The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1884-03-27
HOW APACHES HUNT DEER.

letter before l trouble you with another.
WILL.
HOW APACHEs HUNT DEER.
Running Down The Animal With Their
Tireless Lope.
An .frontiersman tells New Yorl,
San reporter how the Apache Indian
hunts the deer. lie says:
when an Apache hunter goes out for
hunt he dispcnses with even the scent
attire lie assumes in his ordinary daily
walk in life. He needs no dog, for his
quick eye detects the trail of the deer az
readily as the hounds does, no matter
how keen its scent. On the trail he fol
lows it as silently as q shadow, for he
knows he will soon come in sigh, of the
game, either feeding or lying at rest
among the bushes. Whc: he sights the
deer he steals TO within safe gunshot. II
the dcer's head is turned away from the
hunter, the latter, first taking aim, shuf-
iies his foot on the ground. If the deer
is lying down it springs to its feet at the
sound, and wheels around facing the di :
rection from which the sound came. If
il is standing, it turns around quickly.
The Apache hunter is always desirous of
killing a deer by shooting it as nearly in
the centre Of the forehead as he can. So,
when the deer turns toward him he fires
at that spot. His aim is rarely Ut fault,
but sometimes the deer is quicker to dis
cover the cause of its alarm than the hun.
ter is to fire, and turns for safety in tlight.
An Apachc's gun, also, not infrcguen,ly
misses fire, and the deer fees OH the wings
Of the wind. To permit a deer to ESCAPE
after il is once discovered is something
no Apache hunter is expected to do, and
it is against their code TO fire The second
time. :he Aunter, falling TO XII. his
game Mt the first attempt, must run it
down, and it is very rare that he fails in
this chase. AS the deer starts away in
its flight, leaping from twenty to thirty
feet at time, tue Indian drops his gun,
and, with hideous yells, starts in pursuit.
The deer at first leaves the hunter far be.
hind, putting forth its greatest efforts to
that end. But its trail is as plain TO the
Indian as the turnpike road is to white
man, and he follows. AS is its nature,
as soon as the deer is out of sight and
sound of threatening danger, it stops and
waits for developments. The sight of tho
IL,
Every halt Of this kind tells against the
deer, for it is not ofsuflicicnt length TO
give it any beneficial rest, and NJ every
new start it is sitter and less active.
The Indian never hats. There are run
ners among the Apaches who can run for
twenty-four hours without stop, and
can make their five miles every hour of
the time. After the deer has run for two
or three hours, its thirst prompts it to
make for the nearest water This the
relentless hunter knows 70 be inevitable,
and when the deer reaches this stage of
the chase the Indian considers the VIC
tory won. There is no hope for the deer
after it stops to drink, for it takes into its
parched stomach all it can Having Ia
dened itself with this weight Of water the
deer is unable to take long leaps, and
can not extend its run between haits
more than half the former distance.
The Indians tongue may hang swollen
and white from his mouth, and his mouth
be as dry as dust, and his stomach burn
ing up with heat, but he never stops 20
drink. He scoops handful of water
from the stream as he dashes across it,
and carries it to his mouth, where he
holds it moment and elects it without
taking swallow. If he is obliged to
swim, he lets the water run in his mouth,
but keeps it from his stomach.
"After running an hour or so, after the
deer has quenched its thirst, the Indian
knows it is time to find some evidence of
the animals weakening. These he is
sure to find along the trail, in the shape
of blood spots on some rocl: where the
deer has tumbled on its knees, or q patch
of hair clinging to some sharp projection,
showing that the dccr's strength has
failed so that il cannot turn quickly out
of the way of obstacles. Now the Indian
increases his speed. He knows that the
deer's race is run. In time he overtakes
the deer, which is now Looping secbly
along A yell startles it into momen-
tary burst of speed. Then, rs if appre.
ciating the fact that il were useless to
prolong the race, it stops and turns with
all the defiance its exhausted nature can
assume, and awaits the approach Of the
hunter. Sometimes, however, the deer
runs until j: drops dead or dying in it's
tracks. If i turns upon the Indian, the
latter keeps right on at full speed. He
knows the deer can do him 10 harm, its
inclination to the contrary notwithstand-
ing. He seizes it boldly, throws it TO
the ground with ease. and cuts its throat.
Without moments delay, whether the
deer is dead or dying, the Indian cuts
from behind the fore shoulder a large
piece of meat. lie sucks the warm blood
from it and devours the morscl, keeping
constantly on the move. IF the carcass
Of the deer is not too heavy, he throws
it across his shoulders and starts imme.
diately for home. He does not rest a
moment, for fear of becoming too stiff to
make the return trip. If the deer is too
heavy for him to carry, he cuts out the
choicest parts, hides the remainder in a
secure place, and brings in the former.
Ia this case another member Of the tribo
is selected to take his back track on the
arrival of the hunter in camp, and bring
in the venison left behind.
"if deer is young an Apache hunter
will run it down within distance OF
sixty miles, but they have been known
to prolong chase for 100 miles. The
course taken is always devious and cir
cuitous, and may end within mile or
so of the starting place"
Mr.. S. II. Farrow tells Of how 81
dog and rabbit on his farm got them
selves into queer scrape. The rabbi,
ran into hole under lot Of roots and
tl, - Of r,sI>t