450 
[March 23, 1907. 
tions of those who knew; kept my eyes and ears 
open, and learned as much as I could from doing 
the actual thing. Therefore, I have no inten¬ 
tion of setting forth my individual ideas on the 
subject, but only wish to propound those prin¬ 
ciples which I know to be thoroughly sound. 
The chief factor in still-hunting is a quick, sure 
eye, one accustomed to the woods and able to detect 
and identify the least motion far or near; the 
flirt of a tail, motion of an ear, or whatever 
portion of the animal is visible, no matter how 
neutral the background or how deceiving the 
conditions. The slower one walks when hunt¬ 
ing the better. At every step a careful survey of 
the ground ahead and on both sides should be 
made, for to relax vigilance, even momentarily, 
often signals defeat. I have found it an ad¬ 
mirable plan when hunting with an expert woods¬ 
man, to let him go in advance and follow directly 
in his footsteps. Thus, if he makes a false step 
or cracks a stick, the second person is warned, 
and.in dry weather it is much easier to advance 
quietly by following this method. 
The next essential is to be properly shod and 
to know how to handle one’s feet. Last autumn 
I hunted almost entirely in tennis shoes when 
the weather was fair and found them very 
serviceable. Best of all footgear, however, are 
soft moccasins worn with overshoes. Such an 
outfit, combined with heavy stockings, keeps the 
feet warm, dry and comfortable; but there should 
never be so great a thickness between the sole 
and the ground as to prevent one from instantly 
feeling the pressure of a twig, which otherwise 
would be broken before the weight was relaxed. 
Success in still-hunting depends largely on the 
weather, and on general conditions. The most 
favorable time to be abroad is after a rain, when 
the leaves are thoroughly soaked underfoot and 
dripping overhead. A high wind likewise 
deadens sound, although deer usually appear more 
nervous on a blustery day, as though the crack¬ 
ing boughs put them on the alert and aroused 
their wilder instincts. In coming up over a knoll 
or in hunting along a hardwood ridge, where 
the leaves are dry and noisy, the above con¬ 
ditions invariably prove helpful. Strangely 
enough, however, and illustrating well the vicissi¬ 
tudes of sport we may chance to bag the largest 
deer of the season on some clear, quiet mid¬ 
autumn day, when the weather seems directly 
opposed to success; but in such case we may well 
enough deem the capture the result of good luck. 
Too heavy a rifle is a decided encumbrance 
when still-hunting. I speak from experience, al¬ 
though I would not at present exchange this rifle 
for another of less weight. It has proved too 
serviceable a weapon to be thus discarded and, 
moreover, holds a fair record which endears it to 
me. Doubtless the three-barrel gun is excellent 
for Adirondack use, and with it we are never 
embarrassed by the proximity of ruffed grouse or 
by having a wounded deer jump cover and escape 
when a charge of buckshot would have prevented 
such an occurrence. 
Camping out in a good game country, with a 
few select companions and a full larder, is an 
experience not soon to be forgotten. We receive 
a new influence and learn something of primeval 
force and integrity. Moreover, the complete 
abolishment of all artificial interests, economies 
and strategies is a new revelation and fits another 
stone in the foundation of that which is genuine 
and wholesome. Surely, a bed of balsam boughs, 
a blazing fire and a group of genial hearts, tend 
to make life particularly agreeable. We can eat, 
drink and be merry in good truth. Care vanishes 
and we gain a mental and physical poise that 
can be reached only by living in the open air. 
One clear mid-autumn morning found our party 
ready to start on a three days’ camping trip. 
Reuben, one of the best woodsmen of the Adiron¬ 
dack region, had carefully slipped his “creepers” 
and hunting knapsack under the seat of the buck- 
board, and 1 felt that the gods were indeed go¬ 
ing to be propitious. I hold Rube’s “creepers” 
in marked respect. 1 hey are symbolical of suc¬ 
cess and are better than Mercury’s famed talaria. 
Our stock of blankets, cooking utensils and pro¬ 
visions was ample and left little room in the 
wagon for the human portion' of the outfit. C. 
appeared carrying a few stray garments and one 
or two books on bird lore; the “Naiad” was 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
more respectable and brought a bag, while I had 
a disreputable bundle, and in the line of firearms 
took a three-barrel gun, 12-gauge, rifle bore .38- 
55, and a .40-65 rifle. 
Our spirits rose high at the prospect before 
us. Clusters of gold and scarlet leaves hung 
like ripe fruit amid the maples, while the birch 
and beech appeared to wear a halo of sunlight. 
They suggest a richness of beauty that gratifies 
the eye and refreshes every sense. We love this 
smooth and rough barked deciduous tribe crested 
with mellow and flaming plumes. It is, more¬ 
over, a memorable occasion, when such a morn¬ 
ing we look deep into- drenched valleys and where 
the sun has not yet penetrated, and which give 
out a fragrant coolness. Dim immeasurable dist¬ 
ances of liquid shade seem to float and glimmer 
through the leaves. We breathe a pure, auroral 
ozone, mingled with the sweetness of swamp 
and pine. Our thoughts go out to meet the sun 
upon the hilltops. 
A drive of seven miles over a good road, fol¬ 
lowed by a half-mile walk, brought us to camp. 
The country here had been lumbered and was 
intersected with log roads which afford excellent 
hunting grounds. We had passed through five 
miles or more of virgin timberland, so we were 
not completely surrounded by those regions which 
bear the indelible wounds of the ax. Everett 
soon had a fire going and several venison steaks 
filling the air with an aroma that well suited our 
mood. Besides a large lean-to, there was an in¬ 
closed dining room for stormy weather, and a 
small hunting lodge, where Reuben and Everett 
took up their abode. From the open camp which 
was ours one overlooked a shallow ravine, at the 
bottom of which a spring supplied us with plenty 
of cold pure water. 
Reuben having donned his “creepers,” we set 
out about three o’clock for an afternoon hunt 
down the tote road. I left the Naiad and C. 
arguing mildly together, it being one of their 
favorite recreations. 
Through the woods came faintly to- our ears 
the lisping of chickadees and the loud cackling 
of a pileated woodpecker, while again bluejays 
rang their bell-notes or screamed harshly. The 
voices of the jays affected our hearing as their 
azure plumage, seen amid crimson autumn leaves, 
affects our sight. They form an integral part of 
the season; we listen for them as we listen for 
the first robin or bluebird. 
The country through which we hunted was 
comparatively level, and the road being free of 
undergrowth, we advanced quietly in spite of 
the thickly fallen leaves. An occasional breeze in 
the sunlit treetops rustled a prelude of coming 
frost and fleecy clouds sailed the heavens. We 
walked very slowly and scanned the ground care¬ 
fully at every step, but there were few fresh 
signs in the road, although the runways looked 
well traveled. We had gone perhaps two miles 
when my attention was arrested by a gentle thud, 
thud, and a cracking of twigs. I looked in the 
direction of the sound and about fifty yards off 
through an open stretch of woods saw a deer 
loping easily along, parallel to our position. I 
touched Reuben, who- was ahead, and we halted. 
At the same moment the animal perceived us and 
came to a standstill. 
“What it is?” I whispered. 
“A doe, I presume,” was the not very en¬ 
couraging answer. 
“No, it isn’t, I can see little horns. I’m sure 
it’s a yearling buck.” 
The deer stood broadside, offering a fine shot. 
After a moment’s pause, Rube made up his mind. 
"Give it to- him!” he said, and taking a full bead 
on the center of the shoulder, I fired. As the 
deer bolted, we saw a small hemlock rock 
violently some distance off and then all was still 
again. Five minutes later we found our quarry; 
a good yearling, just shed out and in prime con¬ 
dition, with horns reaching the large proportions 
of four inches. Rube, however, smiled approval 
and I felt satisfied. 
The sun’s rays were rose-tinged when at last 
we bent our steps toward camp and supper. The 
western sky flamed redly through the balsam 
spires, and mists were gathering overrthe swamps. 
Life at such times seems strangely sweet; one 
breathes in the spirit of the wilderness. Such 
an evening about a week later made an indelible 
impression on me. With a companon I was row¬ 
ing along the shore of a lake just at the hour of 
sunset. Dead leaves, "yellow and black and pale 
and hectic red,” floated on the water’s surface, 
and once or twice I saw a trout roll lazily up in 
a thick mat of leaves and snatch a fly. As 
twilight settled, a pale violet sheen spread over 
the water, while in the west a low range of clouds 
became gradually illumined with clear saffron 
light, which in turn was faintly mirrored on the 
lake. _ Northward drifted flakes of thin fiery cloud 
and just above the horizon,, sunk as it were in 
the waves of an emerald sea and hung like a 
pendant on the breast of evening, shone Venus— 
white, dilating and resplendent. A rich oriental 
atmosphere seemed to stir in the cold pulses of 
the north. One dreamed of old temples in the 
desert; of cool groves and trickling fountains 
and drowsy mysteries, until the scene itself was 
transformed into a dim tropical lagoon. The 
purple waters, the blazing sky and at length dark¬ 
ness, fragrant with the breath of Indian sum¬ 
mer ! It is strange indeed, how the vortex of the 
unreal occasionally finds semblance in the living 
properties of what we know to be a natural 
world. 
On reaching camp after the conclusion of our 
hunt, we found it deserted, but a half hour later 
C. and the Naiad turned up, and preparations 
for the evening repast were commenced with 
haste. 
"Ready for some more venison?” asked 
Everett, looking in the door. We gazed at each 
other and shook our heads, whereupon, to en¬ 
courage us, Rube remarked, “You people can’t 
eat anything at all.” Fortunately, we were not 
disposed to agree with him. The night was mild 
and a crescent moon glittered high in the zenith. 
Lying in the open camp one could see it drifting 
westward beyond the flames that leaped gaily 
from our comfortable hearth., Presently the 
Naiad read aloud to us and we fell into a very 
peaceful state. Sparks went snapping and crack¬ 
ling upward and the fire shed a genial light on 
the surrounding trees. A short tirrte later, Rube 
and Everett joined us. Rube told us amusing 
stories about a fake panther hunt—which he re¬ 
lated as follows: 
“It happened when I was guidin’ a party of 
New York sports, and one of ’em, a young 
feller, was crazy to kill a panther, so we thought 
we’d fix things up an’ give him some fun. A 
couple of the boys got the rig planned, an’ when 
night came we were all ready, with two candles 
set out in the woods, and the blood of a deer 
makin’ a good trail beyond where they stood. 
After supper everybody was sittin’ around the 
fire talkin’ panther, and the young feller was 
pretty keen about gettin’ his oar in. All of a 
sudden just behind the camp somethin’ let out 
a roarin spittin’ scream that made every man 
jump clean off the ground. Then somebody hol¬ 
lered, ‘Git a gun! Git a gun!’ and another one 
yelled, ‘Look at his eyes ! I kin see his eyes!’ 
“Well sir, then the dogs started up an’ the 
sport let blaze at the candles! Of course, they 
went out, because a man was all ready and pulled 
the string when he fired. Things were pretty 
well stirred up, I kin tell you ! 
“ 'Let them dogs loose ! Let them dogs loose!’ 
the young feller kept roarin’, an’ when we did, 
an they found the trail, you ought to have seen 
them snorts ! 1 hey had it bad an’ wanted to go 
right after the panther that minute.” 
Here Rube tittered and gave a concluding 
cough. 
“He never knew the difference, an’ I’ll bet he 
thinks he wounded that panther ter this day. 
Hee! hee!” 
Better than this story, however, was the nar¬ 
rative of a bear hunt in which he had taken sole 
part during the previous autumn, and which be¬ 
ing long and intricate, has in detail passed my 
memory. At any rate, he wounded the animal, a 
very large specimen not for from our present 
camping ground, and followed it for two weeks 
before giving up the chase. Day after day he 
went back and took up the trail as only a woods¬ 
man can do, spending several nights in the open 
and steadily dogging every move that the animal 
made. Some one heard of a good bear-dog, and 
finally it appeared on the scene of action looking 
like a wooly calf and running deer at every op- 
