THE CARIBOU. 79 



Even the males of the giant Moose have frequent and 

 deadly combats. 



It may not be out of place to state here that the Moose 

 has frequently been vanquished by the buck of the Virginia 

 species. The contiict soon ends when the red buck is a 

 spike-horn. 



The Woodland Caribou, although somewhat more shy 

 and wary than its smaller congener of the Arctic wastes, 

 is, nevertheless, under certain conditions, a very stupid 

 animal. During the periodical migrations of a herd, they 

 are easily killed in vast numbers by taking advantage of 

 the wind, and shooting them as they pass along. They are, 

 also, frequently surprised crossing rivers or lakes that 

 intersect their line of march, when they become an easy 

 prey to hunters in canoes. 



In winter they are often seen upon the ice on inland 

 lakes. On such occasions they can be easily shot, as referred 

 to elsewhere in this paper, providing they neither see nor 

 smell the hunter. The instant, however, they catch the 

 scent of their hidden foe, they vanish like a streak of light. 

 I have heard it said by those who have seen them scudding 

 over the ice, like shadows, that in an incredibly short space 

 of time they apjjeared to the naked eye not larger than Rab- 

 bits. 



They are shot sometimes at long range by hunters 

 on the barren plains which they frequent, in New Bruns- 

 wick, Newfoundland, the Province of Quebec, and other 

 places. By a keen and careful hunter, many may be thus 

 killed out of a herd. 



It is much more difficult tq approach a single Wood- 

 land Caribou than it is to stalk a herd. When two or 

 three are killed in a herd by a concealed hunter, the 

 remainder seem to become completely demoralized, losing, 

 for the time being, their natural instinct of self-preserva- 

 tion; and instead of fleeing, as they would from a vis- 

 ible or otherwise perceptible enemy, like a solid square 

 of heroes in battle, they stand their ground, inspired, 

 however, by a different and unaccountable impulse, until 



