142 THE DEER FAMILY 



In hunting the Virginia deer, whether it be in Maine, 

 the Adirondacks, or in the Western or Southern moun- 

 tains, the sportsman is usually accompanied by a guide 

 whose duty it is to find the trail and follow it and en- 

 deavor to put the sportsman in position for a shot. Of 

 course, all this was easy when the dogs were used to 

 drive the deer to well-known run-w^aj's. But to-day, 

 where the deer are not numerous and are very wild, 

 the shooting of a white-tail is next to impossible for a 

 novice. It is a difficult matter for one highly skilled 

 man to approach within range of a deer without its 

 taking alarm. It is twice as difficult for two to do it in 

 company. Comparatively few sportsmen are equipped 

 to "go it alone." Those that are are the ones who 

 thoroughly enjoy deer-stalking. The shooting of the 

 animal is not so difficult as the getting within range. 

 Some men, as we have suggested, not only need the aid 

 of a guide for the latter service, but for the former 

 also. With them, the man whose servant shoots a deer 

 has shot a deer. Qui facit per aliiivi facit per se. It is 

 quite true that the act of the agent is the act of the 

 principal, ever since laW'S were written in the Latin. 

 Such hunting suits few sportsmen. I have the highest 

 admiration for the men I know who can slip off rapidly 

 through the woods without the slightest noise and, ob- 

 serving every sign, go straight to the \\\\d quarry and 

 drop it with a well-aimed shot. 



I do not altogether like the game when the white- 

 tail is the opponent, most likely because I do not play 

 it very well. Where there are a lot of teal and mallards 

 flying in a marsh, and a solitary crane, extremely wild, 

 is reported to have been seen " last week " on the 



