Big Game in the Rockies 



of nine thousand feet? Here was a sight to 

 make a man's nerves tingle. This was the 

 largest band of bulls, by actual count, that I 

 have ever seen, though my cousin and partner 

 once saw in the fall of the year, including bulls, 

 cows, and calves, fifteen hundred. This was 

 on the memorable occasion when the only elk 

 ever killed by any of my men gave up his life, 

 and we have all concluded that this particular 

 elk was frightened to death ; for though three 

 men shot at him and each was confident he 

 hit him, they always asserted afterward that 

 no bullet-mark could be found on him. 



Generally, in August, in each band of bulls 

 there will be found one or two barren cows. 

 About the end of August, after the bulls have 

 rubbed the velvet off their antlers, they will 

 come back to the vicinity of the bands of cows. 

 I have seen bulls as late as September 4 peace- 

 ably feeding or resting among the bands of 

 cows. Usually, in a band of fifty cows, there 

 would be three or four males, including, possi- 

 bly, one or two spike-bulls.^ I have seen these 

 spike-bulls in the velvet as late as Septem- 



1 A spike-bull is a young elk carrying his first or dag antlers. These 

 are single-tined, though in rare instances they are bifurcated. 

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