CHAPTER III 



THE GROUSE OF THE NORTHERN CATTLE 

 PLAINS 



TO my mind there is no comparison between 

 sport with the rifle and sport with the shot- 

 gun. The rifle is the freeman's weapon. The man 

 who uses it well in the chase shows that he can 

 at need use it also in war with human foes. I 

 would no more compare the feat of one who bags 

 his score of ducks or quail with that of him who 

 fairly hunts down and slays a buck or bear, than I 

 would compare the skill necessary to drive a buggy 

 with that required to ride a horse across country; 

 or the dexterity acquired in handling a billiard cue 

 with that shown by a skilful boxer or oarsman. 

 The difference is not one of degree; it is one of 

 kind. 



I am far from decrying the shotgun. It is al- 

 ways pleasant as a change from the rifle, and in the 

 Eastern States it is almost the only firearm which 

 we now have a chance to use. But out in the cattle 

 country it is the rifle that is always carried by the 

 ranchman who cares for sport. Large game is 

 still that which is sought after, and most of the 

 birds killed are either simply slaughtered for the 

 pot, or else shot for the sake of variety, while 



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