ON THE TRAIL OF ELK. 281 



He had been after a deer, but the tracks in the snow 

 showed that he had missed his dinner. 



The naturalist now climbed to the top of Pagoda 

 Peak, a great dome-shaped mountain with steps, or 

 benches, on all sides, and took a survey of the coun- 

 try. All around him were mountains with valleys 

 between. A band of about a dozen elk had been 

 there before him, leaving their fresh tracks in the 

 snow. According to Jim, it is the habit of elk 

 to climb to the top of the highest peak in the neigh- 

 bourhood and survey the whole country, locating the 

 fires of hunters and then laying their plans for the 

 day in such manner that they would keep away from 

 their enemies. 



The clouds, which had been growing heavier all 

 the morning, were now sending down snow. Dyche 

 followed along the ridge for two or three miles, and 

 during a lull in the storm saw a band of elk feed- 

 ing in a grassy park down the mountain-side. The 

 wind was blowing directly towards the animals, but 

 the hunter determined to get close to the band, if 

 possible, and made a long stalk around to the other 

 side of the park. Reaching a spot within a hun- 

 dred yards of them, he lay hidden and began an 

 examination with his field-glass. There were eleven 

 in all, one young bull and the others cows and 

 calves. The bull had a perfect set of horns, but as 

 the beams were light and the animal of only ordi- 

 nary size, the naturalist determined to let this band 

 go and trust to the future to get the exact animal 

 that was wanted. For two hours he lay in the 

 snow, making notes of the movements and pos- 



