144 PORTING ADVENTURES IN THE FAS WEST. 



fierceness; but before they could kill him he broke away, 

 and sought safety in a huge fir, and there he remained un- 

 til the next morning, when he was rescued by some of his 

 tribe. The wolves remained under his perch all night, and 

 howled dismally, as if bemoaning their loss ; but as he had 

 nothing except his bow and arrows with which to assail 

 them, he did not have even the satisfaction of killing one. 

 As their victory on that occasion was supposed to have 

 emboldened them, the whole tribe turned out with their 

 dogs and weapons, and destroyed several of them, and 

 caused the remainder to flee to less dangerous quarters. I 

 have only heard one hunter say that he was pursued by 

 wolves, and that also seemed to be under unusual circum- 

 stances. According to his tale, an immense pack, which 

 he estimated to number some hundreds, chased him for 

 several miles over deep snow; and were it not for the 

 speed and endurance of his horse, and the proximity of his 

 house, he said he was almost sure they would have torn 

 him to atoms, as they seemed to be in a famishing condi- 

 tion. The statement seems probable enough, but, so far as 

 I could learn, the occurrence was exceedingly rare. 



I have actually kicked them and pelted them with stones 

 and dried buffalo chips, but I never knew them to display 

 any more dangerous characteristics than to howl fearfully, 

 or grin with pain as they trotted away. I did not even 

 hear that they ever attacked horses or domestic horned 

 cattle, probably for the reason that these animals will not 

 bear any familiarity on their part, and charge them boldly 

 whenever they come too close, or manifest any desire to 

 feast on a colt or a calf. 



In certain wooded portions of the West where food is 

 abundant at all seasons, the wolf attains such a large size 

 that some naturalists have denominated it the Canis gigas, 

 as it frequently attains a weight of one hundred and fifty 

 »r more pounds; but when it reaches such dimensions it 

 is generally timid, and keeps away from the abode of man, 

 except on convenient occasions, when it takes a fancy to a 

 lamb or a young porker. It often pays dearly for this 



