278 SPOUTING ADVEXTUliES IN THE FAR WEST. 



is to strike the animal in the back, so that the spinal col- 

 umn may be broken. This is not so easily made as the 

 previous one, however, as the target is not so large. A 

 capital weapon for general shooting on horseback is the 

 latest model of the Winchester or Sharp rifle, the former 

 being especially convenient, owing to its magazine, and the 

 rapidity with which it can be fired. Few sights are more 

 stirring than to behold a herd of elks, numbering from five 

 hundred to a thousand, with their branching antlers, look- 

 ing like a brush-thicket at a distance, and their graceful 

 forms, scouring over the plains in wild confusion. When 

 startled, they bound away in a body, and keep so close that 

 they soon become enveloped in clouds of dust, through 

 which is heard the clashing of antlers, and the heavy, meas- 

 ured tread of many hoofs. When hard pressed, they break 

 up into small groups and run in every direction; and to 

 prevent this, persons ought to keep about twenty or thirty 

 feet behind them, and rake them from the flanks. To get 

 within this distance and stay there for any length of time, 

 fast and vigorous horses are required ; for an elk can out- 

 run any ordinary horse if the ground is at all rough, and 

 can keep up its pace for a distance of seventy miles or 

 more with apparent ease. It is no unusual incident, there- 

 fore, for a spirited steed to fall dead after a long chase ; 

 and to be knocked up for life is quite a common occur- 

 rence. 



If the animals are driven toward a canyon, a person may 

 tumble over half a dozen as they emerge on the opposite 

 side; but the most effective means of making a large bag 

 is to bound suddenly into the midst of a herd and open a 

 rapid fire at once. This demoralizes them so much that 

 they jump wildly about or stare stupidly at their foe, yet 

 do not attempt to flee; but when once they get it into 

 their heads that something is wrong, they wheel about, and 

 soon disappear in the horizon. This interval is sufficient, 

 however, to enable a good shot to kill from four to a dozen 

 of them, and, if he is well mounted, he may claim as many 

 more in a run of seven or eight miles. This chase is most 



