HUNTING THE DEER 



white-tailed deer are not so abundant as rabbits, and 

 it may be days before you get another shot. 



Remember, therefore, two things to get down 

 in the back sight and to get well forward on your 

 deer. With a black-powder rifle one had to hold 

 well ahead of the deer if running; but that is not 

 necessary with the high-power rifle of today. Not 

 long ago I killed a running deer at two hundred and 

 fifty yards. It was shot through the shoulders, yet 

 the aim was just at the front edge of the body and 

 barely inside the hair line. With the rifle, as with 

 the shotgun, the more swing the less lead. The 

 shoulder shot, of course, is the best. A shot far 

 back in the body cripples and loses many and many 

 a good deer more's the pity ! 



When your deer is down be sure it is down for 

 keeps. Stay on top of your stump, where you can 

 see it, until you are sure it is dead. The next thing 

 is to bleed your deer. Of course you know that 

 the sticking place so-called is at the base of the 

 neck. You should sever the large bloodvessels there 

 and also the windpipe. Drag the deer so that it will 

 lie with its head down hill if possible. You may 

 then finish the rest of the work if you do not rely 

 wholly upon your guide as so many do who ought 

 not to. Let it bleed well, then pull it round with its 

 head uphill. 



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