170 THE STILL-HUNTER. 



there are very thick trunks behind which to move. 

 Going down hill one is apt to think himself unseen 

 because he does not see the deer. But the deer, 

 meanwhile, sees his legs. 



So you conclude, then, that you will go down the 

 back side of the hill and get into the valley in that 

 way. This is well enough ; but stop a moment. 

 That valley is some three hundred yards in width at 

 the bottom. It is covered more or less with bushes 

 higher than your head. There are indeed plenty of 

 openings in all directions, the bushes being only scat- 

 tered clumps. But when you get down there all will 

 look alike. Before you can find your deer he may 

 move or get into cover, and while looking for him 

 you may start another one or two that you have not 

 seen from the hill. So you see that, everything else 

 being right such as the wind, quiet walking, etc. 

 you might about as well have been in the valley at 

 first as to have taken all the trouble to climb this 

 high hill. And such you will find to be the general 

 rule where deer are at all plenty and the low ground 

 is suitable for walking. Of course if the low ground 

 is brushy, and especially if noisy, or if it is too bare 

 of cover to protect you from a deer's eyes, or if 

 you cannot get the wind in your face, you should 

 keep the high ground. And where deer are very 

 scarce the high ground is best, as your chances of 

 seeing one at all are so slender that you need every 

 advantage to see it. In hunting among isolated 

 clumps of thick bushes with good openings between 

 for easy walking and a view of a hundred or a hun- 

 dred and fifty yards in most directions, one has, even 

 on level ground, a fair chance to catch deer on foot 

 feeding before they see him. This is in fact about 



