THE MOOSE 79 



are said to "yard up." Having selected a place where 

 food is plentiful, they remain in it, tramping down the 

 deep snow. It was formerl}- the practice to seek them 

 at such times on snow-shoes, and when a " yard " was 

 discovered the whole band were often easily exter- 

 minated. The animals breaking through the crust on 

 the snow were easily overtaken and clubbed to death, 

 or killed with a knife. The pursuit of moose on deep, 

 crusted snow is called " crusting," and is, of course, 

 unsportsmanlike. The Boone and Crockett Club has 

 declared against this method as not being within the 

 term "fair chase," and it is now unlawful so to take 

 them. In fact, the open season now ends before the 

 time when "crusting" is possible. 



The most familiar method of capture is by " calling," 

 which has already been referred to. Many of the 

 guides are expert at imitating the call of the moose, or 

 at least are able to bring the bull within shot by mak- 

 ing a noise which, it is supposed, the bull mistakes for 

 the call of a cow. Under the rule of the Boone and 

 Crockett Club this method, also, is not " fair chase," 

 although, it is safe to say, more moose have been taken 

 in this way than in any other. 



Mr. A. J. Stone, a talented moose-hunter, says : " I 

 wish to correct a general impixssion that the bull- 

 moose can be called by the use of the birch-bark horn 

 in the belief that he is approaching a female. No bull 

 was half so stupid. Such a thing is entirc^ly unreason- 

 able. He is simply attracted by the unusual sound, 

 and being extremely curious, endeavors to locate the 

 meaning of this strange thing in his home. The 

 pounding on a tree with a club by the Tahetan or 



