CARIBOU HUNTING 49 



upside down in the familiar fashion of our own mallards. It 

 was a glorious waking to life, and we sat for a while enjoying 

 the crisp morning air and wondering if the stags ever intended 

 to move. 



"Think we'll take a walk round Island Pond to-day," said 

 Saunders, suggesting a new ground, and to this I at once 

 acquiesced, as my guide said that an old stag or two generally 

 "summered" there in the stunted and isolated belts of spruce, 

 often coming: to the lake shore in the evening;. 



At noon we rested for our regular midday tea by a little 

 stream, where were many larches recently scraped by a 

 caribou stag. 



" That feller's close about here somewhere," said Saunders, 

 and so he was, for soon after commencing our stealthy walk 

 round the isolated drokes, I suddenly looked to my left and 

 saw the broad back and snowy neck of the game we sought 

 for. We had surprised the deer within eighty yards, and he 

 was feeding unconcernedly, so I ought not to have hurried 

 as I did to take him " from the shoulder," as there was time 

 to get into an easy position in which I could have made a 

 certainty of the shot. Immediately the stag turned sideways 

 I fired, the bullet going too high over his back. The deer 

 at once galloped away from the cover a few yards and again 

 stood. This time I hit him on the horn, which frightened 

 him considerably and caused an instantaneous retreat to the 

 woods. As he galloped away I pulled again, without effect, 

 and yet again as he crossed a little sluit about a hundred and 

 fifty yards away. 



"You have him," said Jack; "I saw the hair fly from 

 his side ; " but I did not think so, seeing that the stag had, 

 after the shot, galloped away easily, and then starting back 

 with raised head and tail and extended " scut," leapt in the 



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