A Mountain Fraud 
several critical occasions. As to game, he 
had fairly wallowed in the gore of bears and 
lions, and he promised to escort me to my 
first encounter with a silvertip, the death of 
which was to be brought about by my open- 
ing fire on him at 600 yards and keeping it 
up during the ensuing charge, Lanahan 
standing by peacefully until the bear rose to 
embrace me, when he would give him the 
coup de grace with “Old Nance,” as he fondly 
called his rifle. He also announced his in- 
tention of shooting any Indians who might 
come to our camp, if they did not promptly 
leave at his bidding. 
Next morning Mason and Lanahan began 
packing, and Lanahan showed by the hu- 
mility with which he endured the deserved 
abuse of Mason that he was as ignorant of 
the art as we afterward found him of every 
other, except that of dissimulation. Mason 
was finally obliged to substitute our cook as 
helper, and Lanahan, in order to recover his 
prestige, spoke of the dangerous character 
of the horse-thieves of Jackson’s Hole, and 
showed a map of the country made by old 
Jackson himself, then languishing in Boise 
18 273 
