270 A SPLENDID SCENE. 



indeed, lay the carcase of a bull, but not the one I had 

 shot at, for it had been dead a couple of days, and had 

 been in part feasted on by wolves. We continued on the 

 line of the stricken game till we attained some high ground 

 which commanded many miles of country, across which 

 their line of flight appeared to have been directed, but 

 not a vestige of game being to be seen, we gave up the 

 chase, and proceeded to reconnoitre undisturbed ground. 

 After proceeding a considerable distance, we opened out 

 a very wide stretch of the plains, and I never saw a more 

 curious and beautiful sight than was then offered to my 

 view. 



The disturbance among the bisons we had hitherto 

 occassioned, either by the flight of alarmed animals or by 

 the noise of our rifles, had certainly not preceded us 

 thus far, for the entire vista for miles on miles was a scene 

 of rest; bisons were dotted about singly as well as in 

 small herds, either lying down or quietly browsing on the 

 grass, and we had only to select the game that was the 

 most easy of approach. On prairies such as these, the 

 low water- course, dried but grown up with rank weedy 

 grass, provided the direction of the wind will suit, offers 

 the best and almost only approach ; when, after closely 

 scanning the country, we determined on a stalk at five 

 large bulls who were feeding within shot of the dry but 

 very shallow ravine. We had doubts when we left our 

 horses and began the stalk if the wind would always 

 avail us, but, on reaching the low ground, to our great 

 joy, we discovered that a branch of the dry water-course 

 would enable us always to be down wind of the game till 

 we came to a certain distance, and then we might select 

 our own course in the grass. When we dismounted, we 

 were a considerable distance from the bisons, but we 



