226 THE WILDERNESS HUNTER. 



CHAPTER XL 



THE MOOSE ; THE BEAST OF THE WOODLAND. 



THE moose is the giant of all deer ; and 

 many hunters esteem it the noblest of 

 American game. Beyond question there are 

 few trophies more prized than the huge shovel 

 horns of this strange dweller in the cold north- 

 land forests. 



I shot my first moose after making several 

 fruitless hunting trips with this special game 

 in view. The season I finally succeeded it 

 was only after having hunted two or three 

 weeks in vain, among the Bitter Root Moun- 

 tains, and the ranges lying southeast of them. 



I began about the first of September by 

 making a trial with my old hunting friend 

 Willis. We speedily found a country where 

 there were -moose, but of the animals them- 

 selves we never caught a glimpse. We tried 

 to kill them by hunting in the same manner 

 that we hunted elk ; that is, by choosing a 

 place where there was sign, and going care- 

 fully through it against or across the wind. 

 However, this plan failed ; though at that 

 very time we succeeded in killing elk in this 

 way, devoting one or two days to their pursuit. 

 There were both elk and moose in the coun- 

 try, but they were usually found in different 

 kinds of ground, though often close alongside 



