THIRTY YEARS A HUNTER. 113 



taken. When we had gone about three miles we 

 discovered five elk in the creek eating moss. I 

 asked Knapp for his gun, so that I could fire twice 

 without loading. He handed it to me, and remained 

 behind, holding back his dog, while I crept along to 

 within sixty yards of them, with my dog behind me. 

 As one of them raised his head I fired, and the elk 

 fell: The others gathered around it, and I snatched 

 up Knapp's gun and shot another. The three others 

 then left the water and started up the hill. I let my 

 dog go, and he singled out a large buck, which he 

 stopped about a mile and a half ahead. I tried to 

 drive him back to the creek by throwing clubs, but 

 he would not go. I shot him low in the breast, so as 

 to wound without killing him. This started him 

 toward the water, and when he reached it- Knapp 

 shot him. We then brought up our canoes, which 

 were two and a half miles below, skinned the elk 

 put them into the canoe, and proceeded with them 

 to the block-house. Expecting the other party down 

 the next day, we left word on a shingle that we had 

 killed ten elk, and then left the camp to hunt in the 

 vicinity. We went down' the creek and returned 

 about three o'clock. The others were there, an: 

 we approached the cabin we heard them say they 

 wished they had killed a few more, so as to have 

 least one more than we. On going into the ca 

 they asked us where our other seven elk were, as 

 they saw but three. We replied that we left them 

 at the Big Marsh. They said it would be a difficui: 

 job to bring them down, in which opinion we fully 



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