84 HUNTING CAMPS. 



There are, it may be mentioned, a certain number of 

 individuals who never attempt to reach the interior, whose 

 ambition is satisfied by what may be called the " railway 

 sport," and who possibly deserve any disappointments that 

 fall to their lot. The term " railway sport " needs elucida- 

 tion. Twice a year the caribou in Newfoundland migrate ; 

 in the spring they move from south to north, and in the 

 autumn travel back from the north to their winter feeding- 

 grounds. It happens that the railroad from St. John's to 

 Port-aux-Basques intersects a main route of migration, 

 and immense numbers of deer cross the line, the bulk of 

 them reaching it near a station called Howley. This is 

 the spot haunted during the earlier part of the shooting 

 season by the " railway sports," for it is often possible to 

 shoot the three stags allowed by law without walking out 

 of sight of the metals. Yearly, as might be expected, a 

 multitude of immature stags are slaughtered in this way, 

 and the ears of passengers in the passing trains may be 

 filled with the report of guns, as if a small skirmish were 

 taking place ! 



From this form of shooting all the chief elements of 

 true sport are eliminated. The numbers of the hunters 

 (who camp in groups), their method of sitting down until 

 the deer come to them, and the ineradicable spirit of com- 

 petition which leads some men to shoot at everything they 

 see without much discrimination are all against the real 

 interests of sport. Besides, the volley-firing has been 

 going on every September and October for some years, and 

 in consequence this great herd has suffered in many ways. 

 In addition to the " railway sports," the Newfoundland 

 settlers often resort to Howley to obtain meat for the winter, 

 with the result that many does and two-year-old stags are 

 killed. The settlers' reason for going to Howley is both 

 obvious and natural, as all the meat secured can be placed 

 upon the train and transported with ease and comfort along 



