LIFE AND HABITS 17 



carry no external horns." And continues in a footnote : 

 " My calculations are based on some notes I took of female 

 Caribou seen in open country where I could easily examine 

 them with the glass, in 1906. Out of three hundred females, 

 one had eleven points ; one, ten ; three, eight ; twenty-five, 

 six or seven ; two hundred and forty-six, four or more points ; 

 and twenty-four had no horns." 



By these notes it can be seen how much uncertainty there 

 exists in the proportion of hornless to horned does. 



Having now given the reader a somewhat vague idea of the 

 appearance of Caribou, let us look into the habits of this 

 interesting animal. 



The Caribou's life may be divided into Four Periods, 

 which correspond very closely with the seasons. Like the 

 spokes of a wheel, there is no beginning and therefore no 

 end, so we may take them in any order we wish. Let us 

 therefore start with the Summer Period and with each season 

 we shall touch lightly on the most important events in order 

 to give a consecutive idea of the animal's life habits. In the 

 chapters which follow, the two most important seasons — the 

 mating and the migration — will be dealt with more in detail. 

 The kind indulgence of the reader must be asked as this will 

 necessitate the repetition of certain facts further on. The 

 present chapter is intended to be a sketch of the animal and 

 his life, touching on what appear to me to be the points of 

 greatest importance. If this chapter proves of sufficient 

 interest, then perhaps the patient, long-suffering reader may 

 be induced to wade through the chapters which follow. 



Summer in Newfoundland begins late in June, during 

 which month the Caribou bring forth their young. Those 

 that migrated southward have returned and reached their 

 summer homes in time for the great event, while those which 

 have not migrated seek only a suitable nursery in the vicinity 



