284 THE STILL-HUNTER. 



and, aided by a fine physique and the tremendous 

 power of long hair, flop-hat, buckskins, and badges, 

 it possibly went far toward storming the susceptibili- 

 ties of our foreign friends as well as the softer sex 

 and softer members of the harder sex at home. But 

 he certainly did such shooting as would before have 

 been by many deemed impossible. 



From his first appearance upon the stage Dr. Car- 

 ver has had an enormous amount of practice with the 

 rifle. And this he still keeps up. Like all other 

 " professional " shots he plays with ammunition by 

 the barrelful where an amateur or ordinary hunter 

 uses less than a handful. He has all the advantages 

 of powerful strength and perfect health, is in the 

 prime of life with perfect sight, and was undoubtedly 

 one of the best of field-shots before he appeared in 

 public; nearly all his life having been passed in the 

 field. The rifle has now reached about as high a 

 state of perfection as can be expected from it, so far 

 as its accuracy at short range and convenience of aim- 

 ing are concerned. We are therefore justified in as- 

 suming that Dr. Carver can now do with the rifle at 

 short range about all that can ever be done with it; 

 certainly all that can ever be done with it by any ordi- 

 nary amount of practice. 



In 1878, about the time the loudest thunders of ap- 

 plause were rolling heavenward; when the words 

 "marvelous," "miraculous," " wonderful," "astonish- 

 ing," "witchcraft," " sorcery," "jugglery," "sleight of 

 hand," etc. etc., echoed from half a million tongues; 

 when Eastern editors were vying with each other in 

 the effort to determine whether Carver's shooting 

 were " instinctive," " intuitive," " innate," or " natural;" 

 when Eastern reporters were filling columns with his 



