?2 HUNTING TRIPS 



out with one who has not missed a great 

 deal, and the " Leather-stocking " class of 

 shooting stories are generally untrue, at 

 least to the extent of suppressing part of the 

 truth that is, the number of misses. Be- 

 yond question our Western hunters are, as 

 a body, to the full as good marksmen as, 

 and probably much better than, any other 

 body of men in the world, not even excepting 

 the Dutch Boers or Tyrolese Jagers, and a 

 certain number of them who shoot a great 

 deal at game, and are able to squander 

 cartridges very freely, undoubtedly become 

 crack shots, and perform really wonderful 

 feats. As an instance there is old " Vic," 

 a former scout and Indian fighter, and con- 

 cededly the best hunter on the Little Mis- 

 souri; probably there are not a dozen men 

 in the West who are better shots or hunters 

 than he is, and I have seen him do most skil- 

 ful work. He can run the muzzle of his 

 rifle through a board so as to hide the sights, 

 and yet do quite good shooting at some 

 little distance; he will cut the head off a 



