68 PEAIEIE AND FOREST. 



and justly so, for he was not conversant with the European 

 animal. 



The following adventure occurred to me while sojourn- 

 ing in the habitat of the moose : 



For some days my fly-rod had been indefatigably and 

 most successfully at woik, furnishing not only my own 

 table, but many of the neighbouring families with trout, 

 so that a change of programme was far from unaccept- 

 able. One morning as I was deliberating in which 

 direction I would go, my host asked me if I should have 

 any objection to accompany him to lift some traps he had 

 not visited since spring The trip promised an acquaintance 

 with a new beat, and an insight into what I was not as yet 

 conversant with in this section of the American continent, 

 viz. the method followed of trapping martens. As the 

 sun was rising over the eastern hills for these primitive 

 people are early risers we found ourselves about to 

 leave the surveyed road. My friend bore on his back a 

 sack in which to place his long-neglected traps, while I 

 carried my trusty ten-bore double gun, loaded by request 

 with ball in one barrel, and buck-shot in the other. Our 

 route at first was through a dense cedar swamp, exceed- 

 ingly irregular on the surface, while the undergrowth was 

 so close that it was with difficulty parted ; a thick coating 

 of moss was under foot, so spongy and full of water that 

 if we remained stationary for a few seconds we would be 

 over the insteps in water. Nevertheless, the tracks of the 

 American swamp-hare were innumerable ; an animal, 

 by-the-bye, which is very similar to the Scotch blue hare, 

 some authorities going so far as to say they are the same 





