NORTH AMERICA. 



79 



Moose. 



IS a solitary animal, and tiie most shy and wary of all the deer species. The Indians 



frequently hunt the moose, sometimes 

 •^sSf^'S'M C \ I, '■^ tracking him in the light snow till they ap- 



proach him, and then shooting him down 

 with their rifles ; and sometimes, when the 

 snow is deep, pursuing him on snow-shoes. 

 Notwithstanding the lengthened chase 

 which the moose can sustain on the 

 snow, he is both tender-footed and short- 

 winded, though several instances are re- 

 corded of his eluding pursuit for six suc- 

 cessive days. This animal is often killed 

 in the water by the Indians, as when they 

 are crossing the rivers or lakes, they never 

 make any resistance. They are the easi- 

 est to domesticate of any of the deer kind. 

 Their flesh is much relished, resembling 

 beef more than venison. These animals 

 grow to a very large size, occasionally weighing eleven or twelve hundred pounds. There is 

 a fine stuffed specimen in the museum at Albany, which measures more than six feet in height 

 over the shoulders. 



The Caribou or American Rein-deer (Cervun Tarandus)., of which there seem to be two 

 varieties, is probably a different species from the Lapland rein-deer. It is abundant in the 

 high northern latitudes of America, but has never been domesticated by the natives, or used for 

 draft. It is occasionally found in more southern regions, and is not unfrequently seen within 

 the boundary of Maine. We believe it is never met with in any other part of the Unhed States. 

 The barren ground caribou is much smaller than the woodland caribou, and is much more valu- 

 able for food. The barren lands would be wholly uninhabitable by the Indians, if it were not 

 for the immense herds of these deer that exist there. Of their horns they make fish spears and 

 hooks, and the hide dressed with the fur, is excellent for winter clothing, and supplies the 

 place of both blankets and feather bed. It also forms a soft and pliable leather, adapted for 

 moccasins, and when many skins are sowed together, they serve as tents. Ropes and thread 

 are also made of the tendons. Their flesh aiibrds excellent food, and is prepared in many 

 different forms. The caribou is taken by the Indians in immense numbers in snares and traps, 

 and great quantities are killed by the bow and arrow. 



The Common Deer [Cervus Virginianus) which is also called the Virginia deer, and close- 

 ly resembles the fallow deer of Europe, is 

 the smallest but most abundant species of 

 deer in North America. This animal is 

 remarkable for the slenderness and delicacy 

 of its form. Its long and slim neck, small 

 body, and almost pointed head, give the 

 animal the appearance of feebleness, which 

 is counteracted only by observing the ani- 

 mated eye, the playful movements, and the 

 admirable celerity of its course when at full 

 speed. It is said by hunters to evince a 

 strong degree of animosity towards ser- 

 pents, and especially to the rattlesnake, of 

 which it has an instinctive horror. In or 

 der to destroy one of these creatures, the 

 deer makes a bound into the air, and ahghts 

 upon the snake with all four feet brought 

 together in a square, and these violent 

 blows are repeated till the hated reptile is 

 destroyed. 



The Long Tailed Deer (Cervus leu- 

 curus) is tnought by Lewis and Clarke to be only a variety of ihe Virginia deer, being the same 



Common Deer. 



