106 MOOSE-HUNTING, SALMON-FISHING, ETC 



successfully, tracks had to be cut, which we 

 discovered others before us, on shooting bent, 

 had done. Now, to get any shooting, it was 

 necessary to have those fowl on the wing, so 

 I procured something that might in inex- 

 perienced parlance be called a punt. It 

 had neither form nor comeliness, nor yet any 

 beariugs, as I found by sad experience; was 

 about eight feet long ; had probably been 

 planned by a person who had read about but 

 never seen the thing called a boat. It would 

 not carry two, and scarcely float one, but I 

 made bold to venture in it, from the know- 

 ledge that the water in this lake was not over 

 Beady's back. When I was on it the water 

 was only five inches clear, so that all my 

 movements had to be like sitting on eggs. 

 Well, eventually I got off into the lake, and 

 began bombarding the birds, as they went up 

 and down by me, while my friend, whom I 

 had left on the shore among the rushes, was 

 having a full share of the good things. After 

 a time, I landed in a bunch of rushes about 

 the middle of the lake, and hauled the punt's 

 bow into it. The water amongst these rushes 

 was about 8 inches deep, and the bottom 



