94 Musings by Camp-Fire and Wayside 



are partial to barbecued dog. A dog can be trained 

 to track down a wounded deer, which is the only 

 proper use for dogs in the chase. It is barbarous 

 to employ them for coursing deer, and it is stupid 

 meanness and pot-hunting vagabondage to drive 

 them into the water with dogs. A man who would 

 do that is by instinct a butcher, and ought to hire 

 out as a pig-sticker in the Chicago stock-yards. He 

 has neither the instinct, skill, nor spirit to be a still 

 hunter. Your still hunter puts on his moccasins 

 and goes over the crumply fern and pine spikes and 

 dry twigs as softly as he can. The deer hears him 

 and starts with a flying bound. The hunter now 

 has his choice, as short a shot on the fly as he can 

 get, or a long shot when the deer turns to gaze. 

 One successful half-breed hunter, whom I know, 

 always shoots on the wing. Another always chooses 

 the long standing shot. In either case the chances 

 are in favor of the deer, and that is fair. Now, 

 contrast this with a lazy lout, standing on a runway 

 by a lake or river and cooly murdering a deer with 

 a shot-gun or club when the dogs have driven him 

 to the water! 



I had taken a stroll with my canoe on my back 

 to a distant lake for an evening's fishing. This 

 canoe was built and arranged with kubs for the 

 oars, and fishing-rods, and other supplies. When I 

 wished to portage it I would grasp the sides near 

 one end, whirl it over on the other point, raise it to 

 near the perpendicular, back into it, and adjust the 



