A Carry Permit

A number of years ago, one of Williamsburg's most enthusiastic deer hunters asked me if I carried a pistol while out scouting for turkeys or when fishing.

"No," I replied.

"Well, you are crazy not to. Sometime you are going to run into a coyote that has rabies, and the coyote is going to attack. You might want to have a pistol to even the odds. Heck, Rich, in some places coyotes that don't have rabies have already bitten people. You ought to have a handgun to defend yourself."

He was right, of course. A few years ago, a hiker on the popular Lower Trail was attacked by a rabid bobcat. The hiker...