CREATURES OF THE WILDERNESS 227 



soft ground or snow, without crashing through 

 the surface crust in the manner that so often 

 proves the undoing of a moose when pursued 

 by hunters. It is, in consequence, when only 

 slightly wounded, a difficult animal to follow 

 up. 



The two other deer of North America are the 

 mule deer, also called black-tailed deer, and 

 the Virginian, or white-tailed, deer. The 

 mule deer is found only on the western side, 

 and the true black-tailed deer is restricted to 

 the Pacific Slope. A full-grown stag stands 

 40 in. at the shoulder, and the antlers may 

 measure 34 in. They have two V-shaped 

 forks, while those of the white-tailed deer are 

 distinguished by three upright spikes. The 

 record antler of the white-tail is over 27 in. 

 and carries fifty-two points. The mule deer 

 lives in the ravines of the Rocky Mountains, 

 and particularly in the broken ground of the 

 foothills. It is found as far south as Cali- 

 fornia, where, however, it gives way to the 

 true black-tail. The Virginian deer skulks in 

 the dense forests of the east and south. I 

 have watched it of an evening along the banks 

 of Canadian rivers in summer-time, and I once 

 saw one through my glasses busy licking an 



