THE STILL-HUNTER. 



course certain kinds of ground where it is safe to 

 walk on the trail; but wherever you can keep away 

 from it without losing it, it is better to do so. 



So far we have had no trouble in keeping the course 

 of the trail. And after you once get well acquainted 

 with a deer's habits about feeding, lounging, and going 

 off to lie down, you will have little trouble in this re- 

 spect. And you will have far less when you once 

 know the ground well. But sometimes you will have 

 some trouble with it, especially in brushy timber, in 

 heavy pine where deer are apt to meander more in 

 their course. And so during a storm, or in such tim- 

 ber as it is hard to keep your course in, such as heavy 

 pine in a cloudy day. In all such cases you will have 

 to swing in frequently upon the trail, taking advan- 

 tage of course of any hollows, etc., to do so. 



We have also had no trouble this morning to keep 

 out of sight. We shall often find ground where there 

 is little shelter from friendly ridges. As I advised 

 you before, such ground is generally unprofitable to 

 the still-hunter. But if you happen to be on it you 

 will find the advantages of side-tracking very great. 

 The better way there, is to make half-circles, going far 

 away from the trail, then coming down at right angles 

 to it and keeping a most careful watch on both sides, 

 then backing out and swinging around again. You 

 can sometimes see the track at quite a distance, but 

 rarely from a distance that is safe. You had better 

 always depend upon your knowledge of the deer's 

 course and upon occasional coming into the track. 



Sometimes a deer will make a circuit before lying 

 down, and then lie down on one side of his main trail. 

 In such case he is almost certain to see you if you are 

 directly upon the trail, as you travel too much in his 



