amp. Gently lowering ourselves into the
swamp, we creep noiselessly through the dense bushes, their thick
foliage closing over our heads. It is an anxious moment!--the slightest
snapping of a bough, the knocking of a gun-barrel against a stem, and
the game is off. "We must go back," whispers the Indian. "Cannot get
near enough on this side. Too open!" The difficult task of retreating
is performed without disturbing the moose. Another half-hour is then
employed in creeping like snakes through the wet bushes. At length, as
we reach the edge of the swamp, the great animal rises directly facing
us, gazing steadily towards us. We fire. A headlong stagger follows
the report; and the creature, turning round, is hidden from sight behind
a clump of bushes. The Indian at the same time fires at a large cow
moose who has, unknown to us, been lying close to the bull. We dash
forward a few paces. On the other side the great bull suddenly rises in
front of us and strides on into thicker covert. Another shot, and he
sinks lifeless at our feet.

The Cariboo, or Reindeer.

We have before mentioned the extensive tracts existing in North America,
which, from their desolate appearance, are appropriately called
"Barrens." Far as the eye can reach the whole ground is seen strewn
with boulders of rock and fallen trees, scattered round in the wildest
confusion. Here and there charred stumps rise from the green-sward; in
some spots clumps of spruce are seen, against which the white stems of
the graceful birch stand out in bold relief; while the bank of some
stream, or the margin of a lake, is marked by fringing thickets of
alder. In many parts are moist, swampy bogs, into which the sportsman
sinks ankle-deep at every step. The ground, however, is everywhere
thickly carpeted by a luxuriant growth of a species of lichen. It
possesses wonderfully nutritive qualities; so much so, that large
quantities of alcohol have lately been extracted from it, as well as
from other lichens growing in sub-arctic regions. It is the chief food
of the cariboo, which animal frequents these desolate-looking "barrens."

Visiting one of these "barrens," we may perchance fall in with several
of the noble-looking animals known in Europe and Asia as the reindeer,
though we must look sharp to recognise them; for so similar are they in
colour to the rocks and general features of the ground, that only the
keen eye of the Indian can easily detect them, es