Memories of a Bear Hunter 



appear over a small bench. When they had done 

 this, after an hour's wait, we slipped down as 

 quickly as possible into a deep ravine. Many of 

 the sheep were still in sight, but they failed to 

 detect us. A little later the wind was blowing 

 hard, and I feared lest our scent should be taken 

 up to them, as it swept up the mountain. Never- 

 theless we kept on. When we reached the part of 

 the bench where we had seen some, all had van- 

 ished, and I concluded that they had winded us and 

 had run up the mountain. However, there was 

 one spot where they might be lying down. We 

 approached the intervening rise, but not with great 

 caution, until Catlin caught sight of a horn and 

 signalled me. I rose and shot at a large ram at 

 the other side of the rise, but only fifty yards away. 

 There was a tuft of grass between us, but I sup- 

 posed I had certainly killed him. The sheep van- 

 ished so quickly that Catlin did not get a shot, and 

 the whole band circled around to our right, cross- 

 ing the path by which we had come up the moun- 

 tain. During this time each one of us gave them 

 a shot, and then ran rapidly back to shoot again. 

 The band came into view about two hundred yards 

 off, and we bored three shots apiece into them, 

 wounding two at least and a three-year-old ram, 

 which could not follow the band. Meantime the 



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