The Minneapolis journal., 1902-08-26
The LORDLY MOOSE
How This King of the Forest Is
Called, Killed or Trapped.
SOME OF HIS MAJESTY'S HABITS
Much Skill and Cunning Necessary
on the Part of the SHccess-
full Hunter.
Philadelphia Times.

The history of the moose is interest
ing. When the snow has left the ground
entirely bare late in April or early in
May, the moose migrate from their win
ter haunts and approach the marshes,
ponds and rivers, where they search for
their summer food, consisting of thevari-
Gus plants which flourish there. Their
favorite diet is the water lily, which
they browse as soon as it makes its ap-
pearance on the surface Of the water,
always Wading deep in the water and
dragging up the plant by its roots, and
frequently keeping the head for a minute.
or more under the water. When they
cannot obtain the water lily they feed
upon the rushes, says the Bangor, Me-;
Commercial. =
About this time or a little later the
females go apart, seeking the most i'm
penetrable thickets, near or bordering on
the water, and there bring forth their
youth. Animals years old never
produce more than one at a birth. Those
of years old and upward almost
always produce two, and occasionally,
though rarely, there are three little ones
at "a birth. AS the season advances. the
moose frequent water more and more,
often remaining in it for hours at time
in the heat of the midsummer, not only to
enjoy its cooling effect, but also to escape
the plague. of flies, from which they are
great sufferers. There are huge insects
that burrow deep into the flesh OF the
moose to lay their eggs.
A heavy thunder storm seems to af-
feet the acme Of enjoyment to the moose.
They swim back and forth during its con-
tinuance, apparently in high state of
delight.
The female, during her visits to the
water, hides her young with great care
to prot ect them from the ferocity of the
old males, who are unnatural parents and
would destroy them. The mother gen
orally selects a very dense clump of large
bushes, or a spruce thicket, which, from
it's density, prevents the male from reach
ing them.
The horns of the bull begin to sprout
in April and grow very rapidly. Gener
ally in September they have lost their
messy covering or, in other words, are
out of velvet. At, this period the males
are very fat, and generally fierce and
savage, ready to attack man or anything
else that stands in their way. In the
course of a few weeks they grow thin
and poor, because of their continual
roaming and their many combats, and
the fact that at this time they also re-
fuse food. At this period the loud bel
low of the male is frequently heard and
distinguished by the hunter at distance
of two or three miles in the stiffness of
the night. The bulls make another noise
hunt ers call chopping. 1t is produced by
| forcibly bringing together and separating
the jaws in a peculiar manner. This, as
| it's name implies, resembles the sound of
an ak used at great. distance. - ..
The call of cow, which the hunter
initiates usually through horn or trum-
pet made of birch bark, is series of
grunts and groans, winding up with a
prolonged dismal, and rather unearthly
| roar which, in calm weather, can be
heard distinctly two or three miles away.
One popularity of the moose is that he
can go straight to the point whence the
call proceeds, even after a considerable
time has elapsed and without a repetition
Of the sound to guide him.
From the middle of September till to-
ward the end Of October is the season
for moose calling and the full Of the
moon is the best time, for the bulls sell
dom come up to the call before sunSet
and if the night tbe dark the hunter otter
fails to see the game that has come tc
his call sufficiently we'll to sbe able te
take aim. Most of the success in hunt
ing moose by call is had in the half houl
/ between sundown and dark. Later thar
| that, even with good moonlight, one can.
i not make sure his shot. A still. frosty
evening is best, for, then there is less op
4 portunity for a good scent. Many &
4 moose is lost by his crossing the tracks
a of the hunter in his approach. For thi!
i reason, whenever practicable, it Is bes
to call from canoe, paddle up to ant
concealed In little. island or point OF
lake or river. Sitting in a spot like
this for the greater part OF a night i
sometimes a severe tax upon the patience
Z of the hunter, who may repeat his call,
at intervals Of a quarter OF; an hour or 81
and get no response but the dismal echs