Mountain Sheep. 2 33 



down with a rush. At any rate it warmed our blood 

 to keep out of the way of the hoofs. On one of the 

 plateaus I got a very long shot at a black-tail, which I 

 missed. 



Finally we struck the head of a long, winding valley 

 with a smooth bottom, and after cantering down it four or 

 five miles, came to the river, just after the cold, pale-red 

 sun had sunk behind the line of hills ahead of us. Our 

 horses were sharp shod, and crossed the ice without diffi- 

 culty; and in a grove of leafless cotton-woods, on the 

 opposite side, we found the hut for which we had been 

 making, the cowboy already inside with the fire started. 

 Throughout the night the temperature sank lower and 

 lower, and it was impossible to keep the crazy old hut any- 

 where near freezing-point ; the wind whistled through the 

 chinks and crannies of the logs, and, after a short and by 

 no means elaborate supper, we were glad to cower down 

 with our great fur coats still on, under the pile of buffalo 

 robes and bear skins. My sleeping-bag came in very 

 handily, and kept me as warm as possible, in spite of the 

 bitter frost. 



We were up and had taken breakfast next morning by 

 the time the first streak of dawn had dimmed the brilliancy 

 of the stars, and immediately afterwards strode off on 

 foot, as we had been hampered by the horses on the day 

 before. We walked briskly across the plain until, by the 

 time it was light enough to see to shoot, we came to the 

 foot of a great hill, known as Middle Butte, a huge, 

 isolated mass of rock, several miles in length, and with 

 high sides, very steep towards the nearly level summit ; it 



