The Black-Tail Deer 161 



was cantering slowly off among the bushes, than 

 we found we could not catch the bead sights of 

 our rifles, the outlines of the animals seeming 

 vague, and shadowy, and confounding themselves 

 with the banks and dull green sage bushes behind 

 them. Certainly six or eight shots were fired, we 

 doing our best to aim, but without any effect; and 

 when we gave it up and turned to look for our 

 horses we were annoyed to see the latter trotting 

 off down the valley half a mile away. We went 

 after at a round pace; but darkness closed in be- 

 fore we had gained at all on them. There was 

 nothing left to do but to walk on down the valley 

 to the bottoms, and then to wade the river; as the 

 latter was quite high, we had to take off our clothes, 

 and it is very uncomfortable to feel one's way across 

 a river at night, in bare feet, with the gun and the 

 bundle of clothes held high overhead. How- 

 ever, when across the river and half a mile from 

 home, we ran into our horses a piece of good luck, 

 as otherwise we should have had to spend the next 

 ,day in looking for them. 



Almost the only way in which it is possible to 

 aim after dark is to get the object against the 

 horizon, toward the light. One of the finest bucks 

 I ever killed was shot in this way. It was some 

 little time after the sun had set, and I was hurrying 

 home, riding down along a winding creek at a 

 gallop. The middle of the bottom was covered with 

 brush, while the steep, grassy, rounded hills on each 

 side sent off spurs into the valley, the part between 



