THE ELK-YAUD. 613 



this peculiarity, the Elk's progress is rather noisy, the crackling 

 sounds of the hoofs following each other in quick succession. 



Want of food is sometimes a danger to the Elk; hut the 

 animal is taught by instinct to clear away the snow, and to 

 discover the lichens on which it chiefly lives. The carnivorous 

 animals, however, are always fiercely hungry in the winter-time, 

 and gain from necessity a factitious courage which they do not 

 possess at other times. As long, however, as the frost lasts, the 

 Elk cares little for such foes, as it can distance them if they 

 chase it ever so fiercely, or oppose them if by chance it should 

 find itself in a place where there is no retreat. They do not like 

 to attack an animal whose skin is so thick and tough that, when 

 tanned, it will resist an ordinary pistol-bullet, and which has, 

 besides, an awkward knack of striking with its fore-feet like 

 a skilful boxer, knocking its foes over, and then pounding them 

 with its hoofs until they are dead. 



But when the milder weather begins to set in, the Moose is 

 in constant danger. The warm sun falling on the snow produces 

 a rather curious effect. The frozen surface only partially melts, 

 and the water, mixing with the snow beneath, causes it to 

 sink away from the icy surface, leaving a considerable space 

 between them. The " crust," as the frozen surface is technically 

 named, is quite strong enough to bear the weight of compara- 

 tively small animals, such as wolves, especially when they run 

 swiftly over it ; but it yields to the enormous weight of the Elk, 

 which plunges to its beUy at every step. 



The wolves have now the Elk at an advantage. They can 

 overtake it without the least difficulty ; and if they can bring it 

 to bay in the snow, its fate is sealed. They care little for the 

 branching horns, but leap boldly at the throat of the hampered 

 animal, whose terrible fore-feet are now powerless, and, by dint . 

 of numbers, soon worry it to death. Man, too, takes advantage 

 of this state of the snow, equips himself with snow-shoes, and 

 skims over the slight and brittle crust with perfect security. 

 An Elk, therefore, whenever abroad in the snow, is liable to 

 many dangers, and, in order to avoid them, it makes the curious 

 habitation which is called the Elk-yard. 



This winter home is very simple in construction, consisting of 

 a large space of ground on which the snow is trampled down by 

 continually treading it so as to form both a hard surface, on 



