The daily morning journal and courier., 1902-05-24
\ RACCOON HUNT BY DAY.
 LIGHT.

l
 method is to chase the quarry with dogs until 1t takes to tree, from which
 it is afterwards dislodged in any one of
 a number of ways. But the other day itt was my good fortune to participate l in a coon hunt in broad daylight, a hunt which revealed more of the char acter of the raccoon than Is usually to l be seen when he is hunted with dogs i'll | the dark.
 With a companion I was walking along the bank of small wooded stream looking for signs of muskrats and other small creatures In the soft mud when we came upon new track, the long, slender track of a raccoon. The impressions had evidently been made quite recently, and we resolved to follow the trail all day if necessary, and see what business this nocturnal creature could have. which demanded his personal attention in the glare of
 the midday sun. We proceeded with great caution, screening ourselves as
 best we could behind clumps of bushes
 and trunks of trees, and carefully
 avoiding dead twigs and dry leaves,
 whose cracking or rustling beneath our
 feet might warn the enemy" of our ap-
 approach. For about a hundred and
 fifty yards the tracks were in plain
 view, winding in and out and showing
 where Mir Coon had been nosing under
 the roots along the bank Then to our
 great disappointment his footprints led
 up from the stream and disappeared on
 hard ground. After searching in vain
 for any further signs of his trail, we
 reluctantly returned to the river, and
 resumed our study of the muskrats.
 We had scarcely gone quarter of a
 mile, however, when our hopes were
 again raised by a sight of the we'll
 known tracks in the mud. We at once renewed our stalking tactics, and in
 about half an hour we were rewarded
 by a glimpse of the object we were looking for. We had just reached
 bend of the river, when we saw, per- haps two hundred yards above us, the coon, on little point of land, quite close to the water. His dark markings were plainly visible through our field glasses, and I could not help observing how well they matched the shawods of the overhanging branches of the trees. He was very busy and did not notice us He was stopping over the stream with his front paws in the water and working away in manner which could not fall to remind one of person in the act of washing clothes Then we knew that he was about to have his dinner, for raccoons usually wash their food before eating it. We tried hard to see what it was he was rolling In his hands. We got glimpse of slender tail and speck of white fur, which made us feel pretty sure that it was a deer mousse but 1t was only q glimpse and we e'couid not be certain. What ever it was he soon raised 1t to his and putting his head on one side, as a dog or a cat might do, he very deliberately chewed 1t up and swallowed 1t. As he started to retire | rom the river we came out of our | hiding place behind a slump of alders | md began to follow as quietly as we | ,ould. But he heard us coming and | Or moment stopped in his tracks Then stood straight fp on his hind egs, and swung his body about as he | ,eered in all directions, as though try ng to discover from which direction he danger, was approaching. As soon
 g he sighted us he dropped on all fours
 nd made off through the bushes. We ollowed, gaining on him at every tride, until we were within about wenty yards, when he scuttled up
 fig oak tree as far as the first crotch
 l. ! l orth rather uneasily, and after infla- ing his body with air, exhaled with reat force. making a sound somewhat
 Ike the splitting of an angry cat, but ouder.
 Here was a chance for nature pho ographer, but alas, our cameras were t home, at least two miles away as the row flies. My companion came to the escut by generously offering to go ack and bring the complete outfit if ould keep my eye on the coon, and l revent him from leaving the tree he l 'as in. My part of the contract roved to be remarkably easy. for the ( oon seemed perfectly satisfied to stay
 here he was. After a time he lay |; own and began to lick his paws, and ( fter that he half closed his eyes and |1 atched me with evident curiosity I ( 70 lay down and we watched one an- i ther until we'll along in the afternoon, < hen my friend returned with the { photographic outfit. He had been bet , 1T than his word, for he had not only z rought two cameras, reflex and a l 2 ng focus, but stout sack to carry r le coon in, If we were lucky enough capture him, and a pair of buck r yin gloves to protect our hands to 1 ( ,me extent from the teeth of our in- r nded captive. First of all we photo I -aphed the animal where he lay in the V otch and then I got near the tree to q e how he looked near to. As soon as f , saw me coming, he scrambled high V
 up the trunk and made his way out | f 1on horizontal branch perhaps thr- c
 feet up. He did not like my follow - g him, and as I crawled out upon the ! anch he turned round, laid back his = ITS, and made several short rushes to- ards me, growing and showing his eth. Finding that this did not bring ,out the desired result, he crawled
 t almost to the end of the branch ay squirrel could scarcely have gone rther, and there he hung. With my iends assistance I hauled up the "re-
 K" at the end of cord and strad- ing the branch, I got several pictures
 our friend the coon. hen came the problem of capturing m aliveT for we wished to study him l