The writer has met but one man, however, 

 who has made a practice of hunting big game with 

 the .22 -calibre rifle. He is a citizen of Wrangel, 

 Alaska, and does all his shooting with this small 

 arm. He has been very successful, and has killed 

 both moose and caribou. The hunting method 

 he follows resembles that of the Indians. He 

 approaches very close for the first shot, and counts 

 on his accuracy wdth the small rifle doing the work 

 instead of its smashing power. The only draw- 

 back to this calibre is that in unskiUed hands it 

 would cause much suffering among the animals hit, 

 as the shot must be admirably placed to cause 

 instant death or disablement. 



The most distressing part of hunting is that 

 occasionally a wounded animal escapes and dies a 

 lingering death. The hunter should never allow 

 an animal to die in this manner. I have seen an 

 uneducated Indian travel mile after mile in pursuit 

 of a wounded animal for no other reason than to 

 end its sufferings. 



This crime happens less among real wilderness 

 hunters than among sportsmen; and it should be 

 carefully guarded against. 



When the hunting days are over, and the old gun 

 is resting above the fireplace, our ideas on hunting 

 chsmge. The successful kill becomes merely an 

 incident of the hunt; not a lasting pleasure. The 

 living memories are of the long, wild days in the 

 open, the glare of the Northern sun on ice-coated 



31 



