62 CAMP-FIRES OF A NATURALIST. 



Dyche trained the rifle across a log and fired at the 

 deer, fully three hundred yards away. The buck 

 made several awkward jumps, but did not run. 

 Again and again he shot, but each time the deer 

 would jump a little, but would not leave. The sev- 

 enth shot brought the animal to its knees, and Dyche 

 made his way to it. He found that one, perhaps the 

 first, ball had taken off the animal's horns, and so 

 confused it that it did not run. One ball had creased 

 the withers, another cut the brisket, while the last 

 had broken both the fore-legs. 



Brown, hearing so much firing, put the pack-sad- 

 dles on all the burros, for he had never known 

 Dyche to shoot more than once or twice, and supposed 

 that he had a large supply of game. The camp was 

 in a sort of horseshoe inlet in the mountains, and 

 this peculiar formation caused the echoes to come 

 from many different directions. The result was 

 that Brown started off almost in the opposite direc- 

 tion from the spot where Dyche had done his shoot- 

 ing. Tired of waiting, Dyche started to carry the 

 deer, and had proceeded some distance before Brown 

 reached him. Night came on rapidly, and a dense 

 fog or cloud settled down on the mountain. They 

 were over a mile from camp, and it was dark and 

 raining. Dyche wanted to leave the deer and find 

 the tent, but Brown objected. He said he wanted 

 venison for supper, and would have that deer in camp 

 if it took all night. The darkness was so intense 

 that the donkeys would not travel, and Brown was 

 compelled to go ahead while Dyche followed in the 

 rear, holding to a burro's tail to keep from getting 



