HUNTING GROUNDS OF FLORIDA. 



89 



times they run 

 straight for a long 

 distance and then 

 take to a tree. At 

 other times, espe- 

 cially in South Flor- 

 ida, they often do not 

 attempt to c 1 i m b a 

 tree at all, and I have 

 killed a number of 

 cats on the ground 

 where the dogs had 

 run them into a thick 

 place, sometimes di- 

 rectly at the foot of a 

 large tree, when they 



have made no attempt 

 to climb it. On one or 

 two occasions my large 

 bear dog, Tiger, has 

 caught a cat on the 

 ground and killed it 

 alone, usually getting 

 somewhat scratched in 

 the encounter, but none 

 of the other dogs have 

 cared to attempt this 

 feat. On one occasion 

 I heard the dogs com- 

 ing towards me, as I 

 stood in a small, sandy 

 opening, and obtained 

 a rather crude photo- 

 graph of a wildcat with 



WILD CAT. 



