236 FIFTY YEARS A HUNTER AND TRAPPER. 



I climbed the hill and made for the balsam in hope to head 

 the deer off. I had only reached the brow of the hill so that I 

 could look into the basin when I saw the deer. I thought to 

 myself, there is a good chance to try my new gun, for I had not 

 yet shot it. I drew on a large doe that was in the lead of the 

 bunch and cut loose. The doe made a leap into the air, made a 

 jump or two down the hill and went down, while the rest of the 

 deer made two or three jumps up the hill towards me and stopped 

 and looked back down the hill in the direction of the doe that I 

 had shot. I pulled onto the shoulders of a buck, the largest deer 

 of the bunch, who gave his tail a switch or two, wheeled, made a 

 few jumps down the hill and fell, while the rest of the bunch made 

 a lively break for other parts. I continued to scatter lead as long 

 as I could see them. 



I ran down to the deer that I had killed, cut their throats, 

 removed their entrails, climbed some saplings, bent them down, 

 cut off the tops and hung the deer on them. Getting a pole with a 

 crotch at the end to place under the sapling, I pulled the deer up 

 the best that I could and started on the trail of the others. I did 

 not follow the trail long when I saw one of them had a broken 

 leg. The deer with the broken leg soon dropped out from the 

 others and went down the hill, crossed the hollow and went into 

 a thick hemlock timber and laurel. 



As it was nearly night, I left the trail and went home to camp. 

 The next morning, Mr. Ball went with me to help get the wounded 

 deer. We did not follow the trail far until we saw the deer fix- 

 ing to lie down. I backed up and went up the hill above where 

 we thought the deer might be lying. While Mr. Ball waited for 

 me to give the signal to come. Mr. Ball had not gone far after 

 I had howled, letting him know that I was ready, when out of 

 the laur.el came the deer. Mr. Ball was close, so that we both got 

 a shot, killing the deer almost before it was on its feet. 



Now I was so infatuated with my new gun, that it was a case 

 of love at first sight. This was in the late 70's. I have used 

 several different makes of guns. I also had a .30-30 Savage, which 

 I considered a good gun for big game, and in fact, I can say that 

 the most of the guns that I have tried were all good. I however 



