ritish Columbia. Although specifically identical with the reindeer of
Europe, it has never yet been trained by Indians or Esquimaux to carry
their goods or draw their sleighs, as in Lapland and along the Arctic
shores of Asia.

The Wapiti, or Canadian Stag.

In the wilder parts of the Southern States of the Union, herds of the
magnificent Canadian stag or wapiti--popularly called the elk--range
amid the woods and over the prairies. Sometimes three or four hundred
are found in one herd, always led by an old buck, who exacts from them
the strictest obedience--compelling them to halt or move onward as he
judges necessary. Now the superb herd of long-horned creatures are seen
to wheel to the right or left, now to advance or retreat at the signal
he issues.

The wapiti is indeed a grand animal, growing to the height of the
tallest ox, and endowed with wonderful activity, as well as power. See
him as he dashes through the forest, his branched horns separating in
serpentine curves, six feet from tip to tip, laid close over his back as
he makes his way amid the trees. His head is of a lively,
yellowish-brown hue, the neck covered with reddish and black hairs, the
latter of considerable length, descending in a thick bunch below it.
They are among the fiercest of the deer tribe. The bucks often enter
into desperate contests with each other, battling--with their huge
horns--the fight frequently ending only with the death of the weaker
rival. Sometimes their horns have become so inextricably interlocked,
that both have fallen to the ground, and, unable to rise, have perished
miserably. They will frequently, when wounded, attack their human
assailants; and the bold hunter, if thus exposed with rifle unloaded to
their fierce assaults, will rue the day his weapon failed to kill the
enraged quarry at the first shot.

The wapiti, when pursued, will boldly plunge into the lake or broad
river, and breast the rapid current to avoid his foes; or will
occasionally, if hard-pressed, attack the bold hunter who ventures to
follow in his light canoe.

His cry is a sharp whistling sound, which rings through the air far and
wide on a calm day. He feeds on the branches of the trees and grass,
and in winter scrapes, with his powerful fore-feet, deep into the snow,
to obtain the lichens and dry herbage which grow beneath. His flesh for
several months in the year is dry and coarse, but his hide is much
prized by the Indians, who manufa