126 THE AMERICAN MOOSE 



favor the moose, the hunter will sometimes leave 

 the caller, and going down the wind" one hundred 

 and fifty yards or so will stand ready to catch the 

 bull off his guard while making his precautionary 

 circle. 



A bull's ability to follow a straight course 

 through the woods to the supposed amorous mate 

 is a source of wonder to sportsmen. His approach 

 can often be noted by his responsive grunts, and 

 by the sound of his antlers vigorously beating 

 dead limbs of trees, making the greatest possible 

 noise, as if to show the female what a fine fellow 

 he is, and to intimidate all possible rivals. If he 

 is seen at some distance coming slowly across a 

 bog or other open space, the sportsman may 

 perhaps advance cautiously toward him, while the 

 caller remains behind to entice the bull along by 

 occasional low notes on the bark trumpet. 



The last twenty or thirty rods are likely to test 

 the caller's skill severely. The responding bull 

 is frequently suspicious or unduly deliberate, in 

 which case he must be coaxed by various pleas 

 and plaints, uttered in cooing tones, the caller 

 at last muffling the sound by holding the mouth 

 of the horn close to the ground. When other 

 expedients fail, the caller will sometimes "speak 

 bull," or imitate the bull's voice, to provoke the 



