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IN THE LAND OF THE GREAT SPIRIT 139 



In winter the moose have a well-known habit of 

 congregating together and forming a yard, probably 

 for the purpose of protection from wolves. These 

 yards have been often described as if almost 

 made with the accuracy and precision of a Danish 

 camp — as being perfect even-sided entrenchments. 

 I have never had the good fortune to see the 

 animals in their yard. But one of the so-called 

 yards themselves I have seen. Of a most irregular 

 and imperfect formation, situated in the closest part 

 of the forest, it showed no features that would not 

 naturally result from a number of large animals being 

 collected together in one place. The snow, trampled 

 down and scraped together here and there, lent some 

 colour to the idea of a fortification, but that was all. 

 Irregular paths ran from this centre for a short dis- 

 tance in many directions, and this plan or principle (if 

 so it can be called) was always traceable in the yards 

 of the previous year one came across in the autumn. 

 For old yards are easily recognised, because every bush 

 and twig has been killed down by the moose. The 

 caribou is said to have the same habit, but to this I 

 cannot speak. 



Moose are killed in various ways. Sometimes they 

 are taken by the Indians by means of a noose and 



Cct/T-t-O-es-j t 



