THE WOLF OF MUSKOKA 175 



" I have heard them come around camp very 

 close, growling so savagely as to make one almost 

 reluctant to leave the camp-fire and go into the 

 darkness unarmed. Once I was camped in the 

 fall near a lonely little lake in the mountains, by 

 the edge of quite a broad stream. Soon after 

 nightfall three or four wolves came around camp 

 and kept me awake by their sinister and dismal 

 howling. Two or three times they came so close 

 to the fire that I could hear them snap their jaws 

 and growl, and at one time I positively thought 

 that they intended to try to get into camp, so 

 excited were they by the smell of the fresh meat. 

 After a while they stopped howling ; and then all 

 was silent for an hour or so. I let the fire go out 

 and was turning into bed when I suddenly heard 

 some animal of considerable size come down to 

 the stream nearly opposite to me and begin to 

 splash across, first wading, then swimming. It 

 was pitch dark and I could not possibly see, but 

 I felt sure it was a wolf. However, after coming 

 half-way over it changed its mind and swam back 

 to the opposite bank ; nor did I see or hear 

 anything more of the night marauders." 



Though personally I have never hunted the 

 wolf with hounds, yet I understand from those who 



