WOLF DAYS IN PENNSYLVANIA. 65 



Snow Shoe that they approached the buildings every 

 butchering time, howhng vociferously. They fre- 

 quented the old fields and abandoned sugar camps, and 

 could be heard yelling somewhere almost every night. 

 There was an especially heavy snow-fall in the early 

 part of 1859. Thomas Askey, Robert Askey's father, 

 killed an aged horse which he poisoned and dragged 

 on a sled four miles into the forest. A terrific blizzard 

 ensued, which made it impossible for him to visit the 

 carcass for some time. When he did so he found the 

 bodies of a dozen dead wolves near the remains. At a 

 spring a little further on he discovered several more 

 dead wolves, and much vomit, where the stricken ani- 

 mals sought to relieve themselves before drinking the 

 cooling water. There were also tracks leading into 

 the wilderness that could not be followed for the drifts. 

 Apparently the entire pack had tasted the poisoned 

 horse; few if any had escaped. After that no more 

 wolves were seen or heard in Snow Shoe or vicinity. 

 So much for a third locality. If the State were "fine- 

 tooth combed," in every section where wolves disap- 

 peared, poisoning would be found to be one of the 

 main causes, A few were shot or trapped, many 

 starved, especially the young died of starvation, the 

 great bulk were carried ofif by changed conditions of 

 life, consisting of absence of forest cover, loss of nor- 

 mal food supply, circumscribed range, and indiscrimi- 

 nate poisoning. 



