THE STILL-HUNTER'S CARDINAL VIRTUE. 207 



cause it leads on a course of good walking and hunt- 

 ing for two miles or so, with the rising sun on our 

 backs instead of in our faces as we should be obliged 

 to have it if we took advantage of the wind. But 

 the prospects of a deer's being ahead of us on the 

 ridge at all, or, if so, of being near enough to smell us 

 before we could see him on ground so open and with 

 the sun shining on him, are so slight that we will let 

 the wind go and take the advantage of the sun instead. 



The extreme care necessary to get first sight of 

 a deer in general is here even more important, if 

 possible, than elsewhere. For upon such ground 

 the deer has every advantage of a wide sweep of 

 vision that you have. Moreover, even in this low 

 open brush that does not reach your waist, and 

 through which the walking is so easy, deer standing 

 still will be almost impossible for you to see at any 

 considerable distance, especially when in the gray 

 coat as we will suppose them now to be unless you 

 can get well above them or have a sky-background, 

 as when a deer is standing on a ridge, or unless the 

 sun makes his back shine. And when you recollect 

 that deer are rarely so numerous upon such ground 

 as in timber, you will see that the importance of 

 seeing one before he sees you is here far greater; 

 especially as on this kind of ground you can rarely 

 get a shot by a sudden dash to some point or ridge, 

 the distances to be run being entirely too long. 



On such ground you can scarcely look too far; 

 though the ground for fifty yards around you must 

 not be neglected. You can scarcely have too strong 

 a glass or use it too thoroughly; though you should 

 not use it until you have first given a careful and ex- 

 tensive sweep with the naked eye. 



