeth, used by them in making their blow-guns. We also 
 obtained a pair of the small peccaries, several macaws, and no 
 less than a whole troop of guariba monkeys. We returned to 
 the malocca with a game bag as various as it was full, and a 
 grand dance of the Juruna women wound up the amusements of 
 the day." 
 
ADVENTURE WITH A BUFFALO. 289 
 
 CHAPTER XXXI. 
 
 ADVENTURE WITH A BUFFALO. 
 
 THE long looked for day at length arrived when the game 
 were to be met with, and I had myself the "distinguished 
 honour" of being the first not only to see the great buffalo, but 
 to throw a couple of them " in their attacks." This incident, 
 however, was not without an " adventure," and or^e that was 
 neither very pleasant nor without peril. During several late 
 days of our journey we had been in the habit of straggling a 
 good deal in search of game deer if we could find it, but more 
 especially in hopes of falling in with the buffalo. Sometimes we 
 went in twos or threes, but as often one of the party rode off 
 alone to hunt wherever his inclination guided him. Sometimes 
 these solitary expeditions took place while the party was on the 
 march, but oftener during the hours after we had pitched our 
 night-camp. 
 
 One evening, after we had camped as usual, and my brave 
 horse had eaten his " bite " of corn, I leaped into the saddle and 
 rode off in hopes of finding something fresh for supper. The 
 prairie where we had halted was a "rolling" one, and as the 
 camp had been fixed on a small stream, between two great 
 swells, it was not visible at any great distance. As soon, there 
 fore, as I had crossed one of the ridges, I was out of sight of 
 
 13 
 
290 
 
 my companions. Trusting to the sky for my direction, therefore, 
 I continued on. 
 
 After riding about a mile, I should think, I came upon buffalo 
 "sign," consisting of several circular holes in the ground, five 
 or six feet in diameter, known as buffalo " wallows." I saw at 
 a glance that the sign was fresh. There were several wallows ; 
 and I could tell by the tracks, in the dusk, there had been bulls 
 in that quarter. So I continued on in hopes of getting a sight 
 of the animals that had been wallowing. 
 
 Shortly after, I came to a place where the ground was 
 ploughed up, as if a drove of hogs had been rooting it. Here 
 there had been a terrible fight among the bulls it was the rut 
 ting season, when such conflicts occur. This augured well. Per 
 haps there .are cows in the neighbourhood, reasoned I, as I gave 
 the spur to my horse, and galloped forward with more spirit. 
 
 I had ridden full five miles from camp, when my intention was 
 attracted by an odd noise ahead of me. There was a ridge in 
 front that prevented me from seeing what produced the noise ; 
 but I knew what it was it was the bellowing of a buffalo-bull. 
 
 At intervals, there were quick shocks, as of two hard sub- 
 stances coming in violent contact with each other. 
 
 I mounted the ridge with caution, and looked over its crest. 
 There was a valley beyond ; a cloud of dust was rising out of 
 its bottom, and in the midst of this I could distinguish two huge 
 forms dark and hirsute. 
 
 I saw at once that they were a couple of buffalo-bulls engaged 
 in a fierce fight. They were alone ; there were no others in 
 sight, either in the valley or on the prairie beyond. 
 
ADVENTURE WITH A BUFFALO. 291 
 
 I did not halt longer than to see that the cap was on my rifle 
 and to cock the piece. Occupied as the animals were, I did not 
 imagine they would heed me : or, if they should attempt flight, 
 I knew I could easily overtake one or other ; so, without further 
 hesitation or precaution, I rode towards them. 
 
 Contrary to my expectation, they both "winded" me, and 
 started off. The wind was blowing freshly towards them, and 
 the sun had thrown my shadow between them, so as to draw 
 their attention. 
 
 They did not run, however, as if badly scared ; on the con 
 trary, they went off, apparently indignant at being disturbed in 
 their fight ; and every now and then both came round with short 
 turnings, snorted, and struck the prairie with their hoofs in a 
 violent and angry manner. 
 
 Once or twice, I fancied they were going to charge upon me ; 
 and had I been otherwise than well mounted, I should have been 
 very chary of risking such an encounter. A more formidable 
 pair of antagonists, as far as appearance went, could not have 
 been well conceived. Their huge size, their shaggy fronts, and 
 fierce glaring eyeballs, gave them a wild and malicious seeming, 
 which was heightened by their bellowing, and the threatening 
 attitudes in which they continually placed themselves. 
 
 Feeling quite safe in my saddle, I galloped up to the nearest, 
 and sent my bullet into his ribs. It did the work. He fell to 
 his knees rose again spread out his legs, as if to prevent a 
 second fall rocked from side to side like a cradle again came 
 to his knees; and after remaining in this position for some 
 minutes, with the blood running from his nostrils, rolled quietly 
 over, on his shoulder, and lay dead. 
 
292 THE HUKTERS FEAST. 
 
 I had watched these manoeuvres with interest, and permitted 
 the second bull to make his escape ; a side glance had shown me 
 the latter disappearing over the crest of the swell. 
 
 I did not care to follow him, as my horse was jaded, and I 
 knew it would cost me a sharp gallop to come up with him 
 again ; so I thought no more of him at that time, but alighted, 
 and prepared to deal with the one already slain. 
 
 There stood a solitary tree near the spot it was a stunted 
 cottonwood. There were others upon the prairie, but they were 
 distant ; this one was not twenty yards from the carcass. I led 
 my horse up to it, and taking the trail-rope from the horn of 
 the saddle, made one end fast to the bit-ring, and the other to 
 the tree. I then went back, drew my knife, and proceeded to 
 cut up the buffalo. 
 
 I had hardly whetted my blade, when a noise from behind 
 caused me to leap to an upright attitude, and look round ; at 
 the first glance I comprehended the noise. A huge dark object 
 was passing the crest of the ridge, and rushing down the hill, 
 towards the spot where I stood. It was the buffalo-bull, the 
 same that had just left me. 
 
 The sight, at first thought, rather pleased me than otherwise. 
 Although I did not want any more meat, I should have the 
 triumph of carrying two tongues instead of one to the camp. I 
 therefore hurriedly sheathed my knife, and laid hold of my rifle, 
 which, according to custom, I had taken the precaution to 
 re-load. 
 
 I hesitated a moment whether to run to my horse and mount 
 him, or to fire from where I stood. That question, however, was 
 settled by the buffalo. The tree and the horse were to one side 
 
Si 
 
 <2 C 
 
 
 
 2 tr 
 9 "a 
 
 11 
 
 s 
 
ADVENTURE WITH A BUFFALO 293 
 
 of the direction in which he was running, but being attracted by 
 the loud snorting of the horse, which had begun to pitch and 
 plunge violently, and deeming it perhaps a challenge, the buffalo 
 suddenly swerved from his course, and ran full tilt upon the horse. 
 The latter shot out instantly to the full length of the trail-rope 
 a heavy "pluck " sounded in my ears, and the next instant I saw 
 my horse part from the tree, and scour off over the prairie, as 
 if there had been a thistle under his tail. I had knotted the 
 f rope negligently upon the bit-ring, and the knot had "come 
 undone." 
 
 I was chagrined, but not alarmed as yet. My horse would 
 no doubt follow back his own trail, and at the worst I should 
 only have to walk to the camp. I should have the satisfaction 
 of punishing the buffalo for the trick he. had served me; and 
 with this design I turned towards him. 
 
 I saw that he had not followed the horse, but was again 
 heading himself in my direction. 
 
 Now, for the first time, it occurred to me that I was in some 
 thing of a Scrape. The bull was coming furiously on. Should 
 my shot miss, or even should it only wound him, how was I tc 
 escape ? I knew that he could overtake me in three minutes 
 stretch ; I knew that well. 
 
 I had not much time for reflection not a moment in fact : the 
 infuriated animal was within ten paces of me ; I raised my rifle, 
 aimed at his fore-shoulder, and fired. 
 
 I saw that I had hit him ; but, to my dismay^ he neither fell 
 nor stumbled, but continued to charge forward more furiously 
 than ever. 
 
294 THE HUNTEES 7 FEAST. 
 
 To reload was impossible. My pistols had gone off with my 
 horse and holsters. Even to reach the tree was impossible ; the 
 bull was between it and me. 
 
 To make off in the opposite direction was the only thing that 
 held out the prospect of five minutes' safety ; I turned and ran. 
 
 I can run as fast as most men, and upon that occasion I did 
 my best. It would have put " Gildersleeve n into a white sweat 
 to have distanced me ; but I had not been two minutes at it, 
 when I felt conscious that the buffalo gained upon me, and was 
 almost treading upon my heels 1 I knew it only by my ears I 
 dared not spare time to look back. 
 
 At this moment, an object appeared before me, that promised, 
 one way or another, to interrupt the chase ; it was a ditch or 
 gulley, that intersected my path at right angles. It was several 
 feet in depth, dry at the bottom, and with perpendicular sides. 
 
 I was almost upon its edge before I noticed it, but the 
 moment it came under my eye, I saw that it offered the means 
 of a temporary safety at least. If I could only leap this gully, 
 I felt satisfied that the buffalo could not. 
 
 It was a sharp leap at least, seventeen feet from cheek to 
 cheek ; but I had done more than that in my time ; and, without 
 halting in my gait, I ran forward to the edge, and sprang over. 
 
 I alighted cleverly upon the opposite bank, where I stopped, 
 and turned round to watch my pursuer. 
 
 I now ascertained how near my ''end I had been : the bull was 
 already up to the very edge of the gully. Had I not made my 
 leap at the instant I did, I should have been by that time danc 
 ing upon his boras. He himself had balked at the leap ; the 
 
ADVBNTURE WITH A BUFFALO. 295 
 
 deep chasm-like cleft had cowed him. He saw that he could 
 not clear it ; and now stood upon the opposite bank with head 
 lowered, and spread nostrils, his tail lashing his brown flanks, 
 while his glaring black eyes expressed the full measure of his 
 baffled rage. 
 
 I remarked that my shot had taken effect in his shoulder, as 
 the blood trickled from his long hair. 
 
 I had almost begun to congratulate myself on having escaped, 
 when a hurried glance to the right, and another to the left, cut 
 short my happiness. I saw that on both sides, at a distance of 
 less than fifty paces, the gully shallowed out into the plain, 
 where it ended ; at either end it was, of course, passable. 
 
 The bull observed this almost at the same time as myself; 
 and, suddenly turning away from the brink, he ran along the 
 edge of the chasm, evidently with the intention of turning it. 
 
 In less than a minute's time we were once more on the same 
 side, and my situation appeared as terrible as ever ; but, step 
 ping back for a short run, I releaped the chasm, and again we 
 stood on opposite sides of the gully. 
 
 During all these manoeuvres I had held on to my rifle ; and, 
 seeing now that I might have time to load it, I commenced feel 
 ing for my powder-horn. To my astonishment, I could not lay 
 my hands upon it : I looked down to my breast for the sling 
 it was not there ; belt and bullet-pouch too all were gone ! I 
 remembered lifting them over my head, when I set about cutting 
 up the dead bull. They were lying by the carcass. 
 
 This discovery was a new source of chagrin ; but for my 
 negligence, I could have now mastered my antagonist. 
 
296 
 
 To reach the ammunition would be impossible ; I should be 
 overtaken before I had got half-way to it. 
 
 I was not allowed much time to indulge in my regrets ; the 
 bull had again turned the ditch, and was once more upon the 
 same side with me, and I was compelled to take another leap. 
 
 I really do not remember how often I sprang backwards and 
 forwards across that chasm ; I should think a score of times at 
 least, and I became wearied with the exercise. The leap was 
 just as much as I could do at my best ; and as I was growing 
 weaker at each fresh spring, I became satisfied that I should 
 soon leap short, and crush myself against the steep rocky sides 
 of the chasm. 
 
 Should I fall to the bottom, my pursuer could easily reach me 
 by entering at either end, and I began to dread such a finale. 
 The vengeful brute showed no symptoms of retiring ; on the 
 contj-ary, the numerous disappointments seemed only to render 
 him more determined in his resentment. 
 
 An idea now suggested itself to my mind. ^ 
 
 I had looked all round to see if there might not be something 
 that offered a better security. There were trees, but they were 
 too distant : the only one near was that to which my horse had 
 been tied. It was an old one, and, like all of its species (it 
 was a cotton-wood), there were no branches near the root. 
 
 I knew that I could clamber up it by embracing the trunk, 
 which was not over ten inches in diameter. Could I only suc 
 ceed in reaching it, it would at least shelter me better than the 
 ditch, of which I was getting heartily tired. 
 
 But the question was, could I reach it before the bull ? 
 
. ADVENTURE WITH A BUFFALO. 29' 
 
 It was about three hundred yards off. By proper manoeu 
 vring, I should have a start of-fifty. Even with that it would b 
 a " close shave ;" and it proved so. 
 
 I arrived at the tree, however, and sprang up it like a moun 
 tebank ; but the hot breath of the buffalo steamed after me a 
 I ascended, and the concussion of his heavy skull against tin 
 trunk almost shook me back upon his horns. - , - 
 
 After a severe effort of climbing, I succeeded in lodging 
 myself among the branches. 
 
 I was now safe from all immediate danger, but how was th< 
 affair to end ? 
 
 I knew, from the experience of others, that my enemy migh 
 stay for hours by the tree perhaps for days ! 
 
 Hours would be enough. I could not stand it long. '. 
 already hungered, but a worse appetite began to torture me 
 thirst. The hot sun, the dust, the violent exercise of the pas 
 hour, all contributed to make me thirsty. Even then, I woul< 
 have risked life for a draught of water. What would it com< 
 to should I not be relieved ? 
 
 I had but one hope that my companions would come to nr 
 relief; but I knew that that would not be before morning 
 They would miss me, of course. Perhaps my horse would returi 
 to camp that would send them out in search for me but no 
 before night had fallen. In the darkness they could not follov 
 my trail. Could they do so in the light ? 
 
 This last question, which I had put to myself, startled me. 
 was just in a condition to look upon the dark side of everything 
 and it now occurred to me that they might not be able t< 
 find me ! 
 
298 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 There were many possibilities that they might not. There 
 were numerous horse-trails on the prairie, where Indians had 
 passed. I saw this when tracking the buffalo. Besides, it 
 might rain in the night, and obliterate them all my own with 
 the rest. They were not likely to find me by chance. A circle 
 of ten miles diameter is a large tract. It was a rolling prairie, 
 as already stated, full of inequalities, and ridges with valleys 
 between. The tree upon which I was perched stood in the 
 bottom of one of the valleys it could not be seen from any 
 point over three hundred yards distant. Those searching for 
 me might pass within hail without perceiving either the tree or 
 the valley. 
 
 I remained for a long time busied with such gloomy thoughts 
 and forebodings. Night was coming on, but the fierce and 
 obstinate brute showed no disposition to raise the siege. He 
 remained watchful as ever, walking round and round at intervals, 
 lashing his tail, and uttering that snorting sound so well known 
 to the prairie-hunter, and which so much resembles the grunting 
 of hogs when suddenly alarmed. Occasionally he would bellow 
 loudly like the routing of the common bull. 
 
 While watching his various manoeuvres, an object on the 
 ground drew my attention it was the trail-rope left by my 
 horse. One end of it was fastened round the trunk by a firm 
 knot the other lay far out upon the prairie, where it had been 
 dragged. My attention had been drawn to it by the bull himself, 
 which in crossing over it had noticed it, and now and then pawed 
 it with his hoofs. 
 
 All at once a bright idea flashed upon me a sudden hope 
 arose within me a plan of escape presented itself, so feasible 
 
ADVENTURE WITH A BUFFALO. 299 
 
 and possible, that I leaped in my perch as the thought struck 
 me. 
 
 The first step was to get possession of the rope. This was 
 not such an easy matter. The rope was fastened around the 
 tree, but the knot had slipped down the trunk and lay upon the 
 ground. I dared not descend for it. 
 
 Necessity soon suggested a plan. 
 
 My "picker" a piece of straight wire with a ring-end hung 
 from one of my breast buttons. This I took hold of, and bent 
 into the shape of a grappling-hook. I had no cord, but my 
 knife was still in its sheath; and, drawing this, I cut several 
 thongs from the skirt of my buckskin shirt, and knotted them 
 together until they formed a string long enough to reach the 
 ground. To one end I attached the picker, and then letting it 
 down, I commenced angling for the rope. 
 
 After a few transverse drags, the hook caught the latter, and 
 I pulled it up into the tree, taking the whole of it in until I 
 held the loose end in my hands. The other end I permitted to 
 remain as it was ; I saw it was securely knotted around the 
 trunk, and that was just what I wanted. 
 
 It was my intention to lasso the bull ; and for this purpose I 
 proceeded to make a running-noose on the end of the trail-rope. 
 
 This I executed with great care, and with all my skill. I 
 could depend upon the rope ; it was raw hide, and a better was 
 never twisted ; but I knew that if anything should chance to 
 slip at a critical moment, it might cost me my life. With this 
 knowledge, therefore, I spliced it with all the painstaking that 
 a man, whose life was actually " on the cast," might be supposed 
 
300 
 
 to bestow on his last resource, the efficiency of which could be 
 increased or lessened by his own act. 
 
 Unfortunately, ray peculiar position among the branches of 
 the cotton-wood, requiring one hand to secure myself from fall 
 ing, was not calculated to enhance the facility of the task I had 
 undertaken. It may easily be imagined that two hands, and 
 efficient ones too, are necessary to make such a noose as should 
 resist successfully the gigantic strength of such a hirsute 
 monster, as was now posted at the foot of my tree, his glaring 
 eyes watching my every movement, as if expecting that by some 
 fortunate chance, I might fall from my ticklish perch, and drop 
 unresistingly upon his ugly head, garnished as it was with a pair 
 of pointed excrescences, an impalement upon either of which, 
 would be a dilemma, the choice of which would be difficult to 
 decide upon. 
 
 After about an hour of careful and painful labour, I had at 
 length the satisfaction of having completed a running knot, 
 which bid fair to hold even the ugly brute, whose eyes had not 
 been for a moment off my person ; and who instead of wearying 
 of the siege, as I had more than once indulged in the hope of 
 his doing, seemed, by an occasional roar and an angry lashing of 
 his flanks and pawing of the ground, to be preparing himself for 
 some coming struggle, the nature of which, of course, his dull 
 instinct could not define. 
 
 Everything being now ready, my next difficulty was to fix 
 myself in such a position that I could whirl my lasso clear of 
 the tree, with some hopes of casting it over the bull's neck, 
 and still at the same time not so far compromise my own safety 
 
ADVENTURE WITH A BUFFALO. 301 
 
 as, in case of an unsuccessful cast, to be within reach of the 
 enraged animal, who would now most surely defeat me in any 
 contest involving a trial of speed ; for my long-continued and 
 cramped position astride the cotton-wood limb, I was perfectly 
 aware, prevented any hope of success by that mode of escape. 
 
 Fortunately for me, the tree was old, and much of the wood 
 bare of leaves, especially the lower limbs, one of which reached 
 far out from the trunk, and was clear above, save a few small 
 branches which, thanks to my stout hunting-knife, were soon 
 severed and hurled in defiance in the very teeth of my most 
 unwelcome companion. 
 
 Having now a clear space, from which to whirl my lasso, I 
 clambered out on the projecting limb as far as it was prudent to 
 do, considering that my stand-point must be firm and secure, 
 and having attained a position I deemed most favourable, under 
 the circumstances, I in turn became the watcher, and never did 
 grimalkin fix her keen eyes more warily upon the doomed 
 mouse, than did I keep a sharp watch upon every move and turn 
 of the enraged beast who was bellowing below me. 
 
 At length wearying of my position, night coming on apace, 
 and being both hungry and parched with thirst, I determined to 
 make the attempt which, if successful, would free me from my 
 foe, or if it failed would entail a fate no worse than death from 
 starvation, from cold, or thirst, or from all united. 
 
 Gathering the rope carefully in my lap, as I sat astride 
 the limb, I coiled it up in rings, held loosely in my left Hand, 
 and hauling taut upon the other end, was cheered by the convic 
 tion that it was secure around the trunk, and could I but 
 
302 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 succeed in throwing it as I had often done before, I need have 
 no fears of the result. 
 
 Fortunately for me, at this moment a sound in the distance, 
 which I knew to be that of a buffalo cow, attracted the atten 
 tion of my grim jailer, and he turned his head in the direction 
 whence it proceeded, thus placing himself in a position most 
 favourable for my purpose. 
 
 Quick as thought I stood upright on the limb, and grasping 
 one of the upper branches with my left hand, with my right 
 I cast my lasso, the coils of which, after describing enlarged cir 
 cles in the air, descended upon the back of the buffalo, while the 
 inner and smaller one, in which was the fatal noose, providen 
 tially encircled his neck. 
 
 Now was the moment to test the success of my throw ; I well 
 knew if the lasso held, and the buffalo attempted pursuit, he must 
 be checked at the extremity of the rope, and with such a sudden 
 jerk as would throw him to the ground, and in all probability 
 break his neck. 
 
 Quick as thought I lowered myself to the ground, taking care 
 to reach it on the side of the tree opposite to where the buffalo 
 was, in order to gain a moment's time, and also that by his , 
 making a circle he must naturally wind a portion of the rope 
 around the trunk and thus strengthen the hold upon that end of 
 the lasso. 
 
 JS T o sooner had I reached the ground, than the bull, uttering a 
 most terrific snort, his eyes glaring like balls of fire, bounded at 
 me, and I felt his hot breath close to my neck, and the very earth 
 shaking beneath my feet with his maddened tread. I had given 
 
ADVENTURE WITH A BUFFALO. 303 
 
 myself up for lost after running a few yards, I realized the mad 
 dening conviction that my limbs were paralyzed with cold and 
 cramped for want of exertion, and I sunk helpless to the earth, 
 expecting the brute to crush me out of existence with his 
 huge paws, when I was astounded to find myself alone and 
 unharmed. 
 
 Curiosity, however, or rather a desire to be assured of my 
 safety, prompted me to look around, when, to my joy, I beheld 
 the huge monster stretched upon the plain. I could see the rope 
 as taut as a bow-string ; and the tongue protruding from the 
 animal's jaws showed me that he was strangling himself as fast 
 as I could desire. 
 
 At the sight, the idea of buffalo-tongue for supper returned 
 in all its vigour; and it now occurred to me that I should eat 
 that very tongue, and no other. 
 
 I immediately turned in my tracks, ran towards my powder 
 and balls which, in my eagerness to escape, I had forgotten all 
 about seized the horn and pouch, poured in a charge, rammed 
 down a bullet, and then stealing nimbly up behind the still strug 
 gling bull, I placed the muzzle within three feet of his brisket, 
 and fired. He gave a death-kick or two, and then lay quiet : it 
 was all over with him. 
 
 I had the tongue from between his teeth in a twinkling ; and 
 proceeding to the other bull, I finished the operations I had com 
 menced upon him. I was too tired to think of carrying a very 
 heavy load ; so I contented myself with the tongues, and sling 
 ing these over the barrel of my rifle, I shoulderd it, and set ouj 
 to grope my way back to camp 
 
804 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 The moon had risen, and I had no difficulty in following my 
 own trail ; but before I had got half-way, I met several of my 
 companions shouting, and at intervals firing off their guns. 
 
 My horse had got back a little before sunset. His appearance 
 had, of course, produced alarm, and the camp had turned out in 
 search of me. 
 
 Several who had a relish for fresh meat galloped back to strip 
 the two bulls of the remaining tit-bits ; but before midnight all 
 had returned ; and to the accompaniment of the hump-ribs 
 spurting in the cheerful blaze, T recounted the details of my 
 adventure 
 
THE BISON, 05 
 
 CHAPTER XXXII. 
 
 THE BISON. 
 
 THE bison universally, though improperly, called buffalo is, 
 perhaps, the most interesting animal in America. Its great size 
 and strength the prodigious numbers in which it is found its 
 peculiar habitat the value of its flesh and hide to the traveller, 
 as well as to the many tribes of Indians the mode of its chace 
 and capture all these circumstances render the buffalo an inter 
 esting and highly-prized animal. 
 
 Besides, it is the largest ruminant indigenous to America, 
 exceeding in weight even the moose deer, which latter, however, 
 equals it in height. With the exception of the musk-ox, it is 
 the only indigenous animal of the bovine tribe, but the latter 
 being confined to a very limited range, near the Arctic Sea, has 
 been less subject to the observation and attention of the civilised 
 world. The buffalo, therefore, may be regarded as the represen 
 tative of the ox in America. 
 
 The .appearance of the animal is well known ; pictorial illus 
 tration has rendered it familiar to the eyes of every one. The 
 enormous head, with its broad triangular front the conical 
 hump on the shoulders the small but brilliantly piercing eyes 
 the short black horns, of crescent shape the profusion ot 
 shaggy hair about the neck and forepart of the body the dis- 
 
306 
 
 proportioned bulk of the smaller hind quarters the short tail* 
 with its tufted extremity; all these are characteristics. The 
 hind-quarters are covered with a much shorter and smoother 
 coat of hair, which adds to their apparent disproportion, and 
 this, with the long hirsute covering of the breast, neck, hump, 
 and shoulders, gives to the buffalo especially when seen in a 
 picture a somewhat lion-like figure. The naked tail, with its 
 tuft at the end, strengthens this similarity. 
 
 Some of the characteristics above enumerated belong only to 
 the bull. The cow is less shaggy in front, has a smaller head, a 
 Jess fierce appearance, and is altogether more like the common 
 black cattle. 
 
 The buffalo is of a dark brown colour sometimes nearly 
 black and sometimes of a burnt or liver hue ; but this change 
 depends on the season. The young coat of hair is darker, but 
 changes as the season advances. In autumn it is nearly black, 
 and then the coat of the animal has a shiny appearance ; but as 
 winter comes on, and the hair lengthens, it becomes lighter and 
 more bleached like. In the early part of summer it has a yel 
 lowish brown hue, and at this time, with rubbing and wallowing, 
 part of it has already come off, while large flakes hang ragged 
 and loose from the flanks, ready at any moment to drop off. 
 
 In size, the American buffalo competes with the European 
 species (Bos aurochs), now nearly extinct. These animals differ 
 in shape considerably, but the largest individuals of each species 
 would very nearly balance one another in weight. Either of them 
 is equal in size and weight to the largest specimens of the com 
 mon ox prize oxen, of course, excepted. 
 
THE BISON. SOT 
 
 A full-grown buffalo bull is six feet high at the shoulders, 
 eight feet from the snout to the base of the tail, and will weigh 
 about 1500 Ibs. 
 
 Rare individuals exist whose weight much exceeds this. The 
 cows are, of course, much smaller than the bulls, and scarcely 
 come up to the ordinary standard of farm cattle. 
 
 The flesh of the buffalo is juicy and delicious, equal, indeed 
 superior, to well-fed beef. It may be regarded as beef with a 
 game, flavour. Many people travellers and hunters prefer it 
 to any other species of meat. 
 
 The flesh of the cow, as may be supposed, is more tender and 
 savoury than that of the bull; and in a hunt when "meat" is 
 the object, the cow is selected as a mark for the arrow or bullet. 
 
 The parts most esteemed are the tongue, the " hump-ribs ' ; 
 (the long spinous processes of the first dorsal vertebrae), and the 
 marrow of the shank bones. "Boudins" (part of the intestines) 
 are also favourite tit-bits among the Indians and trappers. 
 
 The tongues, when dried, are really superior to those of com 
 mon beeves, and, indeed, the same may be said of the other 
 parts, but there is a better and worse in buffalo beef, according 
 to the age and sex of the animal. " Fat Cow" is a term for the 
 super-excellent, and by " poor bull," or " old bull," is meant a 
 very unpalatable article, only to be eaten by the hunter in times 
 of necessity. 
 
 The range of the buffalo is extensive, though not as it once 
 was, it is gradually being restricted by hunter-pressure, and the 
 encroachments of civilization. It now consists of a longitudinal 
 strip, of which the western boundary may be considered the 
 
808 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 \ 
 
 Rocky Mountains, and the eastern the Mississippi River, though 
 it is only near the head waters of the latter that the range of 
 this animal extends so far east. Below the mouth of the Mis 
 souri no buffalo are found near the Mississippi, nor within two 
 hundred miles of it not, in fact, until you have cleared the 
 forests that fringe this stream, and penetrated a good distance 
 into the prairie tract. At one period, however, they roamed as 
 far to the east as the chain of the Alleghanies. 
 
 In Texas, the buffalo yet extends its migrations to the head 
 waters of the Brazos and Colorado, but it is not a Mexican ani 
 mal. Following the Rocky Mountains from the great bend of 
 the Rio Grande northward, we find no buffalo west of them 
 until we reach the higher latitude near the sources of the Sas 
 katchewan. There they have crossed the mountains, and are 
 now to be met with in some of thrc plains that lie on the other 
 side. This, however, is a late migration, occasioned by hunter- 
 pressure upon the eastern slope. The same has been observed 
 at different periods, at other points in the Rocky Mountain 
 chain, where the buffalo had made a temporary lodgment on the 
 Pacific side of the mountain, but where they are now entirely 
 extinct. It is known, from the traditional history of the tribes 
 on the west side, that the buffalo was only a newcomer among 
 
 them, and was not indigenous to that division of the Continent. 
 
 v v 
 Following the buffaloes north, we find their range coterminous 
 
 with the prairies. The latter end in an angle between the Peace 
 River and the great Slave Lake, and beyond this the buffalo 
 does not run. There is a point, however, across an arm of the 
 Slave Lake where buffalo are found. It is called Slave Point 
 
THE BISON. 309 
 
 and although contiguous to the primitive rocks of the " Barren 
 Grounds" it is of a similar geology (stratified limestone) with 
 the buffalo prairies to the west. This, to the geologist, is an 
 interesting fact. 
 
 From the Slave Lake, a line drawn to the head waters of the 
 Mississippi, and passing through Lake Winnipeg, will shut in 
 the buffalo country along the north-east. They are still found in 
 large bands upon the western shores of Winnipeg, on the plains 
 of the Saskatchewan and the Red River of the north. In fact, 
 buffalo-hunting is one of the chief employments of the inhabitants 
 of that half-Indian colony known as the " Red River Settle 
 ments.' 7 
 
 One of the most singular facts in relation to the buffalo is 
 their enormous numbers. Nothing but the vast extent of their 
 pasturage could have sustained such droves as have from time to 
 time been seen. Thousands frequently feed together, and the 
 plain for miles is often covered with a continuous drove. Some 
 times they are seen strung out into a long column, passing from 
 place to place, and roads exist made by them that resemble 
 great highways. Sometimes these roads, worn by the rains, 
 form great hollows that traverse the level plain, and they often 
 
 guide the thirsty traveller in the direction of water. 
 
 
 
 Another curious fact about the buffalo is their habit of 
 wallowing. The cause of this is not well ascertained. It may 
 be that they are prompted to it, as swine are, partly to cool their 
 blood by bringing their bodies in contact with the colder earth, 
 and partly to scratch themselves as other cattle do, and free 
 their skins from the annoying insects and parasites that prey 
 
310 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 upon them. It must be remembered that in their pasturage no 
 trees or " rubbing posts " are to be found, and in the absence of 
 these they are compelled to resort to wallowing. They fling 
 themselves upon their sides, and using their hunch and shoulder 
 as a pivot, spin round and round for hours at a time. In this 
 rotatory motion they aid themselves by using the legs freely. 
 The earth becomes hollowed out and worn into a circular basin, 
 often of considerable depth, and this is known as a " buffalo 
 wallow." Such curious circular concavities are seen throughout 
 the prairies where these animals range ''sometimes grown over 
 With grass, sometimes freshly hollowed out, and not unfrequently 
 containing water, with which the traveller assuages his thirst, 
 and so, too, the buffalo themselves. This has led to the fanciful 
 idea of the early explorers, that there existed on the American 
 Continent an animal who dug its own wells ! 
 
 The buffaloes make extensive migrations, going in large 
 " gangs." These are not periodical, and are only partially 
 influenced by climate. They are not regular e"ither in their 
 direction. Sometimes the gangs will be seen straying southward, 
 at other times to the north, east, or west. 
 
 The search of food or water seems partially to regulate these 
 movements, as with the passenger pigeon, and some other 
 migratory creatures. 
 
 At such times the buffaloes move forward in an impetuous 
 march which nothing seems to interrupt. Ravines, are passed, 
 and waterless plains traversed, and rivers crossed without 
 nesitation. In many cases broad streams, with steep or marshy 
 banns, are attempted, and thousands either perish in the waters 
 
THE BISON. 311 
 
 or become mired in the swamp, and cannot escape, but die the 
 most terribFe of deaths. Then is the feast of the eagles, the 
 vultures, and the wolves. Sometimes, too, the feast of the 
 hunter ; for when the Indians discover a gang of buffaloes in a 
 difficulty of this kind, the slaughter is immense. 
 
 Hunting the buffalo is, among the Indian tribes, a profession 
 rather than a sport. Those who practise it in the latter sense 
 are few indeed, as, to enjoy it, it is necessary to do as we had 
 done, make a journey of several hundred miles, and risk our 
 scalps, with no inconsiderable chance of losing them. For these 
 reasons few amateur hunters ever trouble the buffalo. 
 
 The true professional hunters the white trappers and Indians 
 pursue these animals almost incessantly, and thin their numbers 
 with lance, rifle, and arrow. 
 
 Buffalo-hunting is not all sport without peril. The hunter 
 frequently risks his life ; and numerous have been the fatal 
 results of encounters with these animals. The bulls, when 
 wounded, cannot be approached, even on horseback, without 
 considerable risk, while a dismounted hunter has but slight 
 chance of escaping. 
 
 The buffalo runs with a gait apparently heavy and lumbering 
 first heaving to one side, then to the other, like a ship at sea ; 
 but this gait, although not equal in speed to that of a horse, is 
 far too fast for a man on foot, and the swiftest runner, unless 
 favoured by a tree or some other object, will be surely overtaken, 
 and either gored to death by the animal's horns, or pounded to 
 a jelly under its heavy hoofs. Instances of the kind aio Tar 
 from being rare, and could amateur hunters only get at tho 
 
312 
 
 t 
 
 buffalo, such occurrences would be fearfully common. An incident 
 illustrative of these remarks is told by the traveller arid natural 
 ist Richardson, and may therefore be safely regarded as a fact. 
 
 "While I resided at Oharlton House, an incident of this kind 
 occurred. Mr. Finnan M'Donald, one of the Hudson's Bay 
 Company's clerks, was descending the Saskatchewan in a boat, 
 and one evening, having pitched his tent for the night, he went 
 out in the dusk to look for game. 
 
 " It had become nearly dark when he fired at a bison bull, 
 which was galloping over a small eminence; and as he was 
 hastening forward to see if the shot had taken effect, the 
 wounded beast made a rush at him. He had the presence of 
 mind to seize the animal by the long hair on his forehead, as it 
 struck him on the side with its horn, and being a remarkably 
 tall and powerful man, a struggle ensued, which continued until 
 his wrist was severely sprained, and his arm was rendered power 
 less ; he then fell, and after receiving two or three blows, became 
 senseless. 
 
 " Shortly after, he was found by his companions lying bathed 
 in blood, being gored in several places; and the bison was 
 couched beside him, apparently waiting to renew the attack, had 
 he shown any signs of life. Mr. M'Donald recovered from the 
 immediate effects of the injuries he received, but died a few 
 months after." Dr. Richardson adds : " Many other instances 
 might be mentioned of the tenaciousness with which this animal 
 pursues its revenge ; and I have been told of a hunter having 
 been detained for many hours in a tree, by an old bull which 
 had taken its post below to watch him." 
 
THE BISON. 313 
 
 The numbers of the buffalo, although still very great, are 
 annually on the decrease. Their woolly skins, when dressed, 
 are of great value as an article of commerce. Among the 
 Canadians they are in general use ; they constitute the favourite 
 wrappers of the traveller in that cold climate : they line the 
 cariole, the carriage, and the sleigh. Thousands of them are 
 used in the northern parts of the United States for a similar 
 purpose. They are known as buffalo-robes, and are often 
 prettily trimmed and ornamented, so as to command a good 
 price. They are even exported to Europe in large quantities. 
 
 Of course this extensive demand for the robes causes a pro 
 portionate destruction among the buffaloes. But this is not all. 
 Whole tribes of Indians, amounting to many thousands of 
 individuals, subsist entirely upon these animals, as the Laplander 
 upon the reindeer, or the Guarani Indian upon the moricke 
 palm. Their blankets are buffalo-robes, part of their clothing 
 buffalo-leather, their tents are buffalo-hides, and buffalo-beef is 
 their sole food for three parts of the year. The large prairie 
 tribes as the Sioux, the Pawnees, the Blackfeet, the Crows, 
 the Chiennes, the Arapahoes, and the Coman dies, with several 
 smaller bands live upon the buffalo. These tribes, united 1 
 number at least 100,000 souls. No wonder the buffalo should 
 be each year diminishing iti numbers! 
 
 It is predicted that in a few years the race will become extinct. 
 The same has been often said of the Indian. The soi-disant 
 prophet is addicted to this sort of melancholy foreboding, because 
 he believes by such babbling he gains a character for philan 
 thropic sympathy ; besides, it has a poetic sound. Believe me, 
 
 14 
 
314 
 
 there is not the slightest danger of such a destiny for the Indian : 
 liis race is not to become extinct ; it will be on the earth as long 
 as that of either black or white. Civilisation is removing the 
 seeds of decay ; civilisation will preserve the race of the red man 
 yet to multiply. Civilisation, too, may preserve the buffalo. 
 The hunter races must disappear, and give place to the more 
 useful agriculturist. The prairies are wide vast expanses of 
 that singular formation must remain in their primitive wildness, 
 at least for ages^and these will still be a safe range for the 
 buffalo. 
 
TRAILING THE BUFFALO. 315 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIII. 
 
 TRAILING THE BUFFALO. 
 
 AFTER a breakfast of fresh buffalo-meat, we took trie road in 
 high spirits. The long-expected sport would soon come off. 
 Every step showed us " buffalo sign " tracks, wallows, fresh 
 ordure. None of the animals were yet in sight, but the prairie 
 was filled with undulations, and no doubt " a gang " would be 
 found in some of the valleys. 
 
 A few miles farther on, and we came suddenly upon a 
 " buffalo road," traversing the prairie nearly at right angles to 
 our own direction. This caused a halt and consultation. 
 Should we follow the road ? By all means thought every one. 
 The tracks were fresh the road a large one thousands of 
 buffaloes must have passed over it ; where were they now ? 
 They might be a hundred miles off, for when these animals get 
 upon one of these regular roads they often journey at great 
 speed, and it is difficult to overtake them. When merely 
 browsing over the prairie the case is different. Then they travel 
 only a few miles a day, and a hunter trailing them soon comes up 
 with the gang. 
 
 Ike and Redwood were consulted as to what was best to be 
 done. They had both closely examined the trail, bending down 
 to the ground, and carefully noting every symptom that would 
 
31(? THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 give them a clue to the condition of the herd its numbers 
 its time of passing the rate of its speed, &c. 
 
 " Thur's a good grist o' em," said Ike, " leastways a kupple o' 
 thousand in the gang thur's bulls, cows, yearling, an' young 
 calf too, so we'll have a choice o' meat either beef or veal. 
 Kin we do better than foller 'em up ? Eh, Mark ?" 
 
 " Wai ! I don't think we can, ole hoss," replied Redwood. 
 " They passed hyur yesterday, jest about noon that is, the 
 thick o' the drove passed then." 
 
 " How do you tell that ?" inquired several. 
 
 " Oh, that's easy made out," replied the guide, evidently 
 regarding the question as a very simple one ; " you see most o' 
 these hyur tracks is a day old, an' yet thur not two." 
 
 " And why not ?" 
 
 " Why, how could they be two ?" asked the guide in asto 
 nishment, " when it rained yesterday before sun-up ? Thur 
 made since the rain, yu'll admit that f" 
 
 We now remembered the rain, and acknowledged the truth 
 of this reasoning. The animals must have passed since it 
 rained ; but why not immediately after, in the early morning ? 
 How could Redwood tell that it was the hour of noon ? How ? 
 
 " Easy enough, comrades," replied he. 
 
 " Any greenhorn mout do that," added Ike. The rest, how 
 ever, were puzzled, and waited the explanation. 
 
 " I tells this a way," continued the guide. " Ef the buffler 
 had passed by hyur, immediately after the rain, thar tracks wud 
 a sunk deeper, and thar wud a been more mud on the trail. As 
 thar ain't no great slobber about, ye see, I make my kalklations 
 
TRAILING THE BUFFALO. 31 1 
 
 that the ground must a been well dried afore they kirn along, 
 and after such a wet, it could not have been afore noon at the 
 least so that's how I know the buffler passed at that hour." 
 
 We were all interested in this craft of our guides, for without 
 consulting each other they had both arrived at the same conclu 
 sion by the same process of mental logic. They had also deter 
 mined several other points about the buffalo such as that they 
 had not all gone together, but in a straggling herd ; that some 
 had passed more rapidly than the rest ; that no hunters were 
 after them ; and that it was probable they were not bound upon 
 any distant migration, but only in search of water; and the 
 direction they had taken rendered this likely enough. Indeed 
 most of the great buffalo roads lead to watering-places, and 
 they have often been the means of conducting the thirsty travel 
 ler to the welcome rivulet or spring, when otherwise he might 
 have perished upon the dry plain. Whether the buffalo are 
 guided by some instinct towards water, is a question not satis 
 factorily solved. Certain it is, that their water paths often le&;1 
 in the most direct route to streams and ponds, of the existence 
 of which they could have known nothing previously. It is cer 
 tain that many of the lower animals possess either an "instinct," 
 or a much keener sense in these matters than man himself. Long 
 before the thirsty traveller suspects the propinquity of water, his 
 sagacious mule, by her joyful hinney, and suddenly altered bear 
 ing, warns him of its presence. 
 
 We now reasoned that if the buffalo had been making to some 
 watering-place, merely for the purpose of drinking and cooling 
 their flanks, they would, of course, make a delay there, and sc 
 
318 
 
 give ns a chance of coming up. They had a day the start of us, 
 it is true, but we should do our best to overhaul them. The 
 guides assured us we were likely to have good sport before we 
 came up with the great gang. There were straggling groups, 
 they had no doubt, some perhaps not over thirsty, that had hung 
 in the rear. In high hopes, then, we turned our heads to the 
 trail, and travelled briskly forward. 
 
 We had not gone many hundred yards when a very singular 
 scene was presented to our eyes. We had gained the crest of a 
 ridge, and were looking down into a little valley through which 
 -an the trail. At the bottom of the valley a cloud of dust was 
 constantly rising upward, and very slowly moving away, as the 
 day was quite calm. Although there had been rain a little over 
 thirty hours before, the ground was already parched and dry as 
 pepper. But what caused the dust to rise ? Not the wind 
 there was none. Some animal then, or likely more than 
 one ! 
 
 At first we could perceive no creature within the cloud, so 
 dun and thick was it; but after a little a wolf dashed out, ran 
 round a bit, and then rushed in again, and then another and 
 another, all of them with open jaws, glaring eyes, manes erect, 
 and tails switching about in a violent and angry manner. Now 
 and then we could only see part of their bodies, or their bushy 
 tails flung upward, but we could hear by their yelping barks 
 that they were engaged in a fierce contest either among them 
 selves, or with some other enemy. It was not among themselves, 
 as Ike and Redwood both affirmed. 
 
 " An old bull 's the game," said they ; and without waiting a 
 
TRAILING THE BUFFALO. 319 
 
 moment, the two trappers galloped forward, followed closely by 
 the rest of our party. 
 
 We were soon in the bottom of the little valley. Ike already 
 cracking away at the wolves his peculiar enemies. Several 
 others, led away by the excitement, also emptied their pieces at 
 these worthless creatures, slaying a number of them, while the 
 rest, nearly a dozen in all, took to their heels, and scampered 
 off over the ridges. . * ,'. 
 
 The dust gradually began to float off, and through the thinner 
 cloud that remained we now saw what the wolves had been at. 
 Standing in the centre of a ring, formed by its own turnings 
 and struggles, was the huge form of a buffalo-bull. Its shape 
 indicated that it was a very old one, lank, lean, and covered 
 with long hair, raggled and torn into tufts. Its colour was that 
 of the white dust, but red blood was streaming freshly down its 
 hind flanks, and from its nose and mouth. The cartilage of the 
 nose was torn into pieces by the fierce enemies it had so lately 
 encountered, and on observing it more closely we saw that its 
 eyes were pulled out of their sockets, exhibiting a fearful spec 
 tacle. The tail was eaten off by repeated wrenches, and the 
 hind quarters were sadly mangled. Spite of all this mutilation, 
 the old bull still kept his feet, and his prowess had been proved, 
 for no less than five wolves lay around, that he had " rubbed 
 out " previous to our arrival. He was a terrible and melancholy 
 spectacle that old bull, and all agreed it would be better to 
 relieve him by a well-aimed bullet. This was instantly fired at 
 him ; and the animal, after rocking about a while on his spread 
 legs, fell gently to the earth. 
 
320 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 Of course he had proved himself too tough to be eatable by 
 anything but prairie-wolves, and we were about to leave him as 
 he lay. Ike, however, had no idea of gratifying these sneaking 
 creatures at so cheap a rate. He was determined they should 
 not have their dinner so easily, so taking out his knife he 
 extracted the bladder, and some of the smaller intestines from 
 the buffalo. These he inflated in a trice, and then rigging up a 
 isapling over the body, he hung them upon it, so that the 
 slightest breeze kept them in motion. This, as we had been 
 already assured, was the best mode of keeping wolves at a dis 
 tance from any object, and the hunter, when wolves are near, 
 often avails himself of it to protect the venison or buffalo-meat 
 which he is obliged to leave behind him. 
 
 X 
 
 The guide having rigged his "scare wolf," mounted his old 
 mare, and again joined us, muttering his satisfaction as he rode 
 along. 
 
 We had not travelled much farther when our attention 
 was attracted by noises in front, and again from a ridge we 
 beheld a scene still more interesting than that we had just 
 witnessed. As before, the actors were buffalo and wolves, but 
 this time there was very little dust, as the contest was carried on 
 upon the green turf and we could see distinctly the manoeuvres 
 of the animals. 
 
 There were three buffaloes a cow, her calf, and a large bull, 
 that was acting as their champion and protector. A pack of 
 wolves had gathered around them, in which there were some 
 Of the larger species, and these kept up a continuous attack, the 
 object of which was to destroy the calf, and its mother if pos- 
 
TRAILING THE BUFFALO. 321 
 
 . This the bull was using all his endeavours to prevent, and 
 with considerable success too, as already several of the wolves 
 were down, and howling with pain. But what rendered the 
 result doubtful was, that fresh wolves were constantly galloping 
 up to the spot, and the buffaloes would likely have to yield in 
 time. It was quite amusing to see the efforts made by the 
 cunning brutes, to separate the calf from its protectors. Some 
 times they would get it a few feet to one side, and fling it to the 
 ground ; but before they could do it any great injury, the active 
 bull, and the cow as well, would rush forward upon them, scat 
 tering the cowardly creatures like a flock of birds. Then the 
 calf would place itself between the old ones, and would thus 
 remain for a while, until the wolves, having arranged some new 
 plan, would recommence the attack, and drive it forth again. 
 Once the position was strikingly in favour of the buffaloes. This 
 position, which seemed in the hurry of the conflict to turn up 
 accidentally, was in fact the result of design, for the old ones 
 every now and then endeavoured to renew it, but were hindered 
 by the stupidity of the calf. The latter was placed between 
 them in such a way that the heads of the bull and cow were in 
 opposite directions, and thus both flanks were guarded. In thia 
 way the buffaloes might have held their ground, but the silly 
 calf when closely menaced by the wolves foolishly started out, 
 rendering it necessary for its protectors to assume a new attitude 
 of defence. 
 
 It was altogether a singular conflict, a touching picture of 
 parental fondness. The end of it was easily guessed. The 
 wolves would tire out the old ones, and get hold of the calf of 
 
 U* 
 
822 r THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 course, although they might spend a long time about it. But 
 the great herd was distant, and there was no hope for the cow 
 to get her offspring back to its protection. It would certainly 
 be destroyed. 
 
 Notwithstanding our sympathy for the little family thus 
 assailed, we were not less anxious to do for them just what the 
 wolves wished to do kill and eat them. With this intent we 
 all put spur to our horses, and galloped right forward to the 
 spot. 
 
 Not one of the animals neither wolves nor buffaloes took 
 any notice of us until we were within a few yards of them. The 
 wolves then scampered off, but already the cracking rifles and 
 shot-guns were heard above the shouts of the charging cavalcade, 
 and both the cow and calf were seen sinking to the earth. Not 
 so the huge bull. With glaring eyeballs he glanced around 
 upon his new assailants, and then, as if aware that farther strife 
 was useless, he stretched forth his neck, and breaking through 
 the line of horsemen, went off in full flight. 
 
 A fresh touch of the spur, with a wrench of the bridle-rein, 
 brought our horses round, and set t.fieir heads after him, and 
 then followed as fine a piece of chasing as I remember to have 
 taken part in. The whole eight of us swept over the plain in 
 pursuit, but as we had emptied our pieces on the first charging 
 up, there wa<* not one ready to deliver a shot even should we 
 overtake the game. In the quick gallop no one thought of 
 re-loading. Our pistols, however, were still charged, and these 
 were grasped and held in readiness. 
 
 It was one of the most exciting chases. There before us 
 
TRAILING THE BUFFALO. 323 
 
 galloped the great game, under full view, with neither brake nor 
 bush to interrupt the pleasure of our wild race. The bull 
 proved to be one of .the fastest of his kind for there is a consi 
 derable difference in this respect. He led us nearly half-a-mile 
 across the ridges before even the best of our horses could come 
 up, and then just as we were closing in upon him, before a shot 
 had been fired, he was seen to give a sudden lounge forward and 
 tumble over upon the ground. 
 
 Some of us fancied he had only missed his footing and 
 stumbled ; but no motion could be perceived as we rode forward, 
 and on coming up he was found to be quite dead 1 A rifle 
 bullet had done the work one that had been fired in the first 
 volley ; and his strong fast run was only the last spasmodic 
 effort of his life. 
 
 One or two remained by the dead bull to get his hide and the 
 "tit-bits" of his meat, while the rest rode back to recover the 
 more precious cow and calf. What was our chagrin to find 
 that the rascally wolves had been before us ! Of the tender 
 calf, not a morsel remained beyond a few tufts of hairy skin, 
 and the cow was so badly torn and mutilated that she was not 
 worth cutting up ! Even the tongue, that most delicate bit, had 
 been appropriated by the sneaking thieves, and eaten out to the 
 very root. 
 
 As soon as they had observed us coming back, they had taken 
 to their heels, each carrrying a large piece with him, and we 
 could now see them out upon the prairie devouring the meat 
 before our very eyes. -Ike was loud in his anathemas, and but 
 that the creatures were too cunning for him, would have taken 
 
324 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 his revenge upon the spot. They kept off, however*, beyond 
 range of either rifle or double barrel, and Ike was forced to 
 nurse his wrath for some other occasion. 
 
 We now went back to the bull, where we encamped for the 
 night. The latter, tough as he was, furnished us an excellent 
 supper from his tongue, hump-ribs, boudins, and marrow bones, 
 and we all lay down to sleep and dream of the sports to 
 morrow. 
 
APPROACHING THE BUFFALO. 325 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIV. 
 
 APPROACHING THE BUFFALO. 
 
 NEXT morning, just as we were preparing to resume our jour 
 ney, a gang of buffalo appeared upon one of the swells, at the 
 distance of a mile or a mile and a half from our camp. There 
 were about a dozen of them, and, as our guides asserted, they 
 were all cows. This was just what we wanted, as the flesh of 
 the cows is much more delicate than that of the bulls, and were 
 eager to lay in a stock of it. 
 
 A hurried consultation was held, in which it was debated as 
 to the best manner of making an attack upon the herd. Some 
 advised that we should ride boldly forward, and overtake the 
 cows by sheer swiftness, but this mode was objected to by others. 
 The cows are at times very shy. They might break off long 
 before we were near, and give our horses such a gallop as 
 would render them useless for the rest of the day. Besides, our 
 animals were in no condition for such exercise. Our stock of 
 corn had run out, and the grass feeding and hard travelling had 
 reduced most of them to skeletons. A hard gallop was there 
 fore to be avoided if possible. 
 
 Among those who counselled a different course were the guides 
 Ike and Eedwood. These men thought it would be much better 
 
326 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 to try the cows by " approaching," that is, by endeavouring to 
 creep up, and get a shot when iiear enough. The ground was 
 favourable enough for it, as there were here and there little 
 clumps of cactus plants and bushes of the wild sage (artcmisia) , 
 behind which a hunter might easily conceal himself. The trap 
 pers farther alleged that the herd would not be likely to make 
 off at the first shot, unless the hunter discovered himself. On 
 the contrary, one after another might fall, and not frighten the 
 rest, so long as these did not get to leeward, and detect the 
 presence of their enemy by the scent. 
 
 The wind was in our favour, and this was a most important 
 consideration. Had it been otherwise the game would have 
 " winded " us at a mile's distance, as they can recognise the 
 smell of man, and frequently comprehend the danger of being 
 near such an enemy. Indeed, it is on their great power of scent 
 that the buffalo most commonly rely for warning. The eyes of 
 these creatures, and particularly the bulls, are so covered with 
 the shaggy hair hanging over them, that individuals are often 
 seen quite blinded by it, and a hunter, if he keep silent enough, 
 may walk up and lay his hand upon them, without having been 
 previously noticed. This, however, can only occur when the 
 hunter travels against the wind. Otherwise he finds the buffalo 
 as shy and difficult to approach as most game, and many a long 
 spell of crouching and crawling has been made to no purpose, a 
 siugle sniff of the approaching enemy proving enough to startle 
 vhe game, and send it off in wild flight. 
 
 Ike and his brother trapper urged that if the approach should 
 prove unsuccessful there would still be time to "run" the herd, 
 
APPROACHING THE BUFFALO. 527 
 
 as those who did not attempt the former method might keep in 
 their saddles, and be ready to gallop forward. 
 
 All this was feasible enough ; and it was therefore decided 
 that the " approach " should have a trial. The trappers had 
 already prepared themselves for this sort of thing. They were 
 evidently desirous of giving us an exhibition of their hunter- 
 prowess, and we were ready to witness it. We had noticed them 
 busied with a pair of large wolf skins, which they had taken off 
 the animals entire, with the heads, ears, tails, &c., remaining 
 upon the skins. The purpose of these was to enable the hun 
 ters to disguise themselves as wolves, and thus crawl within 
 shooting distance of the buffalo herd, 
 
 Strange, to say this is quite possible. Although no creature 
 is a greater enemy to the buffalo than the wolf, the former, as 
 already stated, permits the latter to approach quite close to him 
 without making any attempt to drive him off, or without 
 exhibiting the slightest symptoms of fear on his own account. 
 The buffalo cannot prevent the wolf from prowling close about 
 him, as the latter is sufficiently active, and can easily get out 
 of the way when pursued by the bulls on the other hand, the 
 buffaloes, unless when separated from the herd, or in some way 
 disabled, have no fear of the wolf. Under ordinary circumstances 
 they seem wholly to disregard his presence. The consequence 
 is, that a wolf-skin is a favourite disguise of the Indians for 
 approaching the buffalo, and our trappers, Ike and Redwood, 
 had often practised this ruse. We were likely then to see sport. 
 
 Both were soon equipped in their white wolf-skins, their heads 
 being enveloped with the skins of the wolves' heads, and the 
 
328 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 remainder tied with thongs, so as to cover their backs and sides. 
 At best the skins formed but a scanty covering to the bodies of 
 the trappers ; but, as we have already remarked, the buffalo 
 has not a very keen sense of sight, and so long as the decoys 
 kept to leeward, they would not be closely scrutinised. 
 
 When fairly in their new dress, the hunters parted from the 
 company, leaving their horses at the camp. The rest of us sat 
 in our saddles, ready to gallop forward, in case the ruse did not 
 succeed, and make that kind of a hunt called " running." Of 
 course the trappers went as far as was safe, walking in an 
 upright attitude ; but long before they had got within shot, we 
 saw both of them stoop down and scramble along in,a crouching 
 way, and then at length they knelt upon the ground, and pro 
 ceeded upon their hands and knees. 
 
 It required a good long time to enable them to get near 
 enough ; and we on horseback, although watching every manoeu 
 vre with interest, were beginning to get impatient. The buffalo 
 however, quietly browsing along the sward, seemed to be utterly 
 unconscious of the dangerous foe that was approaching them, 
 and at intervals one or another would fling itself to the earth in 
 play, and after kicking and wallowing a few seconds, start to its 
 feet again. They were all cows, with one exception a bull 
 who seemed to be the guardian and leader. Even at a mile's 
 distance, we could recognise the shape and size of the latter, as 
 completely differing from all the rest. The bull seemed to be 
 more active than any, moving around the flock, and apparently 
 Watching over their safety. 
 
 As the decoys approached, we thought that the bull seemed 
 
APPROACHING THE BUFFALO. 329 
 
 to take notice of them. He had moved out to that side of the 
 herd, and seemed for a moment to scrutinise them as they drew 
 near. But for a moment, however, for he turned apparently 
 satisfied, and was soon close in to the gang. 
 
 Ike and Redwood had at length got so close, that we were 
 expecting every moment to see the flash of their pieces. They 
 were not so close, however, as we in the distance fancied them 
 to be. 
 
 Just at this moment we perceived another buffalo a large 
 bull running up behind them. He had just made his appearance 
 over a ridge, and was now on his way to join the herd. The 
 decoys were directly in his way, and these did not appear to see 
 him until he had run almost between them, so intent were they 
 on watching the others. His intrusion, however, evidently 
 disconcerted them, spoiling their plans, while in the very act of 
 being carried into execution. They were, no doubt, a little 
 startled by the apparition of such a huge shaggy animal coming 
 suddenly on them. Their pieces blazed at the same time, and the 
 intruder was seen rolling over upon the plain. 
 
 But the ruse was over. The bull that guarded the herd was 
 witness to this odd encounter, and bellowing a loud alarm to his 
 companions, set off at a lumbering gallop. All the rest followed 
 as fast as their legs would carry them. 
 
 Fortunately they ran, not directly from us, but in a line that 
 inclined to our left. By taking a diagonal course we might yet 
 head them, and without another word our whole party put to the 
 spur, and sprang off over the prairie. 
 
 It cost us a five-mile gallop before any of us came within 
 
330 THE HUNTER^ FEAST. 
 
 shooting-distance; and only four of us did get so near the 
 naturalist, Besan9ou, the Kentuckian, and myself. Our horses 
 were well blown, but after a good deal of encouragement we got 
 them side by side with the flying game. 
 
 Each one chose his own, and then delivered his shot at his 
 best convenience. The consequence was, that four of the cows 
 were strewed out along the path, and rewarded us for our hard 
 gallop. The rest, on account of saving our horses, were suffered 
 to make their escape. 
 
 As we had now plenty of excellent meat, it was resolved to 
 encamp again, and remain for some time on that spot, until we 
 had rested our horses after their long journey, when we should 
 make a fresh search for the buffalo, and have another "run" or 
 two out of them. 
 
UNEXPECTED GUESTS. 331 
 
 CHAPTER XXXY. 
 
 UNEXPECTED GUESTS. 
 
 WE found Ike and Redwood bitterly angry at the bull they 
 had slain. Xhey alleged that he had made a rush at them in 
 coming up, and that was why they had risen to their feet and 
 fired upon him. We thought such had been the case, as we had 
 noticed a strange manoeuvre on the part of the bull. But for 
 that, our guides believed they would have succeeded to their 
 hearts' content ; as they intended first to have shot the other 
 bull, and then the cows would have remained until all had 
 fallen. 
 
 A place was now selected for our night-camp, and the meat 
 from the cows brought in and dressed. Over a fire of cotton- 
 wood logs we soon cooked the most splendid supper we had 
 eaten for a long time. 
 
 The beef of the wild buffalo-cow is far superior to that of 
 domestic cattle, but the " tit-bits " of the same animal are 
 luxuries never to be forgotten. Whether it be that a prairie 
 appetite lends something to the relish is a question. This I will 
 not venture to deny ; but certainly the "baron of beef" in merry 
 old England has no souvenirs to me so sweet as a roast rib of 
 
"fat cow," cooked over a cotton-wood fire, and eaten in the 
 open air, under the pure sky of the prairies. 
 
 The place where we had pitched our camp was upon the banks 
 of a very small spring-stream, or creek, that, rising near at hand, 
 meandered through the prairie to a not distant branch of the 
 Arkansas River. Where we were, this creek was embanked 
 very slightly ; but, at about two hundred yards' distance, on 
 each side, there was a range of bluffs that followed the direction 
 of the stream. These bluffs were not very high, but sufficiently 
 so to prevent any one down in the creek bottom from having a 
 view of the prairie level. As the bottom itself was covered with 
 very coarse herbage, and as a better grass the buffalo grew 
 on the prairie above, we there picketed our horses, intending to 
 bring them closer to the amp when night set in, or before going 
 to sleep. The camp itself that is the two tents, with Jake's 
 waggon were on the very edge of the stream ; but Jake's mules 
 were up on the plain, along with the rest of the cavallada. 
 
 It was still two hours before sunset. We had made our 
 dinner, and, satisfied with the day's sport, were enjoying our 
 selves with a little brandy, that still held out in our good-sized 
 keg, and a smoke. We had reviewed the incidents of the day, 
 and were laying out our plans for the morrow. We were 
 admonished by the coldness of the evening that winter was not 
 far off, and we all agreed that another week was as long as we 
 could safely remain upon the prairies. We had started late in 
 the season, but our not finding the buffalo farther to the east 
 had made a great inroad upon our time, and spoiled all our 
 calculations. Now that we had found them, a week was as 
 
UNEXPECTED GUESTS. 333 
 
 rauen as we could allow for their hunt. Already frost appeared 
 in the night hours, and made us uncomfortable enough, and we 
 knew that in the prairie region the transition from autumn to 
 winter is often sudden and unexpected. 
 
 The oldest and wisest of the party were of the opinion that we 
 should not delay our return longer than a week, and the others 
 Assented to it. The guides gave the same advice, although these 
 cared little about wintering on the prairie, and were willing to 
 remain as long as we pleased. We knew, however, that the 
 hardships to which we should be subjected would not be relished 
 by several of tho party, and it would be better for all to 
 get back to & settlements before the setting in of severe 
 weather. 
 
 I have said ve were all in high spirits. A week's hunting, 
 with something to do at it every day, would satisfy us. We 
 should do immense slaughter on the buffalo, by approaching, 
 running, and surrounding them. We should collect a quantity 
 of the best meat, jerk and dry it over the fire, load our waggon 
 with that, and with a large number of robes and horns as 
 trophies, should go back in triumph to the settlements. Such 
 were our pleasant anticipations. 
 
 I am sorry to say that these anticipations were never realised 
 --not one of them. When we reached the nearest settlement, 
 which happened about six weeks after, our party presented an 
 appearance that differed as much from a triumphal procession as 
 could well be imagined. One and all of us were afoot. One 
 and all of us even to the fat little doctor were emaciated, 
 ragged, foot-sore, frost-bitten, and little better than half alive. 
 
334 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 We had a number of buffalo-skins with us it is true, but these 
 hung about our shoulders, and were for use, and not show. 
 They had served us for weeks for beds and blankets by 
 night, and for great coats under the fierce winter rains. But 
 I anticipate. Let us return to our camp on the little creek. 
 
 I have said that we sat around the blazing fire discussing our 
 future plans, and enjoying the future by anticipation. The 
 hours passed rapidly oil, and while thus engaged night came 
 down upon us. 
 
 At this time some one advised that we should bring up the 
 horses, but another said it would be as well to let them browse 
 a while longer, as the grass where they were was good, and they 
 had been for some days on short commons. "They will be safe 
 enough," said this speaker. "We have seen no Indian sign, or 
 if any of you think there is danger, let some one go up to the 
 bluff, but by all means let the poor brutes have a good meal 
 of it." 
 
 This proposal was accepted. Lanty was despatched to stand 
 guard over the horses, while the rest of us remained by the fire 
 conversing as before. 
 
 The Irishman could scarcely have had time to get among the 
 animals, when our ears were saluted by a medley of sounds that 
 sent the blood to our hearts, and caused us to leap simultane 
 ously from the fire. 
 
 The yells of Indians were easily understood, even by the 
 "greenest" of our party, and these, mingled with the neighing 
 of horses, the prancing of hoofs, and the shouts of our guard, 
 were the sounds that reached us. 
 
UNEXPECTED GUESTS. 335 
 
 " Injuns, by G d !" cried Ike, springing up, and clutching 
 his long rifle. 
 
 This wild exclamation was echoed by more than one, as each 
 leaped back from the fire and ran to his gun. 
 
 In a few seconds we had cleared the brushwood that thickly 
 covered the bottom, and climbed out on the bluff. Here we 
 were met by the terrified guard, who was running back 
 at the top of his speed, and bellowing at the top of his 
 voice. 
 
 " Och, murther !" cried he, "the savage bastes there's a 
 thousand ov thim 1 They've carried off the cattle every leg 
 mules an' all, by Jaysus !" 
 
 Rough as was this announcement, we soon became satisfied 
 that it was but too true. On reaching the place where the 
 cavallada had been picketed, we found not the semblance of a 
 horse. Even the pins were drawn, and the lazoes taken along. 
 Far off on the prairie we could discern dimly a dark mass of 
 mounted men, and we could plainly hear their triumphant shouts 
 and laughter, as they disappeared in the distance 1 
 
 We never saw either them or our horses again. 
 
 They were a party of Pawnees, as we afterwards learned, and 
 no doubt had they attacked us, we should have suffered severely ; 
 but there were only a few of them, and they were satisfied with 
 plundering us of our horses. It ia just possible that after 
 securing them they might have returned to attack us, had not 
 Lanty surprised them at their work. After the alarm they 
 knew we would be on the look-out for them, and therefore were 
 contented to carry off our animals. 
 
336 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 It is difficult to explain the change that thus so suddenly 
 occurred in our feelings and circumstances. The prospect before 
 us thus set afoot upon the prairie at such a distance from the 
 settlements, and at such a season was perfectly appalling. We 
 should have to walk every inch of the way carry our food, and 
 everything else, upon our backs. Perhaps we might not be too 
 much burdened with food. That depended upon very precarious 
 circumstances upon our hunting luck. Our " stock " in the 
 waggon was reduced to only a few days' rations, and of course 
 would go but a few days with us, while we had many to provide 
 for. 
 
 These thoughts were after-reflections thoughts of the next 
 morning. During that night we thought only of the Indians, 
 for of course we did not as yet believe they had left us for good. 
 We did not return to sleep by the fire that would have been . 
 very foolishness. Some went back to get their arms in order, 
 and then returning we all lay along the edge of the bluff, where 
 the path led into the bottom, and watched the prairie until the 
 morning. We lay in silence, or only muttering our thoughts to 
 one another. 
 
 I have said until the morning. This is not strictly true, for 
 before the morning that succeeded that noche triste broke upon 
 us, another cruel misfortune befel us, which still farther narrowed 
 the circumstances that surrounded us. I have already stated 
 that the herbage of the creek bottom was coarse. It consisted 
 of long grass, interspersed with briars and bunches of wild pea 
 vines, wiih here and there a growth of scrubby wood. It was 
 difficult to get through it, except by paths made by the buffalo 
 
UNEXPECTED GUESTS. 331 
 
 and other animals. At this' season of the year the thick growth 
 of annuals was now a mass of withered stems, parched by the 
 hot suns of autumn until they were as dry as tinder. 
 
 While engaged in our anxious vigil upon the plain above, 
 we had not given a thought either to our camp or the large fire 
 we had left there. 
 
 All at once our attention was directed to the latter by a 
 loud crackling noise that sounded in our ears. We sprang to 
 our feet, and looked into the valley behind us. The camp was 
 on fire. 
 
 The brush was kindled all around it, and blazed to the height 
 of several feet. We could see the blaze reflected from the white 
 canvas both of wagon and tents, and in a few seconds these 
 were licked into the hot flames, and disappeared from our view. 
 
 Of course we made no effort to save them. That would have 
 been an idle and foolish attempt. We could not have approached 
 the spot, without the almost certain danger of death. Already 
 while we gazed, the fire spread over the whole creek bottom, 
 and passed rapidly both up and down the banks of the 
 stream. 
 
 For ourselves there was no danger. We were up on the open 
 prairie covered only with short grass. Had this caught also, 
 we knew how to save ourselves ; but the upper level, separated 
 by a steep bluff, was not reached by the conflagration that raged 
 so fiercely below. 
 
 We stood watching the flames for a long while, until daylight 
 broke. The bottom, near where we were, had ceased to burn, 
 and now lay beneath us, smoking, smouldering, and black. "We 
 
 15 
 
33S THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 descended, and picked our steps to where our camp had stood. 
 The tents were like black cerements. The iron work of the 
 wagon alone remained, our extra clothing and provisions were 
 all consumed. Even the produce of our yesterday's hunt lay 
 among the ashes a charred and ruined mass 1 
 
A SUPPER OF WOLF-MUTTON. 339 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVI. 
 
 A SUPPER OF WOLF-MUTTON. 
 
 OUR condition was now lamentable indeed. We even hungered 
 for our breakfast, and nothing to eat. The fire had consumed 
 everything. A party went to look for the remains of the buffalo- 
 bull killed by the guides, but returned without a morsel of meat. 
 The wolves had cleaned the carcass to a skeleton. The mar 
 row-bones, however, still remained, and these were brought in 
 afterwards, the same parts of the four cows ; and we made our 
 breakfast on marrow eating it raw not but that we had fire 
 enough, but it is less palatable when cooked. 
 
 What was next to be done ? We held a consultation, and of 
 course came to the resolve to strike for the first settlement 
 that was the frontier town of Independence on the Missouri 
 River. It was nearly three hundred miles off, and we calculated 
 on reaching it in about twenty days. We only reckoned the 
 miles we had to traverse. We allowed nothing for the numer 
 ous delays, caused by marshes and the fording of flooded 
 streams. It afterwards turned out that our calculations were 
 incorrect. It was nearly twice twenty days before we arrived at 
 Independence. 
 
 We never thought of following the trail of the Indians to 
 
340 THE HUNTERS' tfEAS*. 
 
 recover our horses. We knew they were gone far beyond pur 
 suit, but even could we have coine up with them, it would 
 only have been to imperil our lives in an unequal strife. We 
 gave up our horses as lost, and only deliberated on how we were 
 to undertake the journey a foot. 
 
 Here a serious question arose. Should we at once turn our 
 faces towards the settlement, how were we to subsist on the 
 way? *By heading for Independence we should at once get clft^tr 
 of the buffalo range, and what other game was to be depended 
 on ? A stray deer, rabbit, or prairie grouse might suffice to sus 
 tain a single traveller for a long time, but there were ten of us. 
 How was this number to be fed on the way ? Even with our 
 horses to carry us in pursuit of game, we had not been able on 
 our outward journey to procure enough for all. How much less 
 our oppportunity now that we were afoot ! 
 
 To head directly homeward therefore was not to be thought 
 of. We should assuredly perish by the way. 
 
 After much discussion it was agreed that we should remain 
 for some days within the buffalo range, until we had succeeded 
 in procuring a supply of meat, and then, each carrying his share, 
 we should begin our jonrney homeward. In fact, this was not a 
 disputed point. All knew there remained no other way of saving 
 our lives. The only difference of opinion was as to the direction 
 we should ramble in search of the buffalo ; for although we ; 
 knew that we were on the outskirts of a great herd, we were 
 not certain as to its whereabouts, and by taking a false direction 
 we might get out of its range altogether. 
 
 It so happened, however, that fortune lately so adverse, now 
 
A SUPPER OF WOLF-MUTTON. 341 
 
 took a turn in our favour, and the great buffalo drove was found 
 without much trouble on our part. Indeed almost without any 
 exertion, farther than that of loading and firing our guns, we 
 same into possession of beef enough to have victualled an army. 
 We had, moreover, the excitement of a grand hunt, although we 
 no longer hunted for the sport of the thing. 
 
 During that day we scattered in various directions over the 
 prairie, agreeing to meet again at night. ' The object of our thus 
 separating was to enable us to cover a greater extent of ground, 
 and afford a better chance of game. To our mutual chagrin we 
 met at the appointed rendezvous all of us elnpty-handed. The 
 only game brought in was a couple of marmots (prairie dogs), 
 that would not have been sufficient for the supper of a cat. 
 They were not enough to give each of the party a taste, so we 
 were compelled to go without supper. Having had but a 
 meagre breakfast and no dinner, it will not be wondered at that 
 we were by this time hungry as wolves ; and we began to dread 
 that death by starvation was nearer than we thought of. Buffa 
 loes several small gangs of them had been seen during the 
 day, but so shy that none of them could be approached. 
 Another day's failure would place our lives in a perilous situa 
 tion indeed ; and as these thoughts passed through our minds, 
 we gazed on each other with looks that betokened apprehension 
 and alarm. The bright blaze of the camp-fire for the cold had 
 compelled us to kindle one no longer lit up a round of joyful 
 faces. It shone upon cheeks haggard with hunger and pallid 
 with fear. There was no story for the delighted listener na 
 adventure to be related. We were no longer the historians, but 
 
342 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 the real actors in a drama a drama whose denouement might be 
 a fearful one. 
 
 As we sat gazing at each other, in hopes of giving or receiving 
 some morsel of comfort and encouragement, we noticed old Ike 
 silently glide from his place by the fire, and after a whisper to 
 us to remain silent, crawl off on his hands and knees. He had 
 seen something doubtless, and hence his singular conduct. In a 
 few minutes his prostrate form was lost in the darkness, and for 
 some time we saw or heard no more of him. At length we were 
 startled by the whip-like crack of the guide's rifle, and fancying 
 it might be Indians, each sprang up in some alarm and seized 
 his gun. We were soon reassured, however, by seeing the 
 upright form of the trapper as he walked deliberately back 
 towards the campfire, and the blaze revealed to us a large 
 whitish object dangling by his side and partly dragging along 
 the ground. 
 
 "Hurrah 1" cried one, "Ike has killed game." 
 
 " A deer an antelope," suggested several. 
 
 "No o," drawled Redwood. "'Taint eyther, but I guess 
 we won't quarrel with the meat. I could eat a raw jackass jest 
 about now." 
 
 Ike came up at this moment, and we saw that his game was 
 no other thau a prairie wolf. Better that than hunger, thought 
 all of us ; and in a brace of seconds the wolf was suspended 
 over the fire, and roasting in the hide. 
 
 We were now more cheerful, and the anticipation of such an 
 odd viand for supper, drew jokes from several of the party. To 
 the trappers such a dish was nothing new, although they were 
 
A SUPPER OP WOLF-MUTTON. 343 
 
 the only persons of the party who had partaken of it. But there 
 was not ono fastidious palate present, and when the "wolf- 
 mutton " was broiled, each cleaned his joint or his rib with as 
 much gout as if he had been picking the bones of a pheasant. 
 
 Before the supper was ended the wolf-killer made a second 
 coup, killing another wolf precisely as he had done the former ; 
 and we had the gratification of knowing that our breakfast was 
 now provided for. These creatures, that all along our journey 
 had received nothing from us but anathemas, were now likely to 
 come in for a share of our blessings, and we could not help 
 feeling a species of gratitude" towards them, although at the 
 same time we thus killed and ate them. 
 
 The supper of roast wolf produced an agreeable change in our 
 feelings, and we even listened with interest to our guides, who, 
 appropriate to the occasion, related some curious incidents of the 
 many narrow escapes they had had from starvation. 
 
 One in particular fixed our attention, as it afforded an illustra 
 tion of trapper life under peculiar circumstances. 
 
344 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXYIL 
 
 HARE HUNTING AND CRICKET DRIVING. 
 
 THE two trappers, in company with two others of the same 
 calling, were on trapping expedition to one of the tributaries 
 of the great Bear River, west of the Rocky Mountains, when 
 they were attacked by a band of hostile Utahs, and robbed, not 
 only of the produce of their hunt, but their horses and pack- 
 mules were taken from them, and even their arms and ammuni 
 tion. The Indians could have taken their lives as well, but 
 from the interference of one of the chiefs, who knew old Ike, 
 they were allowed to go free, although in the midst of the desert 
 region where they were, that was no great favour. They were 
 as likely as not to perish from hunger before they could reach 
 any settlement as at that time there was none nearer than 
 Fort Hall upon the Snake River, a distance of full three hun 
 dred miles. Our four trappers, however, were not the men to 
 yield themselves up to despair, even in the midst of a desert ; 
 and they at once set about making the most of their circum 
 stances. 
 
 There were deer upon the stream where they had been 
 trapping, and bear also, as well as other game, but what did 
 that signify, now that they had no arms ? Of course, the deer 
 
HARE HUNTING AND CRICKET DRIVING. 845 
 
 or antelopes sprang out of the shrubbery, or scoured across the 
 plain, only to tantalize them. 
 
 Near where they had been left by the .Indians,* was a " sage 
 prairie," that is, a plain covered with a growth of the artemisia 
 plant the leaves and berries of which bitter as they are 
 form the food of a species of hare, known among the trappers as 
 the " sage rabit." This creature is as swift as most of its tribe, 
 but although our trappers had neither dog nor gun, they found 
 a way of capturing the sage rabbits. Not by snaring neither, 
 for they were even without materials to make snares out of. 
 Their mode of securing the game was as follows : 
 
 They had the patience to construct a circular fence, by 
 wattling the sage plants together, and then leaving one side 
 open, they made a "surround" upon the plain, beating the 
 bushes as they went, until a number of rabbits were driven 
 within the inclosure. The remaining part of the fence was then 
 completed, and the rabbit hunters going inside, chased the game 
 about until they had caught all that were inside. Although 
 the fence was but about three feet in height, the rabbits never 
 attempted to leap over, but rushed head foremost against the 
 wattles, and were either caught or knocked over with sticks. 
 
 This piece of ingenuity was not original with the trappers, as 
 Ike and Redwood admitted. It is the mode of rabbit hunting 
 practised by some tribes of western Indians, as the poor Shosho- 
 nees and miserable " diggers," whose whole lives are spent in a 
 constant struggle to procure food enough to sustain them. 
 These Indians capture the small animals that inhabit their 
 barren country by ways that more resemble the instinct of 
 
 15* 
 
316 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. . 
 
 beasts of prey than any reasoning process. In fact, there are 
 bands of these Indians who can hardly be said to have yet 
 reached the" hunter state. Some of them carry as their sole 
 armour a long stick with a hooked end, the object of which is to 
 drag the agama and the lizard out of its cave or cleft among 
 the rocks ; and this species of game is transferred from the end 
 of the stick to the stomach of the captor with the same despatch 
 as a hungry mastiff would devour a mouse. 
 
 Impounding the sage hare is one of the master-strokes of 
 their hunter-craft, and forms a source of employment to them 
 for a considerable portion of the year. 
 
 Our four trappers, then, remembering the Indian mode of 
 capturing these creatures, put it in execution to some advan 
 tage, and were soon able to satisfy their hunger. After two or 
 three days spent in this pursuit, they had caught more than 
 twenty hares, but the stock ran out, and no more could be 
 found in that neighborhood. 
 
 Of course only a few were required for present use, and the 
 rest were dried over a sage fire until they were in a condition to 
 keep for some days. 
 
 Packing them on their backs, the trappers set out, heading 
 for the Snake River. Before they could reach Fort Hall, their 
 rabbit meat was exhausted, and they were as badly off as 
 before. The country in which they now found themselves was 
 if possible more of a desert than that they had just quitted. 
 Even rabbits could not dwell in it, or the few that were started 
 could not be caught. The artemisia was not in sufficient plenty 
 to make an inclosure with, and it would have been hopeless to 
 
HARE HUNTING AND CRICKET DRIVING. 34t 
 
 have attempted such a thing ; as they might have spent days 
 without trapping a single hare. Now and again they were tan 
 talised by seeing the great sage cock, or, as naturalists call it, 
 " cock of the plains " ( Tetrao urophasianus), but they could only 
 hear the loud " burr " of its wings, and watch it sail off to some 
 distant point of the desert plain. This bird is the largest of the 
 grouse kind, though it is neither a bird of handsome plumage, 
 nor yet is it delicate in its flesh. On the contrary, the flesh, 
 from the nature of its food, which is the berry of the wild worm 
 wood, is both unsavoury and bitter. It would not have deterred 
 the appetites of our four trappers, could they have laid their 
 hands upon the bird, but without guns such a thing was out of 
 the question. For several days they sustained themselves on 
 roots and berries. Fortunately it was the season when these 
 are ripe, and they found here and there the prairie turnip 
 (Psoraka esculenta), and in a marsh which they had to cross 
 they obtained a quantity of the celebrated Kamas roots. 
 
 All these supplies, however, did not prove sufficient. They 
 had still four or five days' farther journey, and were beginning 
 to fear they would not get through it, for the country to be 
 passed was a perfect barren waste. At this crisis, however, a 
 new scource of subsistence appeared to them, and in sufficient 
 plenty to enable them to continue their journey without fear of 
 want. As if by magic, the plain upon which they were tra 
 velling all at once became covered with large crawling insects of 
 a dark brown colour. These were insects known among the 
 trappers as "prairie crickets," but from the description given 
 of thsm by the trappers the hunter-naturalist pronounced them 
 
348 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 to be "locusts." They were of that species known in America 
 as the "seventeen years' locust" (Cicada septemdecem) , so called 
 because there is a popular belief that they only appear in great 
 swarms every seventeen years. It is probable, however, that 
 this periodical appearance is an error, and that their coming at 
 longer or shorter intervals depends upon the heat of the climate, 
 and many other circumstances. 
 
 They have been known to arrive in a great city, coming not 
 from afar, but out of the ground from between the bricks of 
 the pavement and out of the crevices in the walls, suddenly 
 covering the streets with their multitudes. But this species 
 does not destroy vegetation, as is the case with others of the 
 locust tribe. They themselves form the favourite food of many 
 birds, as well as quadrupeds. Hogs eagerly feed upon and 
 destroy vast numbers of them ; and even the squirrels devour 
 them with as great a relish as they do nuts. These facts were 
 furnished by the hunter-naturalist, but our trappers had an 
 equally interesting tale to tell. 
 
 As soon as they set eyes upon the locusts and saw that they 
 were crawling thickly upon the plain, they felt that they were 
 safe. They knew that these insects were a staple article of food 
 among the same tribes of Indians who hunt the sage hare. 
 They knew, moreover, their mode of capturing them, and they 
 at once set about making a large collection. 
 
 This was done by hollowing out a circular pit in the sandy 
 earth, and then the four separating some distance from each 
 other, drove the crickets towards a common centre the p;i. 
 After some manoeuvring, a large quantity was brought together, 
 
HARE HUNTING AND CRICKET DRIVING. 349 
 
 and these being pressed upon all sides, crawled up to the edge 
 of the pit, and were precipitated into its bottom. Of course 
 the hole had been made deep enough to prevent them getting 
 out until they were secured by the hunters. 
 
 At each drive nearly half a bushel was obtained, and then a 
 fresh pit was made in another part of the plain, and more driven 
 in, until, our four trappers had as many as they wanted. 
 
 The crickets were next killed, and slightly parched upon hot 
 stones, until they were dry enough to keep and carry. The 
 Indians usually pound them, and mixing them with the seeds of 
 a species of gramma grass," which grows abundantly in that 
 country, form them into a sort of bread, known among the 
 trappers as " cricket-cake." These seeds, however, our trappers 
 could not procure, so they were compelled to eat the parched 
 crickets " pure and unmixed j" but this, in the condition in which 
 they then were, was found to be no hardship. 
 
 In fine, having made a bundle for each, they once more took 
 the route, and after many hardships, and suffering much from 
 thirst, they reached the remote settlement of Fort Hall, where, 
 being known, they were of course relieved, and fitted out for a 
 fresh trapping expedition. 
 
 Ike and Redwood both declared that they afterwards had 
 their revenge upon the Utahs, for the scurvy treatment they had 
 suffered, but what was the precise character of that revenge 
 they declined stating. Both loudly swore that the Pawnees 
 had better look out for the future, for they were not the men to 
 be " set afoot on the parairy for nuthin." 
 
 After listening to the relations of our guides, a night-guard 
 
350 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 was appointed, and the rest of us, huddling around the camp* 
 fire, were soon as sound asleep as though we were reposing 
 under damask curtains, on beds of down ; so true is it, that 
 man is a creature of habit, and that inclination having led us 
 to adopt for the time a wandering life, we now felt no inconve 
 nience from a deprivation of those luxuries, and comforts to 
 which we had hitherto been accustomed 
 
A GRAND BATTUE. 351 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVIIL 
 
 A GRAND BATTUE. 
 
 THE spot we had chosen for our camp was near the edge of. a 
 small rivulet with low banks. In fact, the surface of the water 
 was nearly on a level with tfrat of the prairie. There was no 
 wood, with the exception of a few straggling cotton-woods, and 
 some of the long-leafed willows, peculiar to the prairie streams. 
 
 Out of the cotton- woods we had made our camp-fire, and this 
 was some twenty or thirty paces back from the water, not in a 
 conspicuous position, but in the bottom of a bowl-shaped depres 
 sion in the prairie ; a curious formation, for which none of us 
 could account. It looked as if fashioned by art, as its form was 
 circular, and its sides sloped regularly downward to the centre, 
 like the crater of a volcano. But for its size, we might have 
 taken it for a buffalo wallow, but it was of vastly larger 
 diameter than one of these, and altogether deeper and more 
 funnel-shaped. 
 
 We had noticed several other basins of the same sort near the 
 place, and had our circumstances been different, we should have 
 been interested in endeavouring to account for their existence. 
 As it was, we did not trouble ourselves much abont the geology 
 of the neighbourhood we were in. We were only too anxious 
 
352 THE HUNTERS' FEA.ST 
 
 to get out of it ; but seeing that this singular hole would be a 
 safe place for our camp-fire for our thoughts still dwelt upon 
 the rascally Pawnees we had kindled it there. Reclined 
 against the sloping sides of the basin, with our feet resting upon 
 its oottom, our party disposed themselves, and in this position 
 went to sleep. 
 
 One was to be awake all night as guard ; though, o f course, 
 all took turns, each awaking the sentinel whose watch was to 
 follow his. 
 
 To the doctor was assigned the first two hours, and as we 
 went to sleep, we could perceive his plump rounded form seated 
 upon the outer rim of the circular bank above us. None of us 
 had any great faith in the doctor as a guard, but his watch was 
 during the least dangerous time of night, so far as Indians are 
 concerned. These never make their attack until the hours after 
 midnight, as they know well that these are the hours of soundest 
 sleep. The horse-drive of the previous night was an exception, 
 but that had happened because they had drawn near and seen 
 no horse-guard. It was a very unusual case. They knew that 
 we were now on the alert ; and if they had meditated farther 
 mischief, would have attempted it only after midnight hour. 
 We had no apprehensions therefore, and one and all of us being 
 very much fatigued with the day's hunting a-foot, slept soundly. 
 The bank against which we rested was dry and comfortable ; 
 the fire warmed us well, and redoubled our desire for repose. 
 
 It appears that the doctor fell asleep on his post, or else we 
 might all of us have been better prepared for the invasion that 
 we suffered during that night. 
 
A GRAND BATTUE. 353 
 
 I was awakened by loud shouts the guides were uttering 
 them. I sprang to my feet in the full belief that we were 
 attacked by Indians, and at first thought caught hold of my 
 gun. All my companions were roused about the same time, and, 
 labouring under a similar hallucination, went through a like 
 series of manoeuvres. 
 
 But when we looked up, and beheld the doctor stretched along 
 the ridge, and still snoring soundly, we scarce knew what to 
 make of it. 
 
 Ike and Redwood, however, accustomed to sleep with one 
 eye open, had waked first, and had already climbed the ridge ; 
 and the double report of their guns confirmed our suspicions 
 that we were attacked by Indians. What else could they be 
 firing at ? 
 
 " This way all of you".!" cried Redwood, making signs for us 
 to come up where he and his companion already were, waving 
 their guns around their heads, and acting in a very singular 
 manner, " this way, bring your guns, pistols, and all quick 
 with you 1" ' ; 
 
 We all dashed up the steep, just at the moment that the 
 doctor suddenly awaking ran terrified down. As we pressed 
 up, we could hear a mingling of noises, the tramp of horsemen 
 as we thought, and a loud bellowing, as if from a hundred bulls. 
 The last sounds could not well have been more like the bellowing 
 of bulls, for in reality it was such. The night was a bright 
 moonlight, and the moment we raised our heads above the scarp 
 of the ridge we saw at once the cause of our alarm. The plain 
 around us was black with buffaloes 1 Tens of thousands must 
 
354 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 have been in the drove which was passing us to a great depth on 
 both sides. They were running at a fast trot some of them 
 even galloping, and in some places they were so thickly packed 
 together, that one would be seen mounting upon the hind 
 quarters of the other, while some were thrown down, and 
 trampled over by their companions. 
 
 " Hyur, hyur, all of ye I" cried Ike, "stand by hyur, or 
 they'll git into the hole, and tramp us to shucks I" 
 
 We saw at a glance the meaning of these instructions. The 
 excited animals were rushing headlong, and nothing seemed to 
 stay their course. We could see them dashing into and across 
 the little streamlet without making any account of it. Should 
 they pour into the circle in which we stood, others would follow, 
 and we might get mingled with the drove. There was not a 
 spot on the prairie where we could have been safe. The im 
 petuous mass was impelled from behind, and could neither halt 
 nor change its course. Already a pair of bulls had fallen before 
 the rifles of our guides, and to some extent prevented the others 
 from breaking over the ring, but they would certainly have done 
 so had it not been for the shouts and gestures of tne trappers. 
 We rushed to the side indicated, and each of us prepared to fire, 
 but some of the more prudent held their loads for awhile, others 
 pulled trigger, and a succession of shots from rifles, double- 
 barrels, and revolvers soon raised a pile of dead buffaloes that 
 blocked up the passage of the rest, as though it had been a 
 barrier built on purpose. 
 
 A breathing space was now allowed us, and each loaded his 
 piece as fast as he was able. There was no time lost in firing, 
 
A GRAND BATTUE. 3o5 
 
 for the stream of living creatures swept on continuously, and a 
 mark was found in a single glance of the eye. 
 
 I think we must have continued the loading and firing for 
 -.early a quarter of an hour. Then the great herd began to 
 TOW thinner and thinner, until the last buffalo had passed. 
 
 We looked around us to contemplate the result. The ground 
 on every side of the circle was covered with dark hirsute forms, 
 but upon that where we stood a perfect mass of them luy 
 together. These forms were in every attitude, some stretched 
 on their sides, others upon their knees, and still a number upon 
 their feet, but evidently wounded. 
 
 Some of us were about to rush out of our charmed circle to 
 complete the work, but were held back by tlje warning voices 
 of the guides. 
 
 "For yur 'lives don't go," cried Redwood, "don't stir from 
 hyur till we've knocked 'em all over. Thur's some o' them with 
 life enough left to do for a ween o' ye yet." 
 
 So saying:, the trapper raised his long piece, selected one of 
 the bulls that were seen on their feet, and sent him rolling over. 
 
 Another and another was disposed of in the same way, and 
 then those that were in a kneeling position were reconnoitred to 
 see if they were still alive, and when found to be so were 
 speedily disposed of by a bullet. 
 
 When all were laid out we emerged from the hole, and 
 counted the game. There were no less than twenty-five dead 
 immediately ai^mnd the circle, besides several wounded that we 
 could see straggling off over the plain. 
 
 We did not think of going to rest again until each of us had 
 
356 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 eaten about two pounds of fresh buffalo-beef, and what with the 
 excitement of this odd adventure, and the jokes that followed 
 not a few of them levelled at our quondam guard it was neai 
 morning before we closed our eyes again in sleep, from the sound 
 lepths of which we were not disturbed till the sun was high 
 *n the heavens, and our wearied bodies had been fully rested 
 from the fatigue and excitement of the last night's murderous 
 onslaught. 
 
THE ROUTE HOME. 35 T 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIX. 
 
 THE ROUTE HOME. 
 
 WE awoke more confident of our future. We had now pro 
 vision enough and thousands of pounds to spare. It only 
 remained for us to make it portable, and preserve it by drying ; 
 and this would occupy about three full days. Our guides under 
 stood well how to cure meat without salt, and as soon as we had 
 breakfasted all of us set to work. We had to pick and choose 
 amidst such mountains of meat. Of course the fat cows only 
 were " butchered." The bulls were left where they had fallen, 
 to become the food of wolves, scores of which were now seen 
 skulking around the spot. 
 
 A large fire was kindled, and near this was erected a frame 
 work of branches, on which was laid or suspended the meat, cut 
 into thin slices and strips. These were placed at such a distance 
 from the fire that it acted upon them only to dry 'up the juices, 
 and in less than forty-eight hours the strips became hard and 
 stiff, so that they would keep for months without danger of 
 spoiling. Meanwhile some employed themselves in dressing 
 buffalo skins, so as to render them light and portable, in other 
 words to make robes of them that would serve us for sleep 
 ing in. 
 
 At the end of the third day we had arranged every thing, and 
 
S58 THE HUNTERS' FEAST 
 
 were ready to set forth on our homeward journey. Each 
 to carry his own rations of the jerked meat, as well as his arms, 
 robes, and equipments. Of course, loaded in .this manner, we 
 did not expect to make a long daily journey, but, supplied as 
 we were with provisions for thirty days, we had no fear but that 
 before the end of that time we should reach Independence. We 
 were in high spirits as we set out, although, before we had 
 walked far, the pressure of our packs somewhat moderated the 
 exuberance of our feelings ; and before we had been fifty hours 
 upon the road, an incident occurred that once more reduced us 
 to a new state of despondency, and placed us once more in peril 
 of our lives. Many an accident of flood and field, many a 
 "hair-breadth 'scape" are to be encountered in a journey 
 through prairie-land, and the most confident calculations of the 
 traveller are often rendered worthless in a single moment. So 
 we found to our consternation. 
 
 The accident which befel us was one of a deplorable charac 
 ter. We had reached the banks of a small stream, not over 
 fifty yards in width, but very deep. After going down it for 
 several miles, no place could be found that was fordable, and at 
 length we made up our minds to swim across, rather than spenc 1 
 more time in searching for a ford. This was easy enough, as we 
 were all swimmers, and in a few minutes most of the party were 
 safely landed on the other side. 
 
 But it remained to get our provisions and other matters over, 
 and for this purpose a small raft had been constructed, upon 
 which the packs of meat, robes, as well as our arms and ammuni 
 tion, were laid. A cord was attached to the raft, and one of 
 
THE ROUTE HOME. 
 
 359 
 
 the party swam over with the cord, and then several taking 
 hold, commenced dragging over the raft with its load. 
 
 Although the stream was narrow, the current was strong and 
 rapid, and just as the raft had got near the middle, the towing 
 line snapped, and away went the whole baggage down stream. 
 
 We all followed along the banks in hopes of securing the raft 
 when it should float near, and at first we had little apprehension 
 about the matter. But, to our mortification, we now perceived 
 a rapid just below, and there would be no chance of preventing 
 the frail structure from going over it. The packs, robes, and 
 guns had been laid upon the raft, not even fastened to it, for in 
 our careless security, we never anticipated such a result. W> 
 
 It was too late to leap into the stream and endeavor to stop 
 the raft. No one thought of such a thing. All saw that it 
 was impossible ; and we stood with anxious hearts watching the 
 floating mass, as it swept down and danced over the foaming 
 waters. Then a shock was heard the raft heeled round still, 
 poised upon a sharp rock, stood for a moment in mid-stream, 
 find then, once more washed free, it glided on into the still water 
 below. 
 
 We rushed down the banks, after an effort secured the raft, 
 and drew it ashore ; but, to our consternation, most of the pro 
 visions, with the guns and ammunition, were gone I 
 
 They had been tossed off in the very middle of the rapids, 
 and of course, were lost for ever. Only three packs of the 
 meat, with a number of robes, remained upon the raft. 
 
 We were now in a more serious condition than ever. The 
 provision saved from the wreck would not last us a week, and 
 
360 TBB HLfllfcRS' FEAST. 
 
 when that was consumed, how were we to procure more ? Our 
 fataus of killing game was taken from us. We had no arms but 
 pistols and knives. What chance of killing a deer or any other 
 creature, with these ? 
 
 The prospect was gloomy enough. Some even advised that 
 we should go back to where we had left the buffalo carcasses. 
 But by this time the wolves had cleaned them of their flesh. 
 It would have been madness to go back. There was no other 
 course but to head once more towards the settlements, and 
 travel as fast as we could. 
 
 On half rations we continued on, making our daily journeys 
 as long as possible. It was fortunate we had saved some of the 
 robes, for it was now winter, and the cold had set in with 
 extreme bitterness. Some nights we were obliged to encamp 
 without wood to make a fire with, but we were in hopes of soon 
 reaching the forest region, where we should not want for that, 
 and where, moreover, we would be more likely to meet with 
 some game that we could capture. 
 
 On the third day after leaving the stream that had been so 
 fatal to us, it began snowing, and continued to snow all night. 
 Next morning the whole country was covered with a white man 
 tle, and we journeyed on, at each step sinking in the snow. This 
 rendered our travelling very difficult, but as the snow was only 
 a foot or so in depth we were able to make way through it. We 
 saw many tracks ofdeer, but heeded them not, as we knew there 
 was no chance of capturing the animals. Our guides said if it 
 would only thaw a little, and then freeze again, they could kill 
 the deer without their rifles. It did thaw a little during the day, 
 
THE ROUTE HOME. 361 
 
 and at night froze so hard, that in the morning there was a thick 
 crust of ice upon the surface of the snow. 
 
 This gave us some hope, and next morning a deer hunt was 
 proposed. We scattered in different directions in parties of two 
 and three, and commenced tracking the deer. 
 
 On re-assembling at our night-camp, our different parties came 
 back wearied and empty-handed. 
 
 The guides, Ike and Redwood, had gone by themselves, and 
 were the last to reach the rendezvous. We watched anxiously 
 for their return. They came at length, and to our joy each of 
 them carried the half of a deer upon his shoulders. They 
 had discovered the animal by his trail in the snow, and pursued 
 it for miles, until its ankles and hoofs became so lacerated by the 
 crust that it allowed them to approach near enough for the 
 range of their pistols. Fortunately it proved to be a good- 
 sized buck, and would add a couple of days to our stock of 
 provisions. 
 
 With fresh venison to our breakfast, we started forth next 
 morning in better spirits. This day we intended to make a long 
 journey in hopes of getting into heavy timber, where we might 
 find deer more plentiful, and might capture some before the 
 snow thawed away. But before the end of the day's journey 
 we were so stocked with provision, that we no longer cared 
 about deer or any other game. Our commissariat was once 
 more replenished by the buffalo, and in a most unexpected man 
 ner. We were tramping along upon the frozen snow, when upou 
 ascending the crest of a ridge, we saw five huge forms directly 
 in front of us. We had no expectation of meeting with buffalo 
 
 16 
 
362 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 so far to the eastward, and were somewhat in doubt as to 
 whether they were buffaloes. Their bodies against the white 
 hill-side, appeared- of immense size, and as they were covered all 
 over with hoar frost, and icicles depending from their long 
 shaggy tufts of hair, they presented a singular aspect, that for 
 awhile puzzled us. We took them for pine-trees ! 
 
 We soon saw, however, that they were in motion, moving 
 along the hill, and they could be no other than buffaloes, as no 
 other animals could have presented such an appearance. Of 
 course they were at a long distance, and this prevented us from 
 at once recognizing them. 
 
 This was an important discovery, and brought our party to a 
 halt and consultation. What course was to be adopted ? How 
 were we to capture one or all of them ? Had the snow been of 
 sufficient depth the thing would have been easy ; but although 
 as it was, it might impede their running, they could get through 
 it much faster than we. The only chance was to " approach " 
 them by stealth ; but then we must creep within pistol range 
 and that upon the plain white surface would be absolutely 
 impossible. The foot of the hunter crunching through the fro 
 zen snow, would warn them of their danger long before he could 
 get near. In fact when every circumstance had been weighed 
 and discussed, we every one despaired of success. At that 
 moment what would we have given for a horse and a gun. 
 
 As we talked without coming to any determination, the five 
 huge forms disappeared over the sharp ridge, that ran trans 
 versely to our course. As this ridge would shelter us from view 
 we hurried forward in order to see what advantages there were 
 
THE ROUTE HOME. 863 
 
 in the ground on its other side. We were in hopes of seeing 
 timber that might enable us to get closer to the game, and we 
 made for a small clump that grew on the top of the ridge. We 
 reached it at length, and to our great chagrin, saw the five great 
 brutes galloping off on the other side. 
 
 Our hearts fell, and we were turning to each other with dis 
 appointed looks, when a tumultuous shout of triumph broke from 
 Redwood and the wolf-killer, and both calling out to us to 
 follow them, dashed off in the direction of the buffalo ! 
 
 W"e looked to ascertain the cause of this strange conduct. A 
 singular sight met our eyes. The buffalo were sprawling and 
 kicking on the plain below ; now rushing forward a short 
 distance, then spreading their limbs and halting, while some of 
 them came heavily down upon their sides, and lay flinging their 
 legs about them, as if they had been wounded ! 
 
 All these manoeuvres would have been mysterious enough, 
 but the guides rushing forward, had already given the key to 
 them, by exclaiming that the buffalo were upon the ice ! 
 
 It was true. The snow-covered plain was a frozen lake, and 
 the animals in their haste, had galloped upon the ice, where they 
 were now floundering. 
 
 It cost us but a few minutes' time to come up with them, and 
 in a few minutes more a few minutes of fierce, deadly strife 
 in which pistols cracked and knife-blades gleamed, five great 
 carcasses lay motionless upon the blood-stained snow. 
 
 This lucky capture, for we could only attribute it to good 
 fortune, was perhaps the means of saving the lives of our party. 
 The meat furnished by the five bulls for bulls they were 
 
364 THE HUNTERS' FEAST. 
 
 formed an ample stock, which enabled us to reach the settlement 
 in safety. It is true, we had many a hard trial to undergo, and 
 many a weary hour's walking, before we slept under a roof, but 
 although in wretched plight, as far as looks went, we all got 
 back in excellent health. 
 
 At Independence we were enabled to " rig " ourselves out, so 
 as to make an appearance at St. Louis where we arrived a 
 few days after and where, seated around the well-filled table 
 of the Planters' Hotel, we soon forgot the hardships, and 
 remembered only the pleasures, of our wild hunter-life. 
 
A VALUABLE HOUSEHOLD BOOK. 
 & O IE 3XT IE & 
 
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 THE PRACTICE! 
 
 OP 
 
 A NEW TORI SURGEON. 
 
 BY EDWAJRD H. DIXON, M.D., 
 
 EDITOR OF THE "SCALPEL." 
 
 Embellished with Eight Exquisite Engravings, from original Designs, by BARLEY, 
 Engraved by N. ORR. Elegantly bound in cloth, gilt. Price, $1 25. 
 
 This highly interesting work is the embodiment of much that is valuable in science and 
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 " Let us hope that, whatever truths useful to humanity may be found within these 
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 elements, and mingled with the atmosphere and the earth whence it originated." 
 
 The following is but a small portion of the Contents : 
 
 Importance of Truth in 
 Education. The Right of 
 
 Scenes in City Practice. 
 The Cholera of '32 The 
 Broadway Workwomen The 
 Young Mother The Last 
 Day's Work Terry's Court 
 ship. 
 
 The Nerve Power.-What 
 is the Nature of the Nerve 
 Power? Its action on our 
 Bodies, under the various 
 Stimuli Its Power over the 
 Contraction of the Muscles 
 The Influence of Prolonged 
 Inspiration in Curing Dis 
 eases and in giving strength 
 to the Body How does it 
 compare with other Systems 
 of Cure? 
 
 On Hooping Couqh. 
 What is Hooping Cough? 
 Period of Occurrence 
 /irst Symptoms Subtle Cha 
 racter of the Contagion 
 Period of Duration. Its 
 usual Attendants Manner 
 of Treatment Has Medicine 
 any power over it? 
 
 Discovery Fairy Stories- 
 Children should behold Truth 
 in their Parents. 
 
 Scenes in a Western Phy- 
 Kician's Life. What is Me 
 mory 'College Life in th< 
 Country The Pious Studen* 
 
 Will Medicine Cure Con 
 sumption f Origin of Con 
 sumption The Stethescope 
 Formation of Tubercles 
 Cough an Early Symptom 
 Bronchitis. 
 
 Scenes in Southern Prac 
 tice. King Death in his Yel- 
 ow Robe The Proud Mer 
 chantThe Lovely Creole The Orphan Betrayed The 
 Wife. I Robin's Nest Maternal Re- 
 
 On Croup. What is flections What is Love? 
 Croup? Its Symptoms and The Funeral Pile : what is its 
 Treatment. Philosophy ? 
 
 Scarlet Fever. What are Functions of the Skin. 
 the Causes of its Dreadful Cold Fatal to Infants. 
 Fatality ? Has Medicine any Scenes in City Practice. 
 control over it ? 1. Death's Quartette in a Gar- 
 
 Recollections of City ret Delirium Tremens 2. 
 Practice. Privation Our Precariousness of Medical 
 Two Lodgers A Faithful Life in New York A Profea- 
 
 Sister First Affection An 
 Unworthy ObjecUcThe Art 
 less Victim The Young 
 Mother The Wedding Ma 
 ternal Love The Legacy 
 The Closing Scene. 
 
 sional Martyr The Curse of 
 an Irish Practice Death of 
 the Physician, his Widow 
 and Child Parental Love 
 Mercantile Affection The 
 Love of Money. 
 
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 BEATRICE; 
 OB, THE UNKNOWN RELATIVES. 
 
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 MESSRS. DB WITT & DAVENPORT: 
 
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 and great power. Iis object is to expose the deceptive arts of Popery and of the Jesuits, 
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 useful in aiding to remove from the world the great curse of humanity Popery. 
 
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 York Evangelist. 
 
 The writer here records her own experience. It is a lively description of suffering and 
 perseverance, and a lifelike development of the art, cruelty and blindness of Reman- 
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K AT E W E S T N ; 
 
 OR, 
 
 TO WILL AND TO DO. 
 
 BY JENNIE DE WITT, 
 
 Beautifully Illustrated with Engravings by N. ORR. 
 One volume of 456 pages, Handsomely bound in Cloth. Price $1 25. 
 
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 pression, and a high resolve To WILL AND To Do. 
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 An Unwelcome Visitor. 
 
 Guardians. 
 
 Early Dreamings. 
 
 The Fishing Party. 
 
 Millionaire and Beggar. 
 
 The Fledgling. 
 
 Music and Mirth. 
 
 Father Benson. 
 
 Aunt Biddy's Visit. 
 
 A Good Time. 
 
 Pledges. 
 
 Peculiar Discipline. 
 
 The First Error. 
 
 The Face of a Man. 
 
 Who Ought to be Hanged. 
 
 Looking Through One's own Glasses. 
 
 A Leaf of Life. 
 
 Out of the Snare. 
 
 Successful Debut. 
 
 Poor Clarence ! 
 
 Too Late. 
 
 Haste to the Wedding. 
 
 The Ramble. 
 
 A New Phase of Temptation. 
 
 And yet Another. 
 
 A Day's Work. 
 
 Wages at Evening. 
 
 Time Flies. 
 
 The Election. 
 
 The Hour of Triumph. 
 
 Grave of Ambition. 
 
 Killing the Fatted Calf. 
 
 Fruits of Discipline. 
 
 Morning Breaking. 
 
 Discoveries, A Departure. 
 
 Retribution. 
 
 The Outcasts' Burial. 
 
 Melody. 
 
 DE WITT & DAVENPG&T, Publishers, 
 
 160 & 162 NASSAU STKSKT, N, . 
 
3Jte* MmW 5 
 
 As novels of quiet humor, genuine pathos, and richness and vividness of description^ 
 Mrs. Moodie's Works have acquired a reputation which will endear them to every lover 
 of the beautiiul and truthful in nature. 
 
 By special arrangement with Mrs. Moodie we are now the sole publishers of her 
 works in America. Her Life-History is contained in the following worka. 
 
 FLORA LYNDSAY; 
 
 OE, PASSAGES IN AN EVENTFUL LIFE. 
 
 Price, in paper, 50 cts.; elegantly bound in cloth, 75 eta. 
 
 Those who laughed and cried while in imagination they were " Roughing it in the 
 Bush " with Mrs. Moodie will take up with eagerness this fiction, which is in fact, under 
 an assumed name, an autobiography of her own eventful life prior to her seeking a new 
 home in America, and also a vivid and thrilling description of events that transpired in 
 a long and perilous voyage over the Atlantic. Philadelphia Saturday Evening Post. 
 
 All who have read " Houghing it in the Bush " will be sure to look with eager curiosity 
 into the pages of " Flora Lindsey " and be repaid by the perusal of a delightful story. 
 Boston Atlas. 
 
 This new work of Mrs. Moodie's is truly a delightful one. Boston Matt. 
 
 ROUGHING IT IN THE BUSH. 
 
 Elegantly bound in cloth, price $1 00. 
 
 Mrs. Moodie's descriptions of frontier life have never been surpassed. Boston Times. 
 
 Mrs. Moodie stands in the front rank of able female writers, and we cordially recom 
 mend " Roughing it in the Bush " to our readers. Alton Courier. 
 
 It is written in a beautiful, simple style, truthful and lifelike, with that peculiar fascinat 
 ing manner and dry, quiet humor that is so peculiarly her own. Phila. Christian 
 Observer. 
 
 LIFE IN THE CLEARINGS vs. THE BUSH. 
 
 Price, in paper, 50 cts. ; elegantly bound in cloth, 75 cts. 
 
 "Tbave been repeatedly asked, since the publication of "Roughing it in the Bush," 
 to give an account of the present state of society, and to point out its increasing pros 
 perity and commercial advantages; but statistics are not my forte, nor do I feel myself 
 qualified for Much an arduous and important task. My knowledge is too limited to enable 
 me to write a comprehensive work on a subject of vital consequence, which might involve 
 the happiness of others. But what I do know I will endeavour to sketch with a light 
 pencil ; and if I cannot convey much useful information, I will try to amuse the reader; 
 and by a mixture of prose and poetry compile a small volume, which may help to "while 
 away an idle hour, or fill up the blanks of a wet day." Authors Preface. [Nearly Ready]. 
 
 MARK HURDLESTONE; 
 OE, THE TWO BEOTHEES. 
 
 Price, in paper, 50 cts. ; elegantly bound in, cloth, 75 cts. 
 
 We advise all who get this book not to take it up late in the evening, for they will be 
 ure to spend the night in reading it. It is impossible to leave off, so hurrying and in 
 tense is the interest. Lynn (Mass.) News. 
 
 The work before us is one of the most powerful ever published bv a woman, full of 
 deep meaning, of stern truths, a.id pure morality. Portsmouth (N. H.) Journal. 
 
A NEW WORK, 
 
 BY THE AUTHOR OP " ROUGHING IT IN THE BUSH." 
 
 OR, 
 
 THE FAITHLESS GUARDIAN. 
 BY MRS. HOODIE. 
 
 AUTHOR OF " ROUGHING IT IN THE BUSH," 
 .RINGS VS. THE BUSH," MAR: 
 
 One handsome volume. Price, in cloth, $1. 
 
 The talented author of " Roughing it in the Bush," has thrown all her power into this 
 work, which is by far the best of the many excellent ones that have issued from her pen ; 
 and we think will make a sensation both here and in England, as the most brilliant novel 
 of the day. By special arrangement with Mrs. Moodie, and by a liberal outlay, this work 
 is printed first in this country, and the proof-sheets sent to Bentley and published 
 in England simultaneously with the issue here. 
 
 The characters in this work are drawn with a most masterly hand, evincing a thorough 
 knowledge of the main-springs of human action, and a deep insight into the controlling 
 passions which prompt us to good or to evil. The designing and wicked lawyer, who 
 proved so false to his trust, and who, like the loathsome spider, wove his web with such 
 subtle skill around the innocent objects committed to his charge, finds himself foiled at 
 last, and reaps a terrible harvest of blood at the hands of his own wicked and unfilial 
 offspring. So true is it that 
 
 " He who sows the storm 
 Will reap the whirlwind." 
 
 The gentle innocence of the unsuspecting ward, who so haplessly falls into the snare 
 prepared for her, is most beautifully pourtrayed, while the contemplation of such a fiend 
 in human shape as Dinah North, makes us turu to the good Sir Alexander and his noble 
 daughter with a keener appreciation of the honest and the good. 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER 
 
 I. My grandfather and his Sons. 
 
 II. My Mother's Funeral. 
 
 III. My Aunt Rebecca. 
 
 IV. The Tutor. 
 
 V. A Change in my Prospects. 
 
 VI. The Sorrows of Dependence. 
 
 VII. George Harrison. * 
 
 VIII. Ungratifled Curiosity. 
 
 IX. A Portrait. 
 
 X. Dreams. 
 
 XT. My First Love. 
 
 XII. I Forfeit my Independence. 
 
 XIII. A Visit from the Great Man of 
 
 the Family. 
 
 XIV. Love and Hatred. 
 
 XV. George Harrison tells his History 
 XVI. George Harrison continues his 
 History. 
 
 CHAPTER 
 
 XVIII. The Meeting. 
 
 XIX. Light Come-Light Go. 
 
 XX. Alice. 
 
 XX [. My Visit to Moncton Park. 
 
 XXII. A Sad Event. 
 
 XXIII. A Discovery. 
 
 XXIV. My Second Interview with Dinah 
 
 North. 
 
 XXV. An Explanation Departure 
 
 Disappointment. 
 
 XXVI. Elm Grove. 
 
 XXVII. My Nurse and Who She Was. 
 XXVIII. My Letters. 
 
 XXIX. AVVelcome and Unwelcome Meet- 
 
 ing. 
 
 XXX. Dinah's Confession. 
 XXXI. Retributive Justice. 
 XXXII. The Double Bridal. 
 
 XVII. He finds a Friend in Need. 
 
 DE WITT & DAVENPORT, Publishers, 
 
 Ififl AT. 1R9. NASSAU STRIC*""" N 
 

 GllEAT NATIONAL WORK. 
 OFF-HAND TAKINGS; OE, CKAYO^ SKETCHES 
 
 OP THE NOTICEABLE MEN 0* OUR AGE. 
 
 BY GEORGE W. BDNGAY. 
 
 EmbeUithed with Nineteen Portraits on Steel. Elegantly bound in ckth. Price $1 50. 
 
 This is a work that should be in the hands of every American who is proud of his 
 country, and of the men who have helped to render that country honored abroad by 
 their contributions in Literature, Science, Commerce or Arts. Though some of the per 
 sons in the following list are handled pretty roughly, still, we think most persons will allow 
 that the hard treatment they get is deserved. 
 
 The Book is well printed on beautiful paper, embellished with Nineteen Portraits, en 
 graved on Steel, in the finest style of the art. 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 Daniel Webster. Solon Robinson (portrait.) 
 
 Gerrit Smith (portrait). 
 
 Henry Clay. 
 
 John Ross Dix. 
 
 Edward Beecher. 
 
 Edwin H. Chapin (portrait). 
 John Charles Fremont. 
 
 P. T. Barnum (portrait). 
 Dr. E. Kane. 
 
 Thos. H. Benton (portrait). 
 Wm. L. Marcy. 
 
 G. P. Morris and N. P. Willis. 
 
 Nathaniel Hawthorne. 
 
 Alfred Bunu. 
 
 Wm. H. Seward (portrait). 
 
 Samuel F. B. Morse. 
 
 Peter Cartwright. 
 
 Edw. Everett (portrait). 
 
 Geo. W. Kendall. 
 
 Anson Burlingame. 
 
 John P. Hale (portrait). 
 Father Taylor. 
 
 Saml. Houston (portrait). 
 Pierre Soule. 
 
 George Law (portrait). 
 Dr. J. W. Francis. 
 
 John C. Calhoun. 
 
 W. Thackeray. 
 
 Dr. S. H. Cox. 
 
 Lewis Cass. 
 
 John Pierpont. 
 
 Freeman Hunt. 
 
 Charles C. Burleigh. 
 
 Horace Greeley (portrait). 
 
 B. P. Shillaber. 
 
 H. Ward Beecher (portrait). 
 
 George N. Briggs. 
 
 Bishop James. 
 
 Abbot Lawrence. 
 
 Theodore Parker. 
 
 Rev. Mr. Wadsworth. 
 
 Ralph Walde Emerson. 
 J. Van Burren (portrait). 
 
 Neal Dow (portrait). 
 Philip S. White. 
 
 Rev. Dr. Durbin. 
 S. A. Douglas (portrait). 
 
 John Greenleaf Whittier. 
 
 Charles Surnner. 
 
 W. Gilmore Simms. 
 
 Washington Irving. 
 
 Ogden Hofifman (portrait). 
 
 James Gordon Bennett. 
 
 G. W. Bethune 
 
 Thomas Francis Meagher. 
 
 Caleb Gushing. 
 
 E. P. Whipple. 
 
 Wendell Philips. 
 
 James Watson Webb. 
 
 G. C. Hebbe (portrait) 
 
 Elihu Burritt. 
 
 Dr. Duffield. 
 
 Rufus Choate. 
 
 Wm. C. Byrant (portrait). 
 
 J. R. Lowell. 
 
 Horace Mann. 
 Dr. Boardman. 
 
 Daniel S. Dickinson. 
 General Winfield Scott. 
 
 John Mitchel (portrait). 
 
 And others. 
 
 OPINIONS OF THE PRESS. 
 
 The following very brief extracts from extended notices of the book by leading 
 papers, will give the public some idea of the estimation placed upon it. 
 
 From The Commonwealth, Boston. 
 
 " The book will sell it will be read it will have a wide popularity. It is written in the 
 right way for it, and if the author don't get his 10,000 from it we very much mistake 
 figures. He writes like a man who is fully wide awake ; his portraits sparkle with vitality. 
 The engravings are superb, and the letter press excellent; the binding gala-ish. Get the 
 book if you want one that will take your arm and be an agreeable companion." 
 
 From The Christian, Freeman, Boston. 
 
 " He never allows anything like dulness to flow from his pen. His descriptions are 
 graphic and to the life. Every sketch might be termed a master portrait. He writea 
 with an independent, fearless pen, without fear or favor." 
 
 From The Boston Traveller. 
 
 " Written in a spirited and off-hand style, presenting well-drawn and characteristic 
 portraits." 
 
 From The Newport News, R. I. 
 
 "The portraits are dashed off with a free and easy pencil, and are uncommonly 
 natural and life-like." 
 
 From TiedHyis, Worcester, Mass. 
 
 Eveiy one who desires a knowledge of eminent living men, should have this volume." 
 We could fill a volume with the encomiums already received (although all parts of the 
 country have not been heard from), but we think we do not err in saying that a more at 
 tractive book, both in interior and exterior, has nevtr been offered to the public. 
 
 DEWITT & DAVENPORT, Publishers, 
 Nos. 1M) and .162 Nassau St 
 
A BOOK THE JESUITS CAN NOT SUPPRESS I 
 
 THE ESCAPED. NTJN;- 
 
 OR, 
 
 DISCLOSURES OF CONVENT LIFE. 
 
 Giving a more. Minute, Description and a Bolder Revelation of the Mysteries and 
 Secrets of Nunneries, than have ever before been submitted to the American public. 
 Elegantly bound in cloth, 12?no. Price, $1. 
 
 The public are aware that we have lately been involved in a course of litigation 
 respecting a Book on Convent Life, and the result is also known. There is a great diver 
 sity of opinion respecting the injunction and its attending circumstances ; but there is 
 but one opinion as regards the merits of the book we have now the pleasure of presenting, 
 and which contains a fuller and more detailed account of the inner life of Convents or 
 Nunneries, than we could have presented in any other form. In order to render this 
 volume as full an exposition as possible of the abuses of which it treats, and to give pub 
 licity to facts which admit of almost immediate verification, in addition to the principal 
 narrative, the CONFESSIONS OF A " SISTER OF CHARITY," written by herself, are also 
 embodied, together with THE EXPERIENCE OF A NUN, the details of whose eventful history 
 are deeply interesting ; so that in this invaluable work, we have a most diversified and 
 thorough exposition of the immoralities and impostures as practised in nunneries. 
 
 Parents and Guardians who have the most distant idea of sending their children or 
 wards to these prison-houses, falsely called " Institutions of Learning," should not fail to 
 read the palpable evidences of their criminality in entertaining such a thought, as set 
 forth in this book evidences convincing and undeniable. The profound sensation which 
 these astounding revelations are destined to create, has been already experienced to 
 Borne extent in the literary world, among editors who have been furnished with proof 
 Bheets of the work. They say that " It bears the unmistakable marks of truthfulness 
 upon its face; and yet the mind shrinks with terror from the necessity of believing that 
 Buch horrid criminalities are practised in convents. But here is Truth pointing with her 
 unerring finger to the record and the facts, and to her revelations we are bound to yield 
 implicit belief." 
 
 The following constitutes but a small portion of the Contents : 
 
 Perversion to Romanism. The Trap. 
 
 The Laws of Nature vs. the Laws of Popery. 
 
 The New Prison. Mysterious Influences. 
 
 Suspicious Intimacy. Contemplated Escape. 
 
 Immoral Practices in Convents. 
 
 Reflections on the Cruel Bondage of Nun 
 neries. Inveigling Girls into Convents. 
 
 The Mother Superior. The Pretty Nuns. 
 
 Culpability of Parents in sending Daughters 
 to Nunneries. The Forced Ceremony. 
 
 The bitterness of Death Anticipated. 
 
 Forced to leave the Convent at Midnight. 
 
 Imprisonment. Release. An Outrage. 
 
 Passion of the Superior. Priestly Duplicity. 
 
 The Stolen Portrait. The baffled Bishop. 
 
 The Ordeal. The Victory. Deception. 
 
 Convents above the Laws. The Jesuit Spies. 
 
 An Accidental Discovery. The Alarm. 
 My Flight. The Boat. The Escape. 
 Murder of an American Nun at Sea. 
 Excursions from the Convent dressed as a 
 
 Sister of Charity, as a Priest, Ac. 
 Strange men in the Convent. Prisons again 
 
 Convent of the Sacred . 
 
 Midnight Adventures in the Convent. 
 
 The Hotel Dieu. or Black Nunnery. 
 
 Character of Popish Priests. 
 
 Crimes of Priests and Tricks of Nans. 
 
 Disguised for School-teachers. 
 
 My Cell. A Rude and Insolent Priest. 
 
 Gagged and Blindfolded. The Conference. 
 
 Praying to all but God. The Gay superior. 
 
 A Confessor in Love. A Wedding. 
 
 The Mystery Explained. God and Man. 
 
 DE WITT & DAVENPORT, PUBLISHERS, 
 
 180 & 162 NASSAU STREET, IT, T 
 
DE WITT & DAVENPORT, 
 
 PUBLISHERS, BOOKSELLERS, 
 
 AND 
 
 Wholesale and Retail 
 DEALERS IIST BOOKS, 
 
 CHEAP PUBLICATIONS, PERIODICALS, 
 
 AMERICAN AND FOREIGN NEWSPAPERS. 
 
 16O & 162 NASSAU STREET, NEW YORK. 
 
 D. ft D. would respectfully call the attention of the Trade to their unequalled facilities 
 for filling and forwarding all Orders for Books, Magazines, Cheap Publications, News 
 papers, &c. , at the publishers' lowest prices. 
 
 Dealers will find it to their interest to have their orders packed at our Establishment, as 
 we will inclose in our package (without extra charge), anything else they may have to 
 receive from New York, so that it will reach them without extra freight. 
 
 D. & D. do not say that they will supply Books, &c., in advance of any other house, but 
 will abide by the universal decision of their customers, that the promptness with which 
 their orders are always despatched, is of itself a sufficient guarantee that they cannot be 
 
 Just Published. 
 A NEW WORK BY REV. EDWIN H. CHAPEL 
 
 1 vol., 12/wo. Cloth. Price $1. 
 
 HUMANITY IN THE CITY. 
 
 BEING A SERIES OF DISCOURSES RECENTLY DELIVERED IN NEW YORK. 
 
 I. THE LESSONS OP THE STREET. 
 II. MAN AND MACHINERY. 
 III. STRIFK FOR PRECEDENCE. 
 IV. THE SYMBOLS OF THE REPUBLIC. 
 
 V. THE SPRINGS OF SOCIAL LIFE. 
 VI. THE ALLIES OF THE TEMPTER. 
 VII. THE CHILDREN OF THE POOR. 
 VIII. THE HELP OF RELIGION. 
 
 EXTRACT FROM THE PREFACE. 
 
 " This volume aims at applying the highest standard of Morality and Religion to the 
 phases of every-day life. In order, however, that the view with which these discourses 
 aave been prepared may not be misconceived, I wish merely to say, that I am far from 
 supposing these are the only themes to be preached, or that they constitute the highest class 
 of practical subjects, and shall be sorry if, in any way, they seem to imply a neglect of 
 that interior and holy life which is the spring not only of right affections, but of clear per 
 ception and sturdy every-day duty. I hope, on the contrary, that the vry aspects of 
 this busy city life the very problems which start out of it will tend to convince men of 
 the necessity of this inward and regenerating principle. Nevertheless, I maintain that 
 these topics have a place in the circle of the preacher's work, and he need entertain no 
 fear of desecrating his pulpit by secular themes who seeks to consecrate all things in any 
 way involving the action and welfare of men, by the spirit and the aims of His Religion 
 who, while he preached the Gospel, fed the hungry and healed the sick, and touched the 
 issues of every temporal w-vnt. I may have fAUfed in the method, I trust I hav not in 
 the pnrpVe." 
 
TKE tfi. f f