400 
FOREST AND STREAM 
All In A Day 
A Story of Interest Relating the Events of A Very Unsuccessful Hunting Trip 
It was on a warm sunshiny morning, in middle 
October, real Indian summer weather, that I 
started out with my gun, on the trail of a deer, 
with the full intention that I would not go home 
empty-handed. But I was to be sorely disap¬ 
pointed, as the reader will see further on in the 
story. It was an ideal morning for my purpose. 
It had rained the night before and I could 
travel without the slightest sound, hence my high 
spirits. 1 entered the woods; there was not even 
a breath of wind. The silence was serene. I 
had traveled perhaps two miles, had got one 
stray rabbit strapped ito my belt. I stopped and 
sat down on a log to rest myself, roll a cigarette 
and enjoy a smoke, when on looking up I saw 
to my surprise .a deer feeding not fifty paces 
from me; he evidently did not hear my approach, 
and I was not long in bringing my gun to my 
shoulder. After a long deliberate aim I fired, but 
the sound of a loud report was not heard, only 
the snap of a hammer on a worthless shell came 
to my ears. Nevertheless it was loud enough for 
the deer to hear. He was standing in a small 
clearing, and in a few bounds reached the nearby 
woods, still not satisfied, as a deer is a very 
curious animal, that it was not a sound that he 
By Edward D. Fisher. 
had heard many times before, an ordinary sound, 
as of a twig snapping; he stopped a moment 
more to listen again, and looking in my direction 
saw me bring my gun again to my shoulder. I 
did not have time to fire, he was gone. I hunted 
in vain, but did not catch another glimpse of 
him. It was now nearing noon, and I had 
been traveling in the direction of an old trappers 
camp, some twenty miles from civilization, ten 
to a lonely house that stood in a small clearing 
from where I had started. 
I reached camp, went in and built a fire, ate 
my lunch that I had brought with me and after 
resting an hour or two, started for the return 
trip. 
I had not noticed the weather much, in fact 
I had not noticed at all but it suddenly came to 
me that it would storm before I got much 
further on my way. The sun was obscured, and 
up to that time I had been traveling by the sun, 
'having left my compass at home, a very careless 
thing to do, unless one is sure of his bearings, 
and I was not, without the aid of the sun, or a 
compass. 
What one will do in such a case as mine, and 
what he will forget is startling, as you will see. 
1 stopped and looked around a minute to see 
where I was, but saw nothing but strange trees. 
They seemed to all look alike; naturally they do 
to one who does not observe. In that same 
place another time I recognized several trees, 
that were landmarks, and I had observed them 
several times before. They were large trees 
with outstanding limbs and dead. I saw nothing 
that I knew, but one thing that I did know was 
that the wind was blowing from the southwest, 
or was when I had started. This was my only 
chance, and in the meantime the wind might 
have shifted, but I was willing to believe that it 
had not shifted since morning. I would take that 
chance anyhow, so if I would start in an easterly 
direction I would come out on an old road that 
ran from north to south, could not miss it, so I 
started. It was now nearing three o’clock, I 
traveled east as near as I could but did not come 
to the old road that I should have long since. 
Was it possible that I had passed it and did not 
know it? I could not believe that, nor did not; 
so I kept on walking toward the east. I felt 
something like a drop of water on my hand, and 
looking up saw that I would be in for a good 
(Continued on page 421.) 
Under the Old Dead Tree the Celery Grew. 
