THE WHITETAIL DEER 



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attraction of its lonely freedom. Yet to camp out at all 

 implies some measure of this delight. The keen, fresh 

 air, the breath of the pine forests, the glassy stillness of 

 the lake at sunset, the glory of sunrise among the moun- 

 tains, the shimmer of the endless prairies, the ceaseless 

 rustle of the cottonwood leaves where the wagon is drawn 

 up on the low bluff of the shrunken river all these ap- 

 peal intensely to any man, no matter what may be the 

 game he happens to be following. But there is a wide 

 variation, and indeed contrast, in the qualities called for 

 in the chase itself, according as one quarry or another 

 is sought. 



The qualities that make a good soldier are, in large 

 part, the qualities that make a good hunter. Most impor- 

 tant of all is the ability to shift for one's self, the mixture 

 of hardihood and resourcefulness which enables a man 

 to tramp all day in the right direction, and, when night 

 comes, to make the best of whatever opportunities for 

 shelter and warmth may be at hand. Skill in the use 

 of the rifle is another trait; quickness in seeing game, 

 another; ability to take advantage of cover, yet another; 

 while patience, endurance, keenness of observation, res- 

 olution, good nerves, and instant readiness in an emer- 

 gency, are all indispensable to a really good hunter. 



If a man lives on a ranch, or is passing some weeks 

 in a lodge in a game country, and starts out for two or 

 three days, he will often do well to carry nothing what- 

 ever but a blanket, a frying-pan, some salt pork, and some 

 hardtack. If the hunting-ground is such that he can use 

 a wagon or a canoe, and the trip is not to be too long, 



