74 Grouse. 



thought they were unobserved, squat down close to the 

 ground ; more often they would stand very erect, and 

 walk off. If we came too close to one it would utter a 

 loud kuk-kuk-kuk, and be off, at every few strokes of its 

 wings repeating the sound a kind of crowing cluck. 

 This is the note they utter when alarmed, or when calling 

 to one another. When a flock are together and undis- 

 turbed they keep up a sociable garrulous cackling. 



Every morning by the time the sun had been up a 

 little while the grouse had all gone from the bottom, but 

 later in the day while riding along the creek among the 

 cattle we often stumbled upon little flocks. We fired at 

 them with our revolvers whenever we were close enough, 

 but the amount we got in this way was very limited, and 

 as we were rather stinted for fresh meat, the cattle taking 

 up so much of our time as to prevent our going after 

 deer, I made up my mind to devote a morning to hunting 

 up the creeks and coulies for grouse, with the shot-gun. 



Accordingly the next morning I started, just about 

 the time the last of the flocks were flying away from theif 

 feeding-ground on the bottom. I trudged along on foot, 

 not wanting to be bothered by a horse. The. air was 

 fresh and cool, though the cloudless sky boded a hot 

 noon. As I walked by the cattle they stopped grazing 

 and looked curiously at me, for they were unused to seeing 

 any man not on horseback. But they did not offer to 

 molest me ; Texan or even northern steers bred on the 

 more remote ranges will often follow and threaten a foot- 

 man for miles. While passing among the cattle it was 

 amusing to see the actions of the little cow buntings. 



