136 A MOOSE HUNT ON SNO\V-SH:)KS 



before the winter sunrise arouses the men to a new day. The fire 

 is replenished and a meal is prepared. While the paJe amber opal- 

 escence in the east is fading before the intenser light of the rising sun, 

 the dogs are again laid on the trail and the chase resumed. Once 

 more the tired deer listens to the dread shouts of men and the wolfish 

 baying of the hounds. His bloody lair in the snow is reached and 

 passed ; his great strength is surely leaving him now. The keenness 

 of the dogs proclaims his nearness. Uncle Enoch's eyes are fairly 

 blazing with the excitement of the anticipated triumph. Soon the 

 infuriated rioting of the dogs tells the tale that the game is brought 

 to bay. At the foot of a steep cliff he has turned on his enemies. 

 The snow, so lately of virgin purity, is now soiled and beaten down 

 by the noisy conflict of deer and dogs. ' Bang ' is bleeding pro- 

 fiisdy, while a black cur lies quite still with his ribs fairly cut from 

 the spine by blows from the sharp fore-hoofs of the moose. 



The captain of the hunt now approaches and levels his piece. 

 All is soon over with the gallant moose, which has led his pursuers 

 such a dance of nearly thirty miles. 



While it must be conceded that this form of woodland sport 

 yields at times great excitement and calls for extreme hardihood 

 in its votaries, yet it may readily be seen that it can easily be abused, 

 should tlu* snowfall be deep enough to handicap the moose too heavily. 



When the great deer, as sometimes might happen, sink to their 

 bellies in the drifts, there would be nothing to prevent a few hardy 

 hunters, experts on snow-shoes, from slaughtering half the moose 

 of a district. The floundering animals would sink exhausted a few 

 hundred feet away from their yards. 



When the snow, however, is less deep, and the crust weak, a 

 moose will travel thirty to fifty miles before he gives in. Under 

 such circumstances, ' crusting ' may be termed an exciting and manly 

 sport, only to be followed by men of perfect physical fitness. ' Crust- 

 ing ' has been the chief winter pastime of the past generation of 

 backwoods settlers. It is exactly adapted to men of very tough 

 fibre, good on snow-shoes, yet with no particular skill with the 

 rifle. In this manner the grey-bearded veterans of the settlements 

 have been accustomed all their lives long to replenish their larders 

 in the season of winter scarcity of fresh meats. 



While there is much to be said against it, especially owing 

 to the butchery which it occasionally renders possible, ' crusting ' 

 has always been a good means of testing the mettle of the pioneer 

 settlers, for none but men of the greatest endurance could be in at 

 the death of many a gallant quarry. 



Moreover, the sport is often redeemed by a spice of danger. 



