The herald., 1896-01-05

uOlu tut ChTuS. all OInCA eonO
saves itself by retreating into remote
wilds. But the deer laughs at mod
crate degree of civilization. Give him
half chance and he will hold his own
ages after the elk, moose and cariboo
have gone from the region forever
This is due mainly to his extraordi-
nary acuteness, but it often seems as
If he dealt the cards to suit himself
and stole your deal about every other
time. Sportsmen are not in the habit
of writing sbou such days. The days
we hold the cards are the most cheer
full to the soul and linger best in mem-
ory. But some of the days when the
cards ran the other way on ground
where deer we're plenty and with the
weather and all favorable. though an
noying at the time, are quite amusing
to look back upon.
1t was early summer on the penin-
sula of Mexico known as Lower Cali
fornia, the time when the deer are here
in best condition and the time also
vhen n they skulk the most in the heav-
lest chapparal of the hills and show
themselves the least on open ground.
While in many respects the best time
of the year to hunt anything but does,
it is the time that requires the most
intimate knowledge of the habits of the
game, the most patient and skillful
work and the very keenest eyesight
that man can develop. Much of the
chapparal is the densest brush that
grows, mass of sparkling light where
the sun plays full upon wavy sea of
little bright green leaves, depth of
somber shade where it lies on the
darker slope. Some kinds are COM
bination of both; shining light upon
the top where the sun strikes, and
deep shade below where the light is cut
of by millions of fine leaves. Some of
this is waist high, some shoulder high
and some little above ones head.
Some has openings here and there,
some bristles in shaggy solidity over a
whole hillside. But the deer loves all
of it and rarely goes far from it by day
except in the fall. When at rest in it
he is the hardest of all objects to see,
and when jumping over it or tearing
through it the mule deer, with his Pc
culiar stiff-legeed bound, is the hard
est of all game to hit with the rifle.
When first saw this kind of ground [
thought it ridiculous to hunt deer in
it on account of the noise its stiff
branches make, however carefully one
may walk OF ease them Off. But this
was a mistake. The deer that lives in
it knows pretty we'll when to run for
,br, ta nafn TO tsnc c4I
and let you pass him. He is OCCASION
ally mistaken about this, but as a rule,
your success will depend upon seeing
him from afar before he suspects your
presence.
My way into the hills from camp
one morning lay down little valley,
IN which the land breeze was on my
back. AS it would soon change to the
sea breeze, kept on instead of going
on the ridge, because in the valley it
was better walking. L did not expect
to find anything so near camp, and in
truth, was bit careless because deer
we're plenty and we would get all we
wanted anyhow. After going a short
distance | concluded to turn up side
gulch where the hills were covered
with shining robe of black sage,
which is not so high or so tough as
much of the chapparal and, therefore.
better walking and hunting ground.
/ had scarcely rounded the corner of
the hill when l saw on the dry, red
ground the fresh tracks of a yearling
deer. He had cleared sage brush over
waist high at the first jump, scattering
the dry dust right and left beneath his
sharp hoofs, and had gone up the gulch
in line cf jumps whose length would
have done credit to race horse. 1t
was plain enough he had not seen me;
for the valley was carpeted with a
thick mat of dried grass and | always
wear moccasins with soft buckskin
bottoms for all hunting. But nothing
scares deer so far and so effectually
as the scent of a man. Even the spot
ted fawn knows it by instinct. And
when thus scared deer hardly ever
stop to look back, for there is then no
doubt as to the cause of alarm as there
may be with any unusual sight or
sound. On the northern slope of the
hill the crimson bloom of the wild
gooseberry was still lingering in its
bright green foliage and the sumac
WAS mass of reddish white where its
broad panicles nodded over its bright
leaves, the thrush was singing from the
heteromeles and the white barred wings
and black coat of the shining fly
catcher glistened in the sun above the
elder, but other sign or sound of life in
that little gulch there was none.
No use in going any farther up that
gulch L thought for the yearling would
not stop under mile or more, and the
sound of his feet would probably send
flying every deer within quarter of a
mile along his course. SO [ concluded
/ would go mile or so further OIL the
course on which l had first staIted for
early in the morning most of the deer
are in the bottoms of these little mar
row valleys or close around their edges
So [ hastened along over the brown
carpet of the valley fragrant with mint
and already resounding with the hum
of bees On their way to the milky bios
SONS of the white sage that dotted
many of the open places in the hills
Coming to turn in the valley that
commanded quite view of it, went a
little way up hill on one side to take
look. Nearly half mile up the val
ley a small dark spot beside bush at
the foot of the hills caught my atten-
tion and watching it for a minute or
two saw it plainly move little. In
the big background of the hills it
seemed but tritie larger than jack
pAbbit, but there was no mistaking the
Deouliar outline, color and movement,
1hough all we're half concealed by