390 



HUNTING ADVENTURES. 



THE KED DEER. 



and inside of legs and under side of tail, always white ; ears mar. 

 gined with dark brown, and often with white hairs within, and a 

 white circle round the eyes ; hoofs jet black. 



The American Deer is considered by the hunters the king of game 

 beasts, and consequently, he is pursued with unrelenting cruelty. 

 Before the Europeans visited America, the deer roamed the forests 

 from the brink of the Atlantic to the Rocky Mountains. He was pur- 

 sued by the Indians for the sake of his skin and flesh, but still the 

 number of his race suffered but little diminution. But when the 

 Europeans had obtaired a foothold upon the continent, his de- 

 struction was greatly accelerated, and as cities and towns sprang 

 up, he was driven to the forests of the interior. Still he was pur- 

 sued with as much ardor as the Red Deer of Europe was in the 

 middle ages, European and Indian joining in the chase. The 



