MOOSE HUNTING AND CALLING. 191 



his body, fired. He did not move, so I fired twice more, 

 each time aiming for the lungs, or rather where I 

 judged the lungs to be. The third cartridge stuck. I 

 tore at it with my fingers, while Ed said, " Quick ; 

 give him another!" Before I could extract the car- 

 tridge and do so the moose had walked back into the 

 wood at the lakeside from which he had emerged. He 

 made no sound, but both of us were pretty sure all was 

 well, since we were agreed that we had heard the 

 bullets tell. Indeed, we lit the lantern and went to 

 look. All that we found, however, was a series of 

 tracks leading across a marsh and losing themselves 

 upon a high ridge beyond it. Even then I felt certain 

 that I had held straight, and that on the morrow we 

 must find the bull dead and at no great distance. 



It was a chance remark of Ed's which awoke me 

 to a knowledge of the full depth of the tragedy. 

 " When, before you turned, I saw him come out 

 broadside on, heading to camp ," he said. 



" Heading to camp ! Are you sure ? " 



"Yes," replied Ed. 



" Then we'll never see that moose again, Ed ! " 



"Why? How?" 



"Because I made him out to be heading the other 

 way, and my shots must have passed in front of him ! " 



" Oh, why were you not turned round before he came 

 in ? He was our moose ; that's the meanest thing ever 

 happened to me in the woods ! " 



Well, there was no help for it ; regrets were useless, 

 and without more talk we retired to rest. I do not 

 think either of us slept much. With the first dawn 

 we were in the canoe, and before it was light enough 

 for proper examination were upon the scene of the 



