Tazewell Republican. [volume] (Tazewell, Va.) 1892-1919, 1902-12-18
STILL HUNTS AMID MESQUITE.
Ths Method of killing Deer In tho
rhOrhy Thickets of south
Nestcrn Tens.

In that part Of southwestern Texas
that is bordered by the Rio Grande
and swathed, as in a blanket, with
mesquite and chaparral for hun
dredS of miles, the still-hunter Of deer
Is now in his glory.
The heats of September have given
way to the first hints of autumn, the
temperature in the days is not exces-
sive and in the nights is cool the sky
is unmarried by a cloud, the animals
are in prime condition. That climate
ct this season Of the year is one in
which a man can work for twenty
four hours on end without great ia
tigue, and the deer hunter must be
laborer in order to score.
His work down there, however, con-
sists not SO much in the amount OF
ground to be covered, for the deer are
thick, as in the character of the
ground to be covered and the manner
in which it is done. There are thou
that scarcely rabbit can get through
and these the man, of course, refuses
to attempt.
He is thus limited to lighter growths
of chaparral, or to mesquite thickets
which are thorny and heavy at best,
but, at least, trayersable. In these
the deer lie up during the night and for
most of the day
They begin feeding at early morn
ing and continue grazing until 10 a. M,
then walk a mile or so and lie down
to resume grazing before sunset.
They choose for feeding places open
glades in the mesquite and it is for
these glades that the hunter must
look.
Not twice in a hundred attempts will
he find and kill deer in the mesquite
proper. Walking with utmost care,
with eyes painfully intent and head
bent forward, he will often hear a
crash among the trees and the hoof
beats of the animal. but that is the
best he can do. He finds the glade
and trusts that there Is a deer, or pos
sibly half-dozen deer, feeding on it.
II he does not know where the
glades are he must search them out,
and he does this just as carefully az
If he were trying to stalk the animal
itself. Working his way slowly
through the clinging thorny branches
that clutch at him. STOPPING forward
in order to worm his way under them
when possible, carrying his rifle in his
right hand and swung down below the
knee, refusing to place his foot upon
any dry twig or leaf, he has every
sense alert.
Suddenly, 200 yards ahead, he catch
es a glimpse of lighter air and knows
that he is approaching the little open
ing which may not contain more than
an eighth of an acre. Drawing littl
closer, he drops upon his hands anG
Knees, and so sneaks forward, care.
less of the thorns that prick his fin
gers and legs.
Arrived at point from which a
view may be had, he rises cautiously
and peers. If there are no deer in
sight, he straightens up, swears, and
moves on in search of another glade;
If there be deer he drops upon one
knee, aims carefully and fires.
The weapon used in the mesquite is
exclusively the magazine rifle of A
caliber, loaded with black powder and
soft bullets; the modern high-pOwer
guns are unknown there and would
not be permitted if known. Conse-
quently the accidental death Of hunt
er is almost unheard of. Nobody can
see to shoot fer more than so yards /
in the mesquite, and at that distance
a shotgun loaded with buckshot would |
be just as effective.
1t is probable that in no part of the |
union are there so many Virginian |
deer now existing as in southwestern
Texas, though it is possible that they
are even more numerous in the north |
woods of Wisconsin, where they have /
been stringently protected for many
years.
A man in the southwest who knows |
his business will be able all through /
the winter from October outward, to !
kill from six to a dozen deer a day. |
They are so common, in fact, that !
their yenison has no value, and mar /
ket-hunters shoot them only for their
hides.
The sportsman finds there, how
ever, that there are plenty of deer
all about him; killing one of them de
ponds entirely upon his individual
skill and industry.