S72 



HUNTING ADVENTURES 



THB BLACK TAILED DEER. 



Occasionally, the number of the raccoons is so much :r creased 

 as to render them very troublesome to the farmer, in the low and 

 wooded parts of Maryland, bordering on the Chesapeake Bay. 

 R&ccoon-hunts by moonlight then become frequent. This is rare 

 sport, and requires that those who engage in it should possess a 

 considerable amount of skill, as the animal is noted for its cunning 

 and activity. It also requires a strong constitution, in order not to 

 suffer from the exposure in the low country, where the raccoon 

 chiefly abounds. Yet to those of an active disposition, nothing 

 can be more exciting and amusing than this hunt. Snares are 

 sometimes set for the raccoon, but the animal displays his sagacity 

 by avoiding them in general. Guns and dogs are the surest 

 instruments of destruction, and these most " coon-hunters" avail 

 themselves of. During the winter the animals are fattest, and 

 ihen the country people have the most leisure to pursue them. 



The B.a-'W-tailed Deer is sometimes called the Mule Doer, on 



