Vol i906 in ] Deane, Letters of J. J. Audubon and S. F. Baird. 329 



No one knows what is to come but if my mother can spare me fifty 

 dollars, which will be about the expense of the trip, I shall go, and 

 return in a few months heavily laden with the spoils of science. 



During a visit made some time ago to Pinegrove, an iron establish- 

 ment of Mr. Ege's I obtained some interesting information of habits 

 of our Wild Cat. Mr. Ege has been a hunter from his earliest 

 youth to the present advanced age of between sixty and seventy, 

 and now though not as active as he was once wont to be, yet he 

 will have to be a pretty hard rider who will take the brush from 

 him. Of his daring feats of horsemanship many feats are remem- 

 bered and related by the companions of his adventures. Seven 

 miles from Carlisle in the gap of the South Mountain is a heap of 

 loose stones about two hundred feet from top to bottom, formed by 

 the debris of the rocks above. Once after having pursued a deer 

 for a whole day the animal ran to the foot of this place, and dashing 

 up the hill was immediately followed by Mr. Ege. The deer hav- 

 ing reached the to]) decended half way, ran along the hill for forty 

 or fifty yards, and reascended to the sumit, still pursued however 

 by the gallant equestrian. The stones which were mostly loose 

 rattled down from beneath the horses feet, a single slip would have 

 been almost certain death yet he rode over the place as easy and 

 unconcerned as if he had been on a smooth turnpike. 



The wild cat is becoming more numerous every year; few are 

 caught by the hounds, and still fewer are caught in traps or shot, 

 so that in time they will become almost the only animal of the chase, 

 except foxes, the deer having become very scarce from several 

 causes. One of these is the severe winter of 1S39 when the snow 

 having a depth of fifteen or twenty inches with a hard crust, the 

 deer as soon as driven into anything faster than a walk, broke 

 through and were held as in a trap; thus allowing men with snow 

 shoes on, to walk up and kill them with clubs. One monster mur- 

 dered twenty in a clay! The wild cats also aid in the work of 

 destruction, killing great numbers every year, by dropping on them 

 from a tree, or spring from the ground, when in the act of drinking 

 or feeding. One which I killed a year ago had its stomach filled 

 with deers hair. A man some years ago had been out hunting 

 deer, and towards noon stopped near a piece of rich Bottom, in 

 order to eat his dinner. Presently he heard a great crackling in 

 the thicket not far from him and looking towards the place saw a 



