HARES. 95 



by at full run. He is bagged and the position taken again. It 

 might be added en passant that this ability to tumble a hare at full 

 speed with the shot-gun is no mean accomplishment. Bags of 

 twenty and thirty are sometimes made in this way in the course of 

 a morning. 



Of trapping and snaring there are so many methods and appli- 

 ances that it is unnecessary to attempt a detailed description of these 

 various engines of destruction. They are principally employed by 

 pot-hunters, and many make it their sole business during the win- 

 ter months. Coursing hares is carried on to some extent in the 

 West by garrison officers who are the owners of grey or deer- 

 hounds. The animal pursued is the "Jack Rabbit," whose dis- 

 proportionally great ear-development has earned him this title. Jack 

 being jackass in brief. The topographical-lay of the land is highly 

 favorable to this sport, but the legs of the hare frequently discom- 

 fit both horse and hound. 



The two Southern varieties of the hare tribe L. aquattcus and 

 L. palustris, are hunted a good deal by the darkies, but every man 

 has his way of catching the " varmint," and owing to their habits 

 they are not systematically pursued. Of the Great Arctic Hare 

 not much is known. It inhabits the white wastes and snowy soli- 

 tudes of the far North. Its companions are the snowy owl, the 

 Caribou, and the Musk Ox. Unlike the prairie marmot and bur- 

 rowing owl, however, who are fast friends, the rodent of the North 

 and the great white owl are not congenial comrades. In short the 

 bird loves the beast too fondly, and her caresses are generally car- 

 ried to such an extent that within an hour after the commencement 

 of one of their little seances, bunny finds himself in a semi-digested 

 state in the membranous stomach of Nyctea nivea. 



