Hunting in Many Lands 



pointing to the southward. Soon he heard 

 shots, and far off in the distance he espied the 

 culprit in the act of kilHng more of the game. 

 The problem then arose as to how he was 

 to make the capture. With him was only 

 a single soldier, and the two had for arms 

 only a .38 caliber revolver. It was certain 

 that this was Howell, and it was known that 

 he was a desperate character. 



In giving Burgess his orders, I had told him 

 that I did not send him to his death — that 

 I did not want him to take risks or serious 

 chances ; I impressed upon him the fact that, 

 as far as Howell was concerned, even if times 

 were hard, the wages of sin had not been 

 reduced. All this he knew well, but there 

 was a desperate criminal armed with a rifle ; 

 as for himself, he might as well have been 

 unarmed. However, fortune favored him, and 

 soon Howell became so occupied in removing 

 the scalp from one of his bison that Burgess, 

 by a swift and silent run, approached within 

 four or five yards of him undiscovered. It 

 would have been easy enough to kill him then, 

 but it was too much like cold-blooded murder 

 to do so at that range ; at 200 or 300 yards it 

 would have seemed entirely different. How- 



398 



