88 Deer and Antelope of North America 



no other quality is called for, and so even this 

 method, though often the only possible one (and 

 it may be necessary to return to it in the Adiron- 

 dacks) can never rank high in the eyes of men 

 who properly appreciate what big game hunting 

 should be. It is the usual method of killing deer 

 on Long Island, during the three or four days of 

 each year when they can be legally hunted. The 

 deer are found along the south and centre of the 

 eastern half of the island ; they were nearly exter- 

 minated a dozen years ago, but under good laws 

 they have recently increased greatly. The exten- 

 sive grounds of the various sportsmen's clubs, 

 and the forests of scrub-oak in the scantily settled 

 inland region, give them good harbors and sanctu- 

 aries. On the days when it is legal to shoot them, 

 hundreds of hunters turn out from the neighbor- 

 hood, and indeed from all the island and from 

 New York. On such a day it is almost impossible 

 to get any work done ; for the sport is most demo- 

 cratic, and is shared by everybody. The hunters 

 choose their position before dawn, lying in lines 

 wherever deer are likely to pass, while the hounds 

 are turned into every patch of thick cover. A 

 most lively day follows, the fusillade being terrific ; 

 some men are invariably shot, and a goodly num- 

 ber of deer are killed, mostly by wily old hunters 

 who kill ducks and quail for a living in the fall. 

 When the horse is used together with the 



