78 THE TRAPPER'S ART. 



each, of a foot in width, and weigh from forty-five to seventy 

 pounds. Under the throat of both sexes there is a tuft of 

 coarse, bristly hair, a foot or more in length, attached to a 

 sort of dewlap. The breeding season of the Moose is in May. 

 At the first birth, but a single one is brought forth ; after- 

 wards two are brought forth annually. Moose, like the com- 

 mon deer, frequent rivers and lakes in summer, to feed on the 

 roots of the water-lily and other aquatic plants ; and retire in 

 winter to the high ridges, to browse on the twigs of the striped 

 maple and birch. Their height enables them to crop the 

 overhanging branches of large trees ; and their weight and 

 strength enable them to bend down small trees and slide over 

 them with their bodies, stripping the bark and twigs to the 

 very extremities. Like the common deer, they form "yards" 

 by treading down the snows, and enlarge them as fast as they 

 strip the trees and require more. In these " yards " there are 

 commonly found a male, female, and two fawns. 



Moose are taken in winter by the " long chase " on snow- 

 shoes, and in summer they are shot at their feeding-places in 

 marshes. They are, however, very wary and timid ; and 

 their sense of smelling is so acute that the greatest caution 

 is necessary on the part of the hunter in approaching them. 

 The males in the rutting season are very dangerous, and will 

 attack, and if possible kill, any persons who approach them. 

 Moose can easily be taken either in summer or winter by set- 

 ting steel-traps in their haunts, as they are not cunning, and 

 enter a trap as readily as an ox or a horse. The trap should 

 be a strong one of about forty pounds' weight, and it should 

 be fastened to a clog of sixty pounds' weight. 



The flesh of the Moose is much esteemed by hunters and 

 trappers, being generally preferred to that of the common 

 deer. The marrow in the large bones is an excellent substi- 

 tute for butter. 



