American Big Game in its Haunts 



are under great obligation. Compare the career of 

 Thoreau, lonely, sad, and wedded to death — on 

 the one hand, with that of Mulr, on the other — 

 a lover of his kind, healthful, inspiring to gaiety, 

 superabounding in vitality. Naturalists of this 

 type of mind, and so faithful in perfecting the 

 talents entrusted to them, do not often appear in 

 any age. 



In the designations of refuges for deer, various 

 questions are to be considered, such as abundance 

 of food, proximity to water, suitable shelter, an 

 exposure to their liking, for they may be permitted 

 to have whims in a matter of this sort, just as fully 

 as Indians or the residents of the city, when 

 they deign to honor the country by their 

 presence. The deer feel that they are en- 

 titled to a certain remote absence from moles- 

 tation; moderate hunting will not entirely 

 discourage them — a dash of excitement might 

 prove rather entertaining to a young buck with a 

 little recklessness in his temperament — but unless 

 a deer be clad in bullet-proof boiler iron, there 

 are ranges in the reserves of southern California 

 where he would never dare to show his face during 

 the open season — regular rifle ranges. Where 

 very severely hunted, like the road agent, they 

 "take to the brush," that is, hide in the chaparral. 



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