178 WILD SCENES AND WILD HUNTERS. 
any distance within a hundred yards. A shot which comes 
very close to the nail is considered as that of an indifferent 
marksman; the bending of the nail is, of course, somewhat 
better; but’ nothing less than hitting it right on the head is 
satisfactory. Well, kind reader, one out of three shots gene- 
rally hits the nail, and should the shooters amount to half a 
dozen, two nails are frequently needed before each can have 
a shot. Those who drive the nail have a further trial amongst 
themselves, and the two best shots out of these generally settle 
the affair, when all the sportsmen adjourn to some house, and 
spend an hour or two in friendly ‘intercourse, appointing, 
before they part, a day for another trial. This is techni- 
cally termed Driving the Nail. 
Barking off squirrels is delightful sport, and in my opinion 
requires a greater degree of accuracy than any other. I first 
witnessed this manner of procuring squirrels, whilst near the 
town of Frankfort. The performer was the celebrated Daniel 
Boone. We walked out together, and followed the rocky 
margins of the Kentucky River, until we reached a piece of 
flat land thickly covered with black walnuts, oaks and hicko- 
ries. As the general mast was a good one that year, squirrels 
were seen gambolling on every tree around us. My com- 
panion, a stout, hale and athletic man, dressed in a homespun 
hunting-shirt, bare-legged and moccasined, carried a long and 
heavy rifle, which, as he was loading it, he said had proved 
efficient in all his former undertakings, and which he hoped 
would not fail on this occasion, as he felt proud to show me 
his skill. The gun was wiped, the powder measured, the ball 
patched with six-hundred-thread linen, and the charge sent 
home with a hickory rod. We moved not a step from the 
place, for the squirrels were so numerous that it was unneces- 
sary to go after them. Boon pointed to one of these animals 
which had observed us, and was crouched on a branch about 
fifty paces distant, and bade me mark well the spot where 
the ball should hit. He raised his piece gradually, until the 
