an otter dives, an observant hunter can judge fairly well as to where
the animal is heading for, by simply noting the twist of the tail, a
point that helps the hunter to gauge the place where it may rise. The
same applies to whales when they sound, though I found--while whale
hunting--that few whalers realized it, and fewer still took advantage
of it, for much time was lost while waiting for the whale to rise
before the boat could be headed in the right direction. But then the
average Indian is much more observant than the average white man.

If a beaver is caught in a steel trap, he will do his utmost to plunge
into water and remain there even though he should drown, yet his house
may not be in that river or pond; but if he is wounded, he will either
try to reach his house or take to the woods.

When in pursuit of beavers it is advisable to watch for them on
moonlight nights about eight or nine o'clock, and it is best to be in a
canoe, as then there is less danger of the beaver sinking before he can
be removed from the water. The hunter, while waiting for a shot, makes
a noise with the handle of his knife against a stick in imitation of a
beaver cutting wood--a sound somewhat similar to that of the boring of
a large auger. It is astonishing how far, on a still night, beavers
will hear such a sound and come to help their friends at work. When
Oo-koo-hoo shot beaver he charged his gun with four slugs and fired for
the head, as he explained that ordinary shot was too fine and scattered
too much, while a single ball was too large.


OO-KOO-HOO SHOOTS A BEAR

The following morning Oo-koo-hoo and I set out to go the round of the