An Elk-Hunt at Two-Ocean Pass 237 



without the heart-breaking fatigue of white-goat 

 hunting. The actual grapple with an angry grisly 

 is of course far more full of strong, eager pleasure ; 

 but bear hunting is the most uncertain, and usually 

 the least productive, of sports. 



As regards strenuous, vigorous work, and pleas 

 urable excitement, the chase of the bighorn alone 

 stands higher. But the bighorn, grand beast of the 

 chase though he be, is surpassed in size, both of body 

 and of horns, by certain of the giant sheep of Cen 

 tral Asia; whereas the wapiti is not only the most 

 stately and beautiful of American game far more 

 so than the bison and moose, his only rivals in size 

 but is also the noblest of the stag kind throughout 

 the world. Whoever kills him has killed the chief 

 of his race; for he stands far above his brethren of 

 Asia and Europe. 



