| There are times that a hunter is too tired to | | | | handled the other. It would thus be a simple task |
| carry the deer home. There are some ways | | | | for us to bring the meat out of the woods. When |
| which he can use the preserve the deer until he | | | | we approached the trees where the deer hung, |
| come back for the deer. | | | | we began to see an increasing number of fox |
| Speaking of being tired, I had another experience | | | | tracks. Something was wrong! Perhaps a limb had |
| with deer in Kennebec County. This time, | | | | broken and let one of the halves fall to the |
| however, I wasn't deer hunting, but had been out | | | | ground? I hoped it was the forward half rather |
| after small game-squirrels, rabbits, birds-with my | | | | than the more valuable rear half. No such luck! |
| single-shot 16 gauge. When I started for home | | | | The remains of the hind quarters were strewed |
| shortly before dark, passing through a swamp, I | | | | over the ground at the foot of the tree. The |
| jumped a good buck. Since my gun was loaded | | | | forward half was still hanging in its place and we |
| with birdshot, I made no effort to get him, but | | | | walked over to see what had happened. When I |
| continued my walk homeward. We had three | | | | looked at the tree, I knew. I had not seen a |
| hunting licenses in the family that year, one of | | | | bobcat's tracks in that area for several years, but |
| them had been filled- the deer was hanging in the | | | | a bobcat was responsible for the condition of that |
| shed-so I had no real use for another. But what | | | | deer. There were his telltale claw marks on the |
| real deer hunter can resist the impulse to put a | | | | bark where he had tried to pull the two quarters |
| shell loaded with buckshot into his gun when he | | | | of meat from the limb. |
| sees a good buck and knows he's in good deer | | | | Did you ever see bobcat work on a deer? Well, |
| country! This is what I did, and when I saw | | | | this one had eaten practically every bit of meat |
| another deer shortly afterwards, I could not resist | | | | from the fore quarters yet had not disturbed the |
| throwing lead at the small buck. | | | | hide, which hung there empty, giving the |
| By the time he was dressed out, it was beginning | | | | appearance of an undisturbed piece of meat. I |
| to get dark. I thought of that long, uphill drag to | | | | suppose these cats have a place in the world and |
| the house. This was a little too much for me to | | | | I don't mind giving them a feed once in a while, |
| take and I began to feel sorry that I'd given in to | | | | but if I had had that one at my mercy at that |
| the impulse. I decided to hang the deer and return | | | | moment, I would have gladly killed it and waived |
| later in the week for it. The weather was cold | | | | the bounty. On the other hand, probably my |
| enough to keep the meat and we did not need it | | | | inherent Yankee thrift would have prevented such |
| at home. I was in an area of cedars and small firs, | | | | foolish action. I would have gone back for his |
| with nothing handy to use as an aid in hanging the | | | | scalp. |
| deer so I cut him in half crossways and hung | | | | IF a hunter wants to leave the deer for quite |
| each half in smooth-boled cedars, high enough to | | | | sometime, he can hang the deer, which in a good |
| be out of reach of dogs and foxes. | | | | distance from the ground, this way will keep the |
| Well, time went on-as time has a habit of doing- | | | | deer in a better condition and away from the |
| and I didn't get back to the deer for at least ten | | | | attack of the fox or others attacker. |
| days. A companion was to carry one half while I | | | | |