The Portland daily press., 1862-07-15
COMMUNICATIONS.
tFrom our Regular Correspondent
Letter from the Backwoods of Maine.
No. 4-From Kineo 10 Kdtdhdin.

No. 4-From Kineo TO Kdtahdin.
DEAR PRESS "A living, breathing moose,
with the lake before him and his own wild
woods behind him for q refuge, is = far differ
ent animal from the stuffed skin we see in
Museums or from the stupid, sluggish brute in
the Menagerie. As we approached the one re-
ferred to in my hast letter, he turned and raised
his head from the alders near which he was
feeding, and gave sharp, quick look at the
canoes drawing near him. His head was lean
ed q little to one side as If he desired to con-
firm his suspicion of our errand by catching
some noise Of warning. But our stiffness gave
him no such hint, and as we came so slowly
and silently along, he seemed assured that he
had no reason to be alarmed, and then he re-
sumed his feeding. Three or four times he
raised his head to study our object, and after
each survey returned to his water-grass and
leaves. We had now drawn so near to him
that we could watch every motion he made,
and see distinctly his great mouth and nostrils,
The rich brown hair was glossy from the water
clinging to it after his recent plunge in the
stream, and, had it not been for the unsightly
hump on his back near the neck, he would
have been called beautiful creature. Strange
to say he had no horns, and we thought his
motions were consequently more rapid than
they could have been with huge antlers on his
head. But have been told by hunters that
the largest moose, with horns of the greatest
size, can easily find their way through thick
growth and with such rapidity that the noise
of their going is like the crash of falling trees
in an old forest. During the painful silence in
which we dared not move our bodies in the
slightest degree, or even whisper to each other
our admiration of the strength and beauty we
saw before US, and while we were waiting for
the time at which bullet would do its work
the best, we felt the canoe turn little to the
right. Hardy had it swung round twenty de-
grees before we heard low whistle from the
guide and, in an instant the moose gave a
frightened look and raised his head on his long
neck to its greatest height, and moved it quick
ly from side to side as If he was at once watch
ing us and looking for some way of escape. As
he stood before US he was of the height of an
ordinary horse or perhaps a little lower, and
of nearly the same form, with the slight excep-
ton of smaller legs and different hoofs. He
had also q broader nose and wider nostrils, al
most faring. But in the hasty glances we had
at his beauty and strength there was no time
to mark with accuracy, the points of resem-
blance or difference, for the signal from the
guide was enough to send the sharp crack of
the rifles echoing through the woods and two
bullets few into the side of the animal.
Wounded but plucky yet. Good stuff in that
moose; for see how he gave quick plunge up
the steep bank and passed through the alders
into the woods behind. A chase for us oil now,
and let 1t be rapid one, for there is no time
10 reload the rifles and one must be on his
track, The crimson stain On the veratrum and
the blue.joint grass was trail easy to follow,
for no hand could have marked path more
unmistakable.
And what of moose-meat?
Will it not be too much like telling hungry
Tantalus Of the delicious fruits just beyond his
reach?
Around our campfire, that night, there were
many wishes that the rich viands could be
shared with the friends at home, for we could
not believe that the severe labor in the canoes
gave to the moose-steak relish which was not
Its own. Halfway between a tender sirloin
beef-steak and roast pork, the moose-meat has
: q character Of itself, peculiar grain. This
grain is finer than that of beef and much
coarser than that of pork, greatly resembling
the venison of Eastern Maine. Our repast was
none the less inviting because it was eaten off
the dull tin plates Of our camp, for tin has
silver ring in the forests of pine. Who can
blame us for then remembering that some
where among our bulky knapsacks was bot
tie of currant wine which friend had given
to us as stirrup-cup not to be drunk at our
parting, but in the pleasantest part ofthe woods.
What wonder that our guides became commu-
NEGATIVE beyond their won't and told us hunt
ing stories, each one harder to believe than
the last, till one by one, we sought our blankets
and slept dreaming ofmodern Arabian nights
The great fire at our feet burned on till morn
ing, when at three we woke
1t was not yet sunrise, but still the cold, ear
ly dawn, when we cooked our breakfast and
were again satisfied that there is nothing like
moose-steak. Our course for the day was
difficult one. On our route we should have
two miles of carrying across Mud Pond~
portage. The South end Of this carry Il on