r sometimes digs a trench in the snow and lies in wait for the
unsuspecting deer. When he shoots one, he immediately skins it, but
takes care to leave the head attached to the skin; then ramming a pole
into the head at the neck, he drapes the skin over the pole and getting
down on all fours places the skin over his back and pretends to be a
caribou. Thus he will approach the band, and should he tire of
crawling along on his hands and knees he will even lie down to rest in
sight of the deer, but he always takes care to keep down wind. In such
a guise it is not hard to come within gun-range of the band.

"A very good thing to carry when hunting deer in the woods is a bunch
of tips of deer horns, each about four inches long and all suspended
from the back of the hunter's belt; as the horn tips will then tinkle
together at every movement of the hunter, and make a sound as though
the horns of a distant band of closely marching caribou were striking
together. In that way, my son, it is easier to approach, and when you
are ready to fire, look carefully for a large, white, fat doe, and then
let drive at her; for bands of deer are never led by bulls, but always
by does and usually by a barren one. If you shoot the leader first,
the chances are the band will stand waiting for one of their number to
lead the way. Remember, too, that deer are never so frightened at
seeing or hearing you as they are at scenting you, for the merest whiff
of man-smell will drive them away. When they first scent you they will
take two or three jumps into the air with their heads held high, their
nostrils extended, and their eyes peering about; then swinging round,
they will gallop off and later settle down into a great high-stepping,
distance-covering trot that will carry them many miles away before they
halt. There is still another good way to hunt caribou on a lake and
that is to put on a wolf skin and approach on all fours, but it is not
so successful as when the hunter wears a caribou skin."

TRAILING IN THE SNOW

Breakfast over, we slipped on our snowshoes and set out to follow a
mass of tracks that led southward. It was easy going on a beaten
trail, a blind man could have followed it; and that reminds me of
something I have failed to tell you about winter trailing in the
Northland. In winter, the men of the Northland don't trail human
beings by scent, they trail them by sight or sometimes by touch. Sight
trailing, of course, you un