THE GUN AT HOME AND ABROAD 
Formerly the distribution of the moose extended further to the south than 
at present. At one time it “ ranged throughout nearly the whole of New 
England and New York as far south as the Catskills ” (Madison Grant), and 
it formerly existed in Prince Edward Island. In the west its occurrence in 
Colorado and Oregon, where heads have been found, is somewhat doubtful. 
Moose and caribou are always changing their ranges; for instance, the 
whole of the northern and wooded parts of Ontario and North-Eastern 
Quebec were, prior to 1886, a woodland caribou range; now this region, 
which embraces the districts of Lakes Tamiskameng and Kippewa and the 
country as far north as Abatibi, is a favourite moose country, whilst 
caribou are almost extinct. So, too, the Kenai Peninsula, now containing 
a great stock of moose, was said to be devoid of moose prior to 1886. 
These ranges probably always contained moose, but both by increase 
and migration, as well as the abundance of food supply, they have in recent 
years been found most agreeable to the larger deer. The moose has a vast 
range in the Northern American continent, extending as it does from 
Cape Breton to the mouth of the Mackenzie, and the Kenai Peninsula in 
Alaska. On the eastern side it goes as far north as Labrador, one having 
been killed at Hamilton Inlet a few years ago. Its southern boundaries 
are Maine, Minnesota, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming and Southern British 
Columbia. In all the great forest areas north of this it is abundant, par- 
ticularly in New Brunswick, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, Northern Alberta, 
British Columbia, Keewatin and the Mackenzie and Peace River basins. 
Perhaps nowhere are moose so abundant as at the headwaters of the 
Liard, Peace, Stickine and Yukon Rivers and all their collateral branches. 
Indians have told me that moose literally swarm at the head of the Liard 
River and this is practically confirmed by such recent travellers as Messrs 
Pike, Andrew Stone and Count Hoy os, who are amongst the few hunters 
who have penetrated there. Mr Andrew Stone thinks that the ideal moose 
ranges of the North-West are the Cassiar Mountains, the Upper Liard 
River, the country round the headwaters of the Macmillan, Stewart and 
Peel Rivers, as well as the Porcupine and the head of the Colville Rivers in 
Alaska. 
In many cases the increased range of the moose, particularly in the 
North-West, is due to the dying-out of the Indians. This is notably the 
case in the Kenai and the headwaters of the Stickine, Liard and Nahanna 
Rivers where these animals were formerly severely hunted, yet are now 
very abundant. In Canada the situation is somewhat different, for here 
240 
