6o NEWFOUNDLAND CARIBOU 



claim that it far exceeds the rifle as a sporting instrument, 

 while as a means of studying the habits of animals and birds 

 it is absolutely without a rival. 



In the thicker woods fifty to a hundred yards away the 

 big stags were assembled. Their frequent bugling showed 

 clearly that they were in a somewhat excited and nervous 

 condition, so I continued to hope that I might see a fight 

 before the day passed, for surely with so many stags, there 

 must be some ready and anxious to do battle on slight 

 provocation. It was decidedly amusing to watch the young 

 stags. They seemed to feel themselves so important, as they 

 strutted about going from one doe to another, scarcely 

 heeding the almost inevitable rebuffs or the absolute disdain 

 with which the fair ones met their advances. Once in a 

 while, a foolish doe would look with favour on one of these 

 youngsters and off they would go side by side, the stag 

 uttering repeated grunts of satisfaction as he coaxed the doe 

 further and further away from the herd. Their attempts 

 were in most cases discovered before they had gone more 

 than a few yards and then a larger stag would instantly 

 make for the young buck and, after driving him away at the 

 point of the horn, would chase the erring doe back to the 

 herd where she belonged. Sometimes the young pair would 

 refuse to be separated and then followed a long chase which 

 usually resulted in victory for the smaller and lighter stag as 

 he could run faster. In no instance did the stags of very 

 uneven age fight, for the young fellows evidently believed 

 discretion to be by far the better part of valour. 



The length of horn plays a very important part in fighting, 

 more so even than the weight of the animal as the encounter is, 

 or should be, head on. It stands to reason therefore that 

 the long horn can easily pass the guard of the one with the 

 shorter horns. Knowing this the youngsters steer clear of 



