42 Hunting Trips of a Ranchman 



shy; while others plunge and buck if we try to pack 

 any game on their backs. Others can not be left 

 standing untied, as they run away; and I can 

 imagine few forms of exercise so soul-harrowing 

 as that of spending an hour or two in running, 

 in chaps, top boots, and spurs over a broken prairie, 

 with the thermometer at 90, after an escaped 

 horse. Most of the hunting-horses used by my 

 friends have one or more of these tricks, and it is 

 rare to find one, like Manitou, who has none of 

 them. Manitou is a treasure and I value him ac 

 cordingly. Besides, he is a sociable old fellow, and 

 a great companion when off alone, coming up to have 

 his head rubbed or to get a crust of bread, of which 

 he is very fond. 



To be remarkably successful in killing game a 

 man must be a good shot; but a good target shot 

 may be a very poor hunter, and a fairly successful 

 hunter may be only a moderate shot. Shooting well 

 with the rifle is the highest kind of skill, for the rifle 

 is the queen of weapons; and it is a difficult art to 

 learn. But many other qualities go to make up the 

 first-class hunter. He must be persevering, watch 

 ful, hardy, and with good judgment ; and a little dash 

 and energy at the proper time often help him im 

 mensely. I myself am not, and never will be, more 

 than an ordinary shot ; for my eyes are bad and my 

 hand not oversteady; yet I have killed every kind 

 of game to be found on the plains, partly because 

 I have hunted very perseveringly, and partly because 

 by practice I have learned to shoot about as well 



