The Londonderry sifter. (South Londonderry, Vt.) 1883-19??, 1885-04-09
RUNNING DOWN THE DEER
How Apaches Hunt the AMI
NAL In the Far West.
Following the Game Until it is Exhausted
and then Cutting its Throat

A gentleman who has long resided
In the far west has given New York
reporter the following account of the
way Apache Indians hunt deer:
"As the deer starts away in its
fright at the sight Of the hunter or the
sound Of his gun, leaping 80 or 40 feet
at every bound. the Indian throws his
! gun on the ground. and with piercing
yells starts in pursuit. The deer at
irst leaves the hunter far behind--
putting forth its greatest efforts to get
beyond his reach as soon as possible.
But no matter how fast the deer may
reel off the miles between it and its
pursuer the trail it leaves is as plain to
the hunter as if it were marked in
chalk all the way. A deer is most
timid and suspicious of animals, and at
the same time possesses an amazing
amount of curiosity. After it has
placed distance between itself and the
immediate danger from which il fled
it stops and awaits further develop
ments. The Apache hunter well
knows this characteristic of the deer,
and he jogs along at five miles an
hour gait, never tagging, never stop
ping. At sight or sound of the ap-
preaching hunter the deer bounds off
again to run a mile or two and stop
again. 1t is these halts that are the
first fatal steps in the fleeting animals.
The halts are not long enough to give
the deer any beneficial rest, but on the
contrary give time for its limbs to
stiffen. At each new start the leaps
grow shorter, and the deer starts away
reluctantly and with decreasing ac,iv-
ity. The Indian jogs along on the
trai! maintaining a uniform rate of
speed. He can keep it up without
stopping for six hours if necessary.
After two or three hours running the
deer begins to look for water to quench
its thirst. When this stage of the chase
is reached the hunter knows that the
deer's doom IS sealed. After the deer
once drinks there is no hope for it. 1t
fills its parched stomach with water.
and, laden with the burden, its leaps
grow still shorter and are made labori-
ously. If before drinking the deer
made It's halts at intervals of two
miles, after drinking they are made
every mile. The relentless Indian pur.
suer never drinks While on the trail.
His tongue may hang white and swol-
len from his mouth, he may be choked
with dust, his stomach may be burn
ing up with heat, but not a swallow of
water does he allow to enter it. When
a deer drinks at a stream it swims to
the other side, and the Indian plunges
into the water at the same spot and
crosses. As he dashes across he scoops
up handful of water and carries it to
his mouth, where he holds it. rinsing
it about for few seconds, and then
elects it. If he is obliged to swim he
let's the water run in and out or his
mouth, but carefully prevents drop
from entering his stomach.
IAN hour or so after the Indian has
discovered that the deer has filled its
stomach with water he begins to ex-
anime the trail more carefully as he
runs, for he knows that it is then time
for him to find signs of the deer's ex-
haustion. A drop of blood here and
there along the trail indicates to the
Indian that the deer has fallen on its
knees at these spots; bunch of hair
hanging to projecting edge of rock
or sharp branch hanging low across
the trail prove that the deer's strength
has failed 80 that it cannot turn quick
ly out of the way of obstacles. When
these infallible signs of the deer's ap.
preaching doom are found by the
hunter he increases his speed for the
first time. He soon discovers the deer
and with yell of liendish triumph he
bounds forward. The cry startles the
failing animal to momentary burst
of speed. After leap or two it stops
AS if aroused to the fact that further
efforts to escape were futile, he turns
and faces its pursuer with all the de.
fiance its exhausted nature will permit.
In rare instances deer have been know
to run until they fell dead in their
tracks. When one stops and turns up.
on the human hound behind it the
latter keeps on at the top of his speed
The deer would give him warm re-
ception if it had the strength, but in
spite of its strong will the hunter
knows it is too near exhaustion to be
able to harm him, and he seizes il
bodily,throws it to the ground, and cuts
its throat. While the deer is alive, OIL
without a seconds delay, the Indian
cuts from behind its fore shoulder 9
large piece of meat, and, trotting tC
and fro constantly, he sucks the warm
blood from the meat, and now and
then eats small portion of it. After
sucking the meat dry he throws the
carcass across his shoulder if it is moi
to heavy. and starts back for his wig.
wan. If the deer is too heavy he takes
. portion of the meat and hides the
rest. He keeps constantly moving, fol
he fears that if he should stop to rest
| his limbs would become stiff and he