28 BIG GAME SHOOTING 



As to general camp outfit, any light outfit for a hunter's 

 camp in a temperate region (e.g. Europe or North America) 

 will suffice ; extreme portability being the principal thing to aim 

 at, as the trails are infamously bad in the best game districts. 



Eschewing luxuries, let the hunter take with him all the 

 flour he can carry, as round Elbruz and in all the best moun- 

 tain districts the only flour obtainable is of villanous quality, 

 and the bread made from it will damage the most cast-iron 

 digestion. 



As to foot-gear, English hobnailed boots may do excel- 

 lently well for mountaineers, and may be the best possible 

 things on ice. I would as soon wear rings on my fingers and 

 bells on my toes as attempt to hunt in boots. For still hunt- 

 ing of any kind, whether in the mountains or in the forest, 

 moccasins of some sort are essential, whether they be soled with 

 india-rubber like tennis shoes, or simply soled with a double 

 sole of deer's hide, like those used in North America. For 

 the ' tender foot ' old tennis shoes are excellent things, but a 

 pair per diem would not be too much to allow for ibex shoot- 

 ing in the Caucasus, the rocks cutting any foot-gear to pieces 

 in the shortest possible time. 



The native moccasin is the best after all ; a sock of deer 

 skin or some other soft tanned hide, made large and loose, with 

 a split down the middle of the sole from toe to heel, which is 

 laced up with raw hide laces, the laces running across and 

 across each other thus XXXX. The moccasin is stuffed with 

 fine mountain grass, and is then put on damp and tightly laced. 

 By these means a comfortable fit is ensured, the tender hollow 

 beneath the instep is protected from sharp rocks, and a firm 

 grip in slippery places is given by the kind of network made 

 by the laces. In boots a man has no chance of using his toes 

 to cling with ; even to bend his foot is beyond his powers, and 

 a boot once worn out cannot be repaired in camp, whereas a 

 moccasin may be patched until none of the original article 

 remains. 



A sling for your rifle is a necessity in all mountain shooting ; 



