viii PREFACE 



those which I have experienced personally. I shall not pre- 

 tend to attempt a comprehensive list of others which I have 

 not seen. 



An ordinary book upon " Natural History " must necessarily 

 be a compilation, in which facts, unproved, and theories upon 

 a scientific basis, but originating in a museum, are the founda- 

 tion for the literary superstructure. All such works are in- 

 valuable to the hunter and practical naturalist, as, without 

 them, he would be like a ship devoid of chart and compass. 



I venture to intrude my experiences upon the public, in the 

 hope of producing undeniable evidence concerning the habits 

 and characters of the beasts I have known, but, if I touch 

 lightly upon others, I do not profess in such cases to appear as 

 an authority. On the other hand, all that I describe may be 

 depended upon, as the result of a long life's observation in 

 many portions of the world, during which, although devoted 

 since my boyhood to the rifle, I have never hunted without a 

 keen sense of enjoyment in studying the habits of the animals 

 pursued. 



In treating the wide subject comprised in the title, I shall 

 commence the first chapter by a retrospect of the arms neces- 

 sary for the destruction of wild animals, and exhibit the 

 progress that has been developed since the commencement of 

 my own experience nearly fifty years ago. 



SAM. W. BAKER 



