PART ONEGROUP II

BEAR TRACK. (FRONT FOOT; ABOUT TWO-FIFTHS NATURAL SIZE)

When the thicket they prefer is once located, the rest is easy. If quick results are desired, driving or, perhaps, calling will yield results. I once shot a bear which made its appearance immediately when, by way of experiment, I imitated the distress cry of a jack-rabbit. If the hunter has plenty of time to spend in the woods it is a good plan to watch for the quarry. During autumn proper, bears retreat to the more remote districts and the fastnesses of the mountains; here they are usually found during the daytime where they are accustomed to feed. In places where berries are plentiful, on ridges and in gulches where blue jays and squirrels are storing their winter supply of mast, here will be found the bears' favorite autumn haunts. Inthe mountains of the West there is a berry bush called kinni-kinic barberry or bearberry—I am not sure which is the correct term—that is thickly covered with fruit about the size of buffalo berries, and which is a favorite food for bears before they can obtain mast; or, if the latter fails, Bruin seems to regard the seeds of the piñon as a delicacy; but as it would apparently take up too much of his time to fill himself from those that fall to the ground, he resorts to easier methods to obtain them—he becomes a thief and incurs the enmity of squirrels and jays.

On ridges he robs the caches of the jays, and in cañons he depletes the stores of the squirrels, and, by no means approving of such actions, they heartily hate him and "cuss" at him whenever he approaches, and in this way often betray his presence to the hunter who has learned to interpret the language of the wood-folk. It is always well to approach with the utmost care places where there is a continual chatter of squirrels and cries of blue jays are heard; and if the "cussed" one proves to be some other marauder—well, it may be a bear next time. When still-huntingduring the autumn the attention paid to these small denizens of the woods is by no means wasted, and yields better results than covering a great territory, or watching for hours on trails or near baits, which latter are seldom visited by bears during rifle light.

BEAR LOG

Until I undertook the systematic study of the bear's habits I was under the impression, from what I had read, that a bear track was easilyrecognized, and actually passed many, regarding them as cougar tracks. I have since noticed that many hunters, born and reared in a bear country, make the same mistake. Of course in mud or snow a bear track is easily identified, but in the vastness of mountains and forests snow and mud are not always present; in fact, they are of little service. There, the heel of the foot is practically never seen in the track during snowless times, and as the shape of the fore part of the foot conforms with that of the mountain lion, a mistake is easily possible if the imprints of the five toes of the bear are not all visible. The trailer in these districts and under these circumstances is generally lucky if he can discern here and there the part of a track of a bear's foot. A couple of years ago a party of old deer hunters told me of the great number of lion tracks they had seen as they came into camp, and at my query if they saw any bear tracks, they answered, "No"; yet I had camped there over two months, knew absolutely that no lion was in those parts, that bears were abundant, and that the hunters could have seen only their tracks. Somuch for the information of those who have an idea that an animal, weighing from three hundred to over a thousand pounds, must necessarily make a big trail which can be readily followed.

BEAR LOG

The tracker, if he will but stop and investigate closely, need not make a mistake, even if only the imprint of a single toe is plainly visible, as the long nails of the bear almost always leave some mark in front of the track. The distancewhich the nails stand away from the toe imprints is the only means of distinguishing the grizzly's track from that of the black bear, except that size dispels any doubt. The nails of the grizzly stand out almost straight, while those of the black bear are more curvate, and their imprints must consequently be found closer to the track of the foot.

The likeness of the bear track to that of the human foot has been referred to by many writers. In reality no likeness exists, and the inexperienced trailer in the woods has the already disadvantageous conditions under which he is working multiplied so long as he is not disillusioned.

If a bear who knows nothing of the hunter is shot at and suddenly whirls around,i. e., jumps when the trigger is pulled, he is hit, no matter whether there is another sign or not, and the color of the blood will indicate to the hunter where he is struck. A shot through the lungs with the modern high-power rifle will sometimes not prove fatal within ten or twelve hours.

A missed bear is never in a hurry to get away, unless he has seen or scented the hunter previousto the firing, and in most cases he offers a chance for a second or third shot.

Not a few city hunters "pull out" if they encounter bear signs where they intend to spend their outing, saying they are not looking for bears; yet the chances are many against their seeing one even if they were anxious for an encounter. The trouble is not to avoid a bear, but to find him, as his greatest desire seems to be to keep out of man's reach, and he employs all his cunning to that end.

OF all the predatory animals there is none which in destructiveness equals or even approaches the mountain lion; he, and he only, is often the cause of unsatisfactory hunting trips into districts where other big game by every reason ought to be abundant. A family of these great beasts will, while the young ones are growing up, deplete a region of almost every other game animal.

If a cougar kills a deer during the morning hours, he seems to spend the day near it, as I have again and again found freshly vacated beds under nearby bushes or rocks. On these occasions I was following the drag the "varmint" had made with the carcass, and although I kept a close watch on the surroundings, the lion remained invisible; yet I know that he was watching me, for in every instance I found that he visited and examined the covered carcass during the following night.

The methods usually followed to rid the hunting-ground of its worst poacher are to shoot or trap him. If the former is decided upon, the fact that the lion has an excellent nose and keen vision should not be forgotten when the place to watch for him is selected.

COUGAR. (ONE-HALF NATURAL SIZE)(1) Ordinary gait. (2) Sneaking. (3) Trot.

COUGAR. (ONE-HALF NATURAL SIZE)

(1) Ordinary gait. (2) Sneaking. (3) Trot.

Still-hunting the cougar is about the most thankless undertaking one could enter upon, yet there are occasions when a close observer may be able to kill one without extra trouble when out primarily for other game. The main requisite is time and a thorough acquaintance with the country. The cougar, after the young are grown up, does not remain in a comparatively small district for any length of time, but usually covers a much wider territory than the gray wolf, although the latter is universally known as a great wanderer. At irregular intervals, say from once in a fortnight to once in two months, depending on the region, it returns to the same district. Unlike the wolf, the cougar, in returning to and hunting over a district, does not usually go over the same trail and buttes he has used on the previous trip, but prefers to explore new ground on each occasionunless there is something unusual to attract him. If his tracks, therefore, are seen quite often on a certain lookout point, the hunter should be alert for the cause of attraction, generally afallen tree, or an overhanging rock protecting a snug dry bed beneath from rain or snow, which are always situated on a wind-sheltered hillside facing south. When such a place is known, the hunter should scrupulously refrain from going near it, to avoid leaving any scent there; but he should observe the "nest" as often as he comes into its vicinity, and from a convenient distant point. If the "nest" has an occupant, it is better to let a bullet investigate before the hunter does so himself, for a cat is a cat, and if its suspicions are aroused, the devil cannot beat it in trickiness—it will vanish unobserved without the hunter knowing how it could have done so. I once shot one out of a bunch of three, and felt sure the remaining two were "my meat," yet not a spot of yellow of them did I see afterward, although every nook within three hundred yards of the surrounding country was seemingly open to my scouting.

This is tedious hunting, of course, and the number of cougars would not be appreciably lessened by the method; but one lion outwitted thus is worth perhaps, as a trophy of skill, a scorekilled by other means; and besides, it at least gives the still-hunter a chance.

Cougars do not respond readily to being called (by imitating the cries of a jack-rabbit); at least I have lured but one in eight or ten years, and missed it at that. Trapping them is as sure as gambling,i. e., there is never any certainty that one will get the lion, and as their existence is unquestionably obnoxious to sportsmen and stockgrowers alike, hunting them with dogs is a commendable method, since it insures their decrease, and to the tyro means a trophy.

Barnyard study is, undoubtedly, responsible for the conclusions advanced by some writers that the members of the cat family are the most perfect track makers,i. e., walkers. As a matter of fact, the trail of a wild cat cannot be compared, so far as perfection goes, with the trail of the wild dog. The cougar's tracks seldom register. He either oversteps with the hind foot the track made by the forefoot when in a hurry, or he does not step quite far enough to cover the forefoot track when leisurely walking, and the individual tracks do not stand so close to the centerline of the trail as do those of the wolf. The roundness of the track, together with the inconspicuousness of the nail marks, even under the most favorable tracking conditions, makes the cougar track unmistakably different from that of a wolf. However, on hard ground the track of a bear and a lion may be easily taken for one another, though the latter contains but four toe-marks. But then every toe-mark is not often visible on hard ground.

With all predatory animals the rule holds good that the female track appears smaller than that of the male, even though the size of the animals be the reverse. For example, a male cougar measuring seven feet from tip to tip, will make a bigger track than a nine-foot-long female. Although with dividers and tapeline one might have difficulty to ascertain the difference, which at best would be very small to the eye, it is unmistakable, and one well acquainted with tracks can hardly make the error of mistaking a female track for that of a male. The latter always looks more substantial.

It is the same with the tracks of males andfemales of predatory animals as it is with a bunch of deer, or of a single one for that matter, after bucks have shed their horns. The initiated can tell accurately from the appearance of the animals which are bucks and which are does; yet if questionedhowhe knows it, he can scarcely answer. At best he will say, "Because it looks like one." The reason for my dwelling on this subject is by no means an idle one. During the early summer the ravages of "varmints" often become almost unbearable to stockmen, and since females, which have to provide for their offspring, are the worst offenders, it is well for anyone to be able to distinguish their tracks from those of males, in order to follow them only, as they are the only ones that will always with certainty lead to the den within a day's travel.

Predatory animals are, in the writer's opinion, not monogamous. While a male is often found with a family, the same male may be seen the next day with others of his kind miles away. I have noted this while following game on horseback. On the other hand, a male track may leadto several dens if followed far enough. On several occasions I have shot two or even three males of a species near a den within a week or so, the desire to kill the female being on every occasion responsible for the long-continued watch.

In following a track with the purpose of hunting up a den it makes but little difference whether the trail be fresh or old. A trail two weeks old, but made after a rain, is often more easily followed than a fresher one, and will as well lead to the den's vicinity, as the latter very often could not be followed at all on hard ground; and a back-trail often leads more quickly to the den than one leading ahead. Prevailing conditions of weather and lay of country should govern the tracker's choice of which trail to follow. He must know that he has to follow the back track if it comes from rough country, for the den is more likely situated there than elsewhere.

A den that contains young cougars is readily recognized by the superabundance of carcasses of game lying around its vicinity.

Certainly unless due regard is given to the extermination of predatory animals, it is impossibleto bring a hunting preserve up to the highest standard, and for the same reason their unrestricted existence in the open hunting grounds can only be harmful. The time when predatory animals kept the number of other game in a healthy balance has passed, and the sportsman who kills half a dozen deer ought to have to his credit at least one member of the former tribe to offset his killing those of the latter. As few of the hunting fraternity attain this desirable result, I think those who kill as many or more marauders as they do useful game animals, ought to be hailed as benefactors to the sportsmen's fraternity. Sometimes, I am sorry to say, such an action is referred to as unsportsmanlike by those who would soon find the woods empty of desirable game if others gave no more attention to marauders than they do themselves.

WHAT the cougar is as an enemy to the useful big game, the bob-cat is to small game and the young of big game. He, however, lacks the cunning of the former, being easily called or trapped, and therefore as a class, and excepting individual cases few and far between, will never become a menace to either the sportsmen's fraternity or to stockgrowers. Where hundreds of them infest the country—as in certain sections of the Bad Lands—they only serve to check the increase of the millions of cottontail rabbits, which would otherwise so rapidly multiply that they would become a destructive pest throughout the cultivated sections of the country.

LYNX. (ONE-HALF NATURAL SIZE)(1) Forefoot. (2) Hind foot (small specimen; nail marks are generally invisible). (3) Imprint of fox. (4) Lynx, ordinary gait. (5 and 6) Fox, ordinary gait. (6 and 7) Comparison of fox and lynx trails in snow. (8) Lynx, running. (9) Domestic cat.

LYNX. (ONE-HALF NATURAL SIZE)

(1) Forefoot. (2) Hind foot (small specimen; nail marks are generally invisible). (3) Imprint of fox. (4) Lynx, ordinary gait. (5 and 6) Fox, ordinary gait. (6 and 7) Comparison of fox and lynx trails in snow. (8) Lynx, running. (9) Domestic cat.

The tracker, trailing bob-cats like deer, can often surprise them at prowling, or jump them at close range from their beds, which are usually found under deadfalls or overhanging rocks, etc. Until their suspicions are aroused they are veryfoolish and the writer has shot not a few with a .22 rifle when still-hunting for rabbits. When called, they have not sense enough to run away if missed by the first and even second shot. Inhunting them with dogs they give good sport, and not infrequently get away by entering holes or putting the dogs to shame in some other manner.

RIGHT FRONT PAW OF LYNX

RED LYNX

At a careless glance the lynx track is but a miniature of that of the cougar, but a close examination reveals the fact that the marks of the individual toes are proportionately much more elongated than in the latter. The trail, thoughmuch better than the mountain lion's trail, is not as perfect as that of the coyote or fox, for either of which it might be mistaken in loose snow; it is always more out of line. InCountry Life in Americafor June, 1905, a well-known nature writer shows a lynx trail, as perfectly as it can be illustrated, as that of a fox. With such good standing tracks it is inexcusable if the trailer makes a mistake, and even if one has had but little actual experience in the woods, a less perfect outline of the trail will be found sufficient to tell the wild cat from the wild dog.

LYNX TRAIL

In snow five inches or more deep the lynx makes, as a rule, quite a drag with his feet, much more so than either fox or coyote, which latter disturbs the snow only near the individual tracks. On good tracking ground, or in soft snow, the nail marks are sometimes visible, but never prominent like those of the fox or coyote.

THE track and trail of the house cat—(if it were only a house cat nothing would be said about it here)—is too well known to need description. If it is found anywhere in hunting grounds, parks, etc., the finder will confer a benefit on lovers of nature and its feathered denizens if he, where possible, will set a trap baited with fish (herring), or cheese; or if there is a chance to fill the "varmint's" anatomy with pellets from a shotgun or a .22 rifle, or to cut it in two with a big rifle bullet, he should never fail to do so. It may seem a waste of powder and lead, but it is not, for in my opinion there is no more harmful creature a-foot or a-wing than the domestic cat outdoors.

It would be impossible to estimate the amount of damage they do by killing songsters which nature intended to check insect pests. As far as the sportsman is concerned, a single cat will often deprive him of his shooting in given localities, for,if it has once found the location of a bevy of quail, grouse or other game birds, it will not stop until the last one of the family is killed.

Wild predatory animals generally restrict their raids to the hours of the night; a domestic cat will prowl and kill at any hour during the twenty-four. Some specimens attack even deer fawns and other game of like size.

A cat shrinks from nothing in its lust for killing—not even from water—and I remember seeing a big tom-cat rob a pond in a city park of its goldfish. Unluckily for the marauder I had a gun with me.

Anyone interested in shooting should keep a lookout for cat tracks in the woods during the summer and autumn, and do his best to let them show no more.

THERE is perhaps no other animal about which more disagreeable things are said and written than the wolf, yet the writer, though recognizing its bad points, would dislike to have it become extinct. Its howl is inseparably associated with many of my pleasantest recollections, and the butte-fringed prairies and rugged Bad Lands would have decidedly less charm without it for one who has learned to love that so-called "God-forsaken country."

WOLFFront trackDog, forefoot (Two-thirds natural size)Hind track

WOLF

Front track

Dog, forefoot (Two-thirds natural size)

Hind track

Except under unusually severe weather conditions, wolves generally kill only the weakest of range stock and big game animals, and I doubt if their so-called depredations in this respect are anything but a benefit to the survivors, as weaklings among any species of animals are always inimical to the general health and condition of the respective variety. The wolf in this regard does only what the sensible warden of a well-conducted game preserve does;i. e., weeds outundesirable specimens. In Yellowstone Park, for example, since the cougars there are systematically hunted with hounds, wolves and coyotes ought to be protected to a certain extent or else the result will undoubtedly be a general degeneration among the game animals in that region.

Before the warfare against lions was started, there were already many scabby elks in that great preserve, and if the slaughter of scavengers is kept up indiscriminately—well, a reasonable person can only await results with misgivings. Nature always works out her course best if left alone, and I believe that in the case of the Yellowstone Park the Nation in the course of time will be willing to pay ten times the amount it now pays for their extermination to have the "varmints" alive in that great preserve. Where weaklings are not abundant, game animals naturally suffer from an abundance of wolves, and where the stock-raiser has enough sense to dispose of sick or weak stock himself, Old Gray has no business.

(1) Wolf (slow trot). (2) Dog (trot). (3) Wolf (quick trot). (4) Wolf (gallop). (5) Dog walking slowly; a motion never seen in the wolf trail.

In hunting wolves the quickest results are obtained in calling by imitating the cries of a jack-rabbit.Wolves evidently think one of their tribe has caught a bunny, and, as Wildenbruch fittingly says: "Each and everyone would eathim." This trait is shared by most other marauders. The wolf is a poor runner, and is easily run down with the aid of an ordinary horse in open country.

The surest and most effective way apart from calling, is by trapping, which is the most extensively practiced, and he who says that trapping is not great sport has surely never tried to outwit an old wolf. I always measure sport by the amount of skill required.

The keeper of a game preserve, who is not acquainted with the use of traps and other devices designed to decrease predatory animals, will never succeed in showing first-class results to the owner or owners so far as abundance of game is concerned; and what holds good in the case of the shooting-preserves holds good also for the open hunting grounds.

The track of an old full-grown wolf, although similar to that of a dog, differs from the latter, inasmuch as it shows that the foot is less fleshy, the soles of the various toes appearing more sharply divided than in the dog's track. The latter has a comparatively big foot but also asoft foot which, being plainly visible in the ordinary gait, becomes much more apparent where the animal adopts a quicker motion. The toes are then spread out to an extent never found in the wolf, except when the latter is running very fast, and consequently the nail marks of the two middle toes of the dog are about twice as far apart as those of his wild relative. A wolf trail shows the individual tracks ordinarily about eighteen inches apart, while the dog, making the same size or a slightly bigger track, steps at the same gait less than fourteen inches; and if, in trotting, he should equal the length of wolf-steps, the spread of the middle toes makes his tracks easily recognizable. A good-stepping dog steps about as near the center line as the wolf, but as his steps are shorter, they appear more out of line to the eye. This is an optical illusion, but it serves the tracker's purpose.

A young wolf, say less than one year old, has as soft a foot as a dog's. However, as young wolves go mostly in packs, following the trail will generally reveal the identity of the animal. Usually wolves do not track continuously, oneanimal investigating here and another there, while the main trail leads on. Dogs, two or more, show no clear-cut single trail even for so short a space as ten feet, while a number of wolves often travel several hundred yards with the trail showing as though only one animal had made it. If one sees a wolf trail, and without following it concludes that it was made by a single specimen, he is liable to make the same mistake "Liver-eating" Johnson made with a bunch of horse-stealing Indians. He was stopping with a friend, Eugene Irvin, also an old Indian fighter, and one morning noticed about fifty horse-tracks, of which he concluded only about half-a-dozen were made by horses mounted by redskins. Instead of following out on the prairies and deciding there from the comparative absence of dust in the tracks—a rider is not mixed up with the herd he is driving, and consequently in his mount's tracks less dust is to be found—he hurried back to induce Irvin to join him in the pursuit of the Indians. Now that old scout was not as eager for the horses as "Liver-eating," and not at all for a fight, but for old friendship's sake said hewould come along if a couple more fellows could be found, which, by the way, he did not believe possible, for the country was not settled then as it is now. But it happened that two men did come along just at that moment, and Johnson soon convinced them that profitable business was ahead if they joined in the pursuit. So the four went, taking a straight cut toward Horsethief, a section of the country southeast of the Big Snowy Mountains, where they thought the Indians would make a halt.

About three o'clock that afternoon they overtook the "Reds," but found to their chagrin that a dozen bucks were ready to give battle, while still four or five were left to attend to the stolen horses, and as neither Johnson nor any of his companions were burning for a fight, in which there was no promise of getting anything but bullet holes, Johnson decided that he would rather go home without the horses.

In the Bull Mountains a hunter followed a wolf trail into a ravine from which there was no escape for the "varmint" except past him, and he was promptly attacked by a half-dozenwolves. He killed four after a hard fight, but he was pretty well chewed up at the finish. Of course he had expected to find only one in the gulch.

As a rule the wolf is not anxious to fight, although not so cowardly as most other animals—the cougar for example—yet I have seen a single specimen follow a hunter, a boy of twelve years, but the best rifle shot I ever met, about two miles. I was with him, and waited for that wolf until he was within twenty yards, when I allowed the boy to fire. His nerves were evidently too much shaken, for he missed his first wolf—nevertheless he got his pelt.

The locating of dens, as explained in the discussion of the cougar, is also applicable to wolves.

WHAT has been said in regard to the wolf and dog track, is applicable also to the track and trail of the prairie wolf, but as the latter is small there always exists the possibility that its track will be mistaken for that of the fox. Where the locality gives no clue to the identity of the maker of the trail, the tracker has no distinguishing feature whatever from which to form his judgment, since a big red fox makes as big a track as a small coyote. The writer, after hunting foxes for many years, followed what he took for fox trails quite frequently in a certain section of the country, until he discovered that there was no fox within a couple of hundred miles of the place. A big coyote, of course, makes a larger track than a fox, but here all difference stops. For comparison's sake the track and trail of theaveragecoyote and of theaveragefox are shown.

COYOTE. (TWO-THIRDS NATURAL SIZE)(1) Ordinary trot. (2) Fast trot.

COYOTE. (TWO-THIRDS NATURAL SIZE)

(1) Ordinary trot. (2) Fast trot.

The hunting methods are the same as for the gray wolf. Where the latter, however, is looking for the living, the coyote is watching for the dead, and he rather deserves to be called the hyena of the Western Hemisphere than prairie wolf, for his main diet is carrion. His addiction to carrion can be made of use to the hunter, in locating big game which has been unfortunately "shot to the woods," and of which he desires to secure at least the antlered or horned head.

In locating missing persons, who are supposed to have met with a fatal accident or worse, the trail of the coyote could be employed to advantage—and undoubtedly will be, if it is once a matter of general knowledge that the prairie wolf will always visit the immediate vicinity of the remains of a hidden or buried human body, and sound its dismal howl over them every time it happens to pass through that part of the country.

THERE is very little to add to what has been said about the fox track in the chapter on the coyote. When galloping, the fox's trail shows many variations not found in that of any other animal, but as the sinful fellow generally leaps only when he undertakes a chase, or is chased himself, the features in the running trail are practically of little or no consequence to the tracker. It is hardly possible to confound a fox trail with that of a very small dog—only in that the latter has a foot as small as the average fox—on account of the glaring dissimilarity in the length of the individual steps, which is much more apparent than between the wolf and big dog. The writer, at the tender age of seven, mistook once a very small dog's trail for that of a fox, but after his father pointed out the above feature, he never afterwards made such a mistake.

FOX. (TWO-THIRDS NATURAL SIZE)Front and hind track. (1) Ordinary gait; the shaded part shows drag of brush. (2) Running.

FOX. (TWO-THIRDS NATURAL SIZE)

Front and hind track. (1) Ordinary gait; the shaded part shows drag of brush. (2) Running.

When no individual track is visible, as is the case in dry snow, the blurry mark of the fox brush which is frequently seen at intervals in the trail settles any existing doubt. Some foxes, as well as wolves and coyotes, drag their feet to the same extent as does a dog that walks badly, and because of this the tracker may disregard as immaterial the prominence or absence of the drag made by the toenails.

Hunting foxes with hounds is undoubtedly the most popular method.

Calling him like the wolf and coyote yields good results for the still-hunter, but of all methods I prefer to shoot them during the rutting season, which occurs in January. The rutting season of coyotes is during February, and that of wolves from January 1st until April, approximately speaking. I have seen wolves "run" as early as December 28th, and have killed pups about two weeks old after the middle of June.

It is on snowy, blustering days that, in the depth of the woods, the fox is holding high carnival, and his and her tracks run in all directions.Watching where the trails are most numerous soon furnishes work for the gun and trophies for the hunter, for on such occasions the fox seems to have lost the senses of sight and smell which at other times are so well developed. It is a singular fact that they always run the most during the worst weather. In driving it is impossible to tell where a wolf or coyote will leave a certain thicket, beyond that it will not leave it where it entered; but a fox is always the sure victim of the hunter if he knows the fox path, for like the bear or old boar, he and every one of his tribe will always leave a thicket at the same point.

In calling, an old fox, like a wolf, comes stealthily, while a young one, like a coyote, will generally be in a hurry to get there.

BY the term "tracking" we usually understand the following of a trail, but if a hunter attempts to get a shot at his quarry solely by this means he has to depend on good luck or physical endurance. The cougar is, in my opinion, the most perfect tracker and most successful still-hunter; he tracks, but he does not follow the trail like a pack of wolves or dogs; he uses it only as a guide, following it for an occasional fifty or one hundred yards, which is to my mind the proper method for the human hunter.

Tracking also means the ascertaining of the preferred stand of certain animals. If, for example, the rutting place of the biggest elk in a district is located by comparison of various tracks, and the bull is shot later by waiting for, or stalking him at his favorite place, he undoubtedly falls a victim to tracking. Again, atrack of a big bull moose is seen, and though it is too old to warrant expectations of finding the animal still in the locality, it is followed and determines where the bull made his resting-place. When, weeks later, perhaps, the fresh trail of the same bull is seen and again the previously preferred hillside, or another specific part of the woods is hunted over carefully without attention to the trail, but with all consideration for wind-direction and lay of country, and a fair shot is obtained, can it be doubted that tracking was responsible for the downfall of this monarch of the woods? If so, let the doubter once follow a moose track straight and try to get an easy shot: he will probably change his mind. The locating of game, sometimes weeks in advance of the time when the shooting is to be done, is not by any means the least feature in the art of tracking. To reduce, if possible, the annual slaughter of men by careless hunters, it may not be amiss to discuss certain hunting methods which have given me the most satisfaction, and which obviate the possibility of being fired at by mistake.

Stalking along in grown-up timber and other open places, the sportsman will run across the trails of all the animals which have moved in the district he covers, and, having decided which trail he wishes to follow, he keeps on in the direction it leads. If it enters a thicket, a circuitous route—under wind—will lead him to where the animal has passed out, or show him that it is "fast,"i. e., in the thicket. If the former, he, of course, has to pursue the same tactics until the game is located. The rest is generally easy enough, and that without entering any thicket, where, as we all know, it usually happens that hunters are mistaken for deer.

Many hunters in relating their experiences tell us how careful they were to hunt against the wind, to approach their game. While it is well enough to have the wind against one if the game is in sight or driven toward one, I consider it more judicious to make the wind serve me. Having located an animal in a thicket, I select a stump or some other elevation to windward which allows the widest possible view, and simply wait long enough to allow the wind to inform myquarry of my presence. It will not require long for the game to take the hint and get up—often affording a shot by this means alone—to leave the premises. Very few are the instances that an old buck goes straight away and gives me no chance to see him, because in that case he would have to cross my trail, and to do that the wind, or rather my scent, does not frighten him enough; and if he goes out at the side which is untainted by any scent of man, he is usually my meat—if he is up to my standard. If the thicket is too big, the smoke of a pipe will often do wonders. The biggest buck I ever shot, became my victim through the assistance of a smudge—the thicket in that instance being about ten acres in extent. The diagram (p. 130) will illustrate the method better than words could. I have used it with success on many animals, and even on a wounded bear.

During snowless times no one can know with certainty if a deer is in a certain thicket, and the method has to be employed at random where there are enough signs to make it likely that a buck is near.

In hunting against the wind in open forests more game is passed than many hunters would suppose. The animals see the man, note that he will pass them, and hide by getting as near to the ground as possible. If they scent him after he has passed, they evidently realize that the danger is over, though some, mostly the younger, inexperienced animals, then sneak off. Where game is very wild it is often in such localities as I have mentioned only possible to approach themwith the windby outdistancing the latter, because a big game animal at rest depends on its nose to save it from danger in the direction from which the wind comes, and on its eyes to watch the side from which it can get no other warning.

Desirable game is often located on slopes, and can be shot from an opposite slope if only it can be made to move around slowly, the latter being important, as shots in such cases have usually to be fired at long distance, and the ability to hit running game at three hundred or four hundred yards is not possessed by everybody.

An imitation of the lamenting cry of a jack-rabbit serves me best in such cases, though it hasoften saved the game I was after, because it has attracted a wolf, or a cat; and I would rather kill one "varmint" than half a dozen bucks, which last can at best elude a man who knows how to track for but a limited length of time.

HUNTING WITH THE WINDThe stand is at 2 if the hunter is alone, and uses only his scent or pipe smoke to drive the deer out of the thicket. If a smudge is used for this purpose, as is necessary in big thickets, the stand is at 1, and if the hunter has a companion, one stands at 1, and the other at 2. A smudge should be made distant enough from the thicket—about at 3—to give the hunter time to go around, and take his stand at 1.

HUNTING WITH THE WIND

The stand is at 2 if the hunter is alone, and uses only his scent or pipe smoke to drive the deer out of the thicket. If a smudge is used for this purpose, as is necessary in big thickets, the stand is at 1, and if the hunter has a companion, one stands at 1, and the other at 2. A smudge should be made distant enough from the thicket—about at 3—to give the hunter time to go around, and take his stand at 1.

The sketch of leaps of wounded animals apply to all of our hoofed game except bighorn sheep. In any case, where one of them has been fired at, the trail should be followed for at least two hundred yards, as often an animal that goes away with the bounds of an apparently sound creature, will announce its distress through the placing of its feet, a sure indication to the tracker that he will be able to get his victim at the trail's end.

THE jack-rabbit is generally a resident of open country, though he may be found also in woodlands; and, in some parts of the country, when deep snow covers the lowlands, he retires to the fastnesses of the mountains, where, up to altitudes of eight thousand feet, he frequents the range of Bighorn.

He is unquestionably the delight of the hunter who desires to acquire efficiency in hitting moving objects with a rifle bullet.

JACK-RABBIT

His tracks, being the biggest of the rabbit tribe, cannot very well be mistaken for those of any other animal. On sandy or muddy places often only the imprint of the front part of the hind foot is seen; and on hard roads, plow furrows, etc., usually the mark of the toenails alone is visible. When the animal is feeding or moving along slowly, the whole imprints of the hind feet are left, while with increasing speed only the front parts of them touch the ground. The

forefeet rarely pair, and never if a jack-rabbit is running. If the long-eared fellow decides in the morning that it is time to retire for the day, he usually runs along a road, cattle-runway, or the like, returns in his own trail, and by a long

JACK RABBIT(1) Morning trail (easy lope). (2) Moving slowly. (3) Speeding. (A) Side-jump. (B) Day form. (E) Night forms. (B to D)Morning trail and night trail (feeding).

JACK RABBIT

(1) Morning trail (easy lope). (2) Moving slowly. (3) Speeding. (A) Side-jump. (B) Day form. (E) Night forms. (B to D)Morning trail and night trail (feeding).

side leap makes the trail seem to end. Where he lands, the four footmarks are usually so close together that they can be almost covered with the hand. He may leap directly into his "form," or he may repeat the same maneuver several times; but one thing is certain, a jack which acts in this manner is never far from home. If pursued during the daytime, he employs the same tactics again and again to throw the pursuer off the trail. At feeding places slight forms are often observed, and to follow the trail leading from them means, as a rule, a tiring walk, as those forms indicate that the jack has spent the after-supper hours there.

I have hunted with men who blamed their dogs if they failed to catch a rabbit with a broken foreleg. They evidently did not consider that a broken foreleg is of very little consequence to the running efficiency of that kind of animal. One with an injured hind leg, however, can be run down easily.

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