THE BOOK OF THE OTTER 



that matter, a man must use his brains, and to 



some extent call on his powers of imagination. 



A chapter on hunting is hardly complete without 



some mention of that elusive mystery called scent, 



so a few words will be devoted to it here. You 



get good and bad scenting days in otter-hunting 



just as you do when hunting fox or hare, but the 



chase of the otter has the advantage of being 



conducted both on land and water, and if scent is 



bad on the latter, it may be quite the reverse if 



your otter takes to terra firma. Sometimes it is 



good on both, though it may happen that an otter 



which has been hustled about the woods or across 



country apparently gives off little scent when he 



returns to the water. A bitch otter in cub, or one 



with a young family, appears to often give off little 



or no scent, and where hunting takes place 



on a river polluted by oil, or other foreign 



matter, scent is generally conspicuous by 



its absence. Scent varies too at different times 



of day. In the early morning, before the sun has 



dispelled the dew, it is generally good, but dies 



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