The head of this instrument, or that portion of it
opposite the blade, and made in weight to correspond with and balance
the latter when hurled from the hand, was a pick of solid steel,
narrowing down to a point, and calculated, with a like blow, to prove
even more fatal, as a weapon in conflict, than the more legitimate
member to which it was appended. A thong of ox-hide, slung over his
shoulder, supported easily a light rifle of the choicest bore; for there
are few matters indeed upon which the wayfarer in the southern wilds
exercises a nicer and more discriminating taste than in the selection of
a companion, in a pursuit like his, of the very last importance; and
which, in time, he learns to love with a passion almost comparable to
his love of woman. The dress of the woodman was composed of a coarse
gray stuff, of a make sufficiently _outre_, but which, fitting him
snugly, served to set off his robust and well-made person to the utmost
advantage. A fox-skin cap, of domestic manufacture, the tail of which,
studiously preserved, obviated any necessity for a foreign tassel,
rested slightly upon his head, giving a unique finish to his appearance,
which a fashionable hat would never have supplied.
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