280 
with his hunting-knife. Sometimes where a noble buck 
is the victim, and the hunter is impatient or inexperienced, 
terrible conflicts ensue on such occasions. Another mode, 
is to watch at night, in the neighbourhood of the salt-licks. 
These are spots where the earth is impregnated with 
saline particles, or where the salt-water oozes through the 
soil. Deer and other grazing animals frequent such places, 
and remain for hours licking the earth. The hunter 
secretes himself here, either in the thick top of a tree, or 
most generally in a screen erected for the purpose, and 
artfully concealed, likea mask battery, with logs or green 
boughs. ‘This practice is pursued only in the summer, or 
early in the autumn, in cloudless nights, when the moon 
shines brilliantly, and objects may be readily discovered. 
At the rising of the moon, or shortly after, the deer hay- 
ing risen from their beds, approach the lick. Such places 
are generally denuded of timber, but surrounded by it; 
and as the animal is about to emerge from the shade into 
the clear moon-light, he stops, looks cautiously around, 
and snuffs the air. Then he advances a few steps, and 
stops again, smells the ground, or raises his expanded 
nostrils, as if he ‘‘ snuffed the approach of danger in every 
tainted breeze.”? The hunter sits motionless, and most 
breathless, waiting until the animal shall get within rifle- 
shot, and until its position, in relation to the hunter and 
the light, shall be favourable, when he fires with an uner- 
ring aim. A few deer only can be thus taken in one 
night, and after a few nights these timorous animals are 
driven from the haunts which are thus disturbed. An- 
other practice is called driving, and is only practised in 
those parts of the country where this kind of game is 
scarce, and where hunting is pursued as an amusement. 
A large party is made up, and the hunters ride forth with 
their dogs. The hunting ground is selected, and, as it is 
pretty well known what tracks are usually taken by the 
deer when started, an individual is placed at each of those 
passages, to intercept the retreating animal. The scene of 
action being, in some measure, surrounded, small parties 
advance with the dogs from different directions, and the 
startled deer, in flying, most generally pass some of the 
persons who are concealed, and who fire at them as they 
pass. The e/k has disappeared. A few have been seen 
of late years, and some taken; but it is not known that 
any remain at this time, within the limits of the state.— 
The dear is seldom seen. This animal inhabits those parts 
of the country that are thickly wooded, and delights par- 
ticularly in cane-brakes, where it feeds in the winter on 
the tender shoots of the young cane. The meat is tender 
and finely flavoured, and is esteemed a great delicacy. 
Wolves are very numerous in every part of the state. 
There are two kinds: the common or black wolf, and the 
THE CABINET OF NATURAL HISTORY, 
prairie wolf. The former is a large fierce animal, and 
very destructive to sheep, pigs, calves, poultry, and even 
young colts. They hunt in large packs, and after using 
every stratagem to circumvent their prey, attack it with 
remarkable ferocity. Like the Indian, they always en- 
deavour to surprise their victim, and strike the mortal 
blow without exposing themselves to danger. They sel- 
dom attack man except when asleep or wounded. The 
largest animals, when wounded, entangled, or otherwise 
disabled, become their prey, but in general they only 
attack such as are incapable of resistance. They have 
been known to lie in wait upon the bank of a stream, 
which the buffaloes were in the habit of crossing, and, 
when one of those unwieldy animals was so unfortu- 
nate as to sink in the mire, spring suddenly upon it, 
and worry it to death, while thus disabled from resist- 
ance. Their most common prey is the deer, which they 
hunt regularly; but all defenceless animals are alike ac- 
ceptable to their ravenous appetites. When tempted by 
hunger, they approach the farm-houses in the night, 
and snatch their prey from under the very eye of the 
farmer; and when the latter is absent with his dogs, 
the wolf is sometimes seen by the females lurking about 
in mid-day, as if aware of the unprotected state of the 
family. Our heroic females haye sometimes shot them 
under such circumstances. The smell of burning assa- 
foetida has a remarkable effect upon this animal. If a 
fire be made in the woods, and a portion of this drug 
thrown into it, so as to saturate the atmosphere with 
the odour, the wolves, if any are within reach of the 
scent, immediately assemble around, howling in the most 
mournful manner; and such is the remarkable fascina- 
tion under which they seem to labour, that they will 
often suffer themselves to be shot down rather than quit 
the spot. Of the very few instances of theirattacking human 
beings of which we have heard, the following may serve 
to give some idea of their habits: In very early times, a 
negro man was passing in the night, in the lower part of 
Kentucky, from one settlement to another. The distance 
was several miles, and the country over which he travel- 
led entirely unsettled. In the morning his carcass was 
found entirely stript of flesh. Near itlay his axe, cover- 
ed with blood, and all around, the bushes were beat 
down, the ground trodden, and the number of foot-tracks 
so great, as to show that the unfortunate victim had fought 
long and manfully. On pursuing his track, it appeared 
that the wolves had pursued him for a considerable dis- 
tance; he had often turned upon them and driven them 
back. Several times they had attacked him, and been re- 
pelled, as appeared by the blood and tracks. He had kill- 
ed some of them before the final onset, and in the last con- 
