126 MAMMALIA. 



glides silently on, for the Deer may be gazing at it from the bank, 

 standing motionless and silent. Indeed, he is often seen, not more 

 than a couple of boat lengths away, before any sound has forewarned 

 them of his presence. 



Bright moonlight nights are undesirable because the animal can 

 then detect the outline of the boat, and is apt to take to the woods 

 without delay. 



Let us note the course of events in an ordinary floating expe- 

 dition, premising only that the sportsman is somewhat of a novice. 

 Unless there is direct water communication between the camp and 

 the place selected for the hunt, the party eat an early supper and 

 set out at once in order to reach the spot before the gathering 

 darkness obscures the way. The guide, placing the boat upon his 

 sturdy shoulders, takes the lead, following some old trail or blazed 

 line, or, if the spot be unfrequented, finds his way by certain fea- 

 tures of mountain or valley that are familiar landmarks to his 

 practised eye. The sportsman follows, carrying the jac/.' and gun, 

 as well as a bottle of tar oil for protection against insects. 



The start is well timed, for the outlines of near objects have 

 already become indistinct, and the shades of dusk are fast blending 

 the dim forms of the evergreens, transforming the coniferous 

 forest into a uniform mass of darkness, when they emerge upon 

 the open shore of a small and shallow lake and launch the canoe in 

 its black but unruffled water. Night is upon them, and with it the 

 flies and mosquitoes. Tar oil is applied freely to face and hands, 

 the jack is lit and placed, and they step quietly into the boat and 

 move noiselessly off, — the sportsman on the front seat, his over- 

 coat buttoned up to his chin, and his feet crowded uncomfortably 

 under the bow, one on each side of the jack-stick ; the guide 

 astern, silently plying his paddle. The nearest marsh-bordered 

 bay is soon reached, and as the light skims along the bank, falling 

 in turn upon clumps of bushes, old logs and stumps, and the dark 

 cone-like forms of the young spruce and balsams, the sportsman's 



