Conclusion 



there, find a place where grass and water can be had, 

 and camp. We ll notify the sheep-herders we are 

 there for business. They ll be only too glad to hustle 

 in with news of a bear, and we can get the hounds 

 on the trail by sun-up. I ll have a dozen hounds 

 then, maybe twenty, and all trained. We ll put every 

 black bear we chase up a tree, and we ll rope and tie 

 him. As to grizzlies well, I m not saying so much. 

 They can t climb trees, and they are not afraid of a 

 pack of hounds. If we rounded up a grizzly, got 

 him cornered, and threw a rope on him there d be 

 some fun, eh, Jim? &quot; 



&quot; Shore there would,&quot; Jim replied. 



On the strength of this I stored up food for future 

 thought and thus reconciled myself to bidding fare 

 well to the purple canons and shaggy slopes of Buck 

 skin Mountain. 



At five o clock next morning we were all stirring. 

 Jones yelled at the hounds and untangled Kitty s 

 chain. Jim was already busy with the biscuit dough. 

 Frank shook the frost off the saddles. Wai) ace was 

 packing. The merry jangle of bells came from the 

 forest, and presently Lawson appeared driving in 

 the horses. I caught my black and saddled him, 

 then realizing we were soon to part I could not resist 

 giving him a hug. 



An hour later we all stood at the head of the trail 



313 



