TWENTY YEARS IN THE ROCKIES. 14! 



CHAPTER XIII. 



OUR ADVENTURES ON PBYOR CREEK Off again with Steward camp in the 

 midst of elk, deer and antelope kill five, large fat elks I kill a mountain 

 lion luck in hunting elk three Indians visit us camp robbed by them 

 Steward angry Chief Crazy Head "medicine" and customs of the 

 Crows origin of the Crow name we hunt geese. 



Before a week had passed, Steward and I were on our 

 way up Pryor Creek, to bring in another supply of meat. 

 This was one of the best hunting districts in the West. The 

 country was full of deer, elk and antelopes. We made our 

 camp about ten miles up the stream, on a small tributary 

 coming in from the West. There was a spring close by, and 

 we had no fear of dying from thirst. Our camp was at the 

 foot of a large cottonwood, with wide spreading branches 

 reaching over all, making a very comfortable roof. The 

 larks, like ourselves, were deeply attached to this tree, and 

 made music in its branches all day long. 



We turned the pack animals out to graze, and were 

 making a fire, preparatory to cooking supper, when our at- 

 tention was called to a band of elks quietly grazing up the 

 stream, all unconscious of our presence. To the north, on 

 top of a little hill, we saw a band of deer. The fawns were 

 running about, playing together as frisky as lambs, the old 

 ones alternately grazing and looking around them. 



On an elevated spot below us, in a valley, was a large 

 band of antelopes, that were considerably disturbed by our 

 presence. Some of them were stamping their feet in a 



