1 8 The Wilderness Plunter. 



The little peccary or Mexican wild hog merely crosses our 

 southern border. 



The finest hunting ground in America was, and indeed 

 is, the mountainous region of western Montana and 

 northwestern Wyoming. In this high, cold land, of lofty 

 mountains, deep forests, and open prairies, with its beauti- 

 ful lakes and rapid rivers, all the species of big game 

 mentioned above, except the peccary and Columbian 

 blacktail, are to be found. Until 1880 they were very 

 abundant, and they are still, with the exception of the 

 bison, fairly plentiful. On most of the long hunting ex- 

 peditions which I made away from my ranch, I went 

 into this region. 



The bulk of my hunting has been done in the cattle 

 country, near my ranch on the Little Missouri, and in 

 the adjoining lands round the lower Powder and Yel- 

 lowstone. Until 1 88 1 the valley of the Little Missouri 

 was fairly thronged with game, and was absolutely un- 

 changed in any respect from its original condition of 

 primeval wildness. With the incoming of the stockmen 

 all this changed, and the game was wofully slaughtered ; 

 but plenty of deer and antelope, a few sheep and bear, 

 and an occasional elk are still left. 



Since the professional hunters have vanished, with the 

 vast herds of game on which they preyed, the life of the 

 ranchman is that which yields most chance of hunting. 

 Life on a cattle ranch, on the great plains or among the 

 foothills of the high mountains, has a peculiar attraction 

 for those hardy, adventurous spirits who take most kindly 

 to a vigorous out-of-doors existence, and who are there- 



