52 SPORTSMAN'S HAND BOOK. 



you can venture into the woods five or six miles from camp, 

 which is quite far enough where game is reasonably plen- 

 tiful, 



By taking the following precautions a party of four in 

 two days can establish such a system of landmarks for a ra- 

 dius of six or seven miles, that camp can easily be found at 

 any time. It can be done in this way: Early in the morn- 

 ing each of the four men in the party take a different cardi- 

 nal point of the compass and follow the course as directly 

 as he can, by his compass, and with his hatchet blaze the 

 route on the prominent trees, no farther apart than they can 

 easily be seen, from one tree to another; making one blaze 

 on the side next to camp and two on the side from the camp ; 

 in this way the two blazes establish the direction of the 

 camp. By getting an early start, six or seven miles can be 

 blazed by two o'clock, or a little later; then you can hunt 

 leisurely back to camp, keeping a close watch for game and 

 deer sign, such as trails, runways, or crossings. Observe 

 if the bushes have been freshly scraped by deer rubbing 

 them with their horns; also notice if the ground in places 

 has been pawed, or scraped, as hunters call it. Where deer 

 "use" much, their signs are plain to be seen; go slowly and 

 carefully at such places, keeping a sharp lookout for deer, 

 as you are likely to see one; stop often near a tree and scan 

 the surroundings thoroughly, for stealth and silence, in this 

 ease, is the price of venison. 



The next day each man take an intermediate point of 

 the compass, performing the same operation of blazing, 

 then hunting slowly and stealthily back to camp. 



Now you have for a radius of six or seven miles from 

 camp, and entirely around it, eight blazed lines leading 

 directly to camp, and you can now hunt at will, devoting all 

 your ingenuity and mind to the pursuit of game, and at no 

 time will you be very far from some of the blazed routes to 



