174 SPORTING ADVENTURES IN THE FAR WEST. 



call of the melodious cow's horn which their owner carried. 

 Seeing that they would not return, we concluded to follow 

 them, for fear they might get lost, or be captured by some 

 lover of good hounds; so we jogged along at a steady can- 

 ter, just close enough behind them to hear their cry. Their 

 route led us over steep hillocks, up which we could only 

 crawl, down precipitous ravines, where we had to pick our 

 way, and across charming vales, gay with brilliant flowers 

 and green with the richest of grasses. 



The chase continued in this manner for an hour or more, 

 when we at length got a glimpse of the hounds as they 

 were entering a heavy piece of woods that crowned a hill- 

 top. We followed them through this at a snail's pace, but, 

 on reaching the other side, we saw the coyote running 

 short, and this induced us to make a final spurt. Plying 

 the spurs, we tried to close with the fugitive ; but before 

 we could do it we found ourselves in the midst of an In- 

 dian encampment, and the pack streaming away to the left 

 on open ground. As the Indians were at that time sup- 

 posed to be unfriendly, we did not know what was best to 

 do at first whether to dash through it unconcernedly, or 

 turn about and beat a retreat; but after a halt of about a 

 minute we saw that the women and children disappeared 

 like magic in the tepees, and that there were no men about 

 except a few old bucks, who stared at us in as much aston- 

 ishment as Indians ever display; and knowing then that 

 the braves were out hunting or on the war-path, we dashed 

 through the village, revolver in hand, and followed the 

 quarry. In a run of a mile or two we came suddenly upon 

 a large pack of mongrels of all sizes and shapes, which 

 were worrying our hounds, and, jumping into their midst, 

 we soon scattered them by a few vigorous kicks, and sent 

 them howling down the sides of a bluff. The rescue was 

 evidently welcome to our dogs, for some of them were 

 bleeding at the ears, and all were thoroughly exhausted. 

 We found the coyote dead a few yards farther on, and, 

 judging from his numerous wounds, we came to the con- 

 clusion that he had run into the Indian curs, and was killed 



