OF A RANCHMAN 177 



buck's hind legs, just above the ankle. He 

 followed it in the snow for several miles, 

 across the river, and down near the house 

 to the end of the bottom, and then back 

 toward the house. The buck was a cunning 

 old beast, keeping in the densest cover, and 

 often doubling back on his trail and sneak- 

 ing off to one side as his pursuer passed by. 

 Finally it grew too dark to see the tracks 

 any longer, and Ferris came home. 



Next morning early we went out to 

 where he had left the trail, feeling very sure 

 from his description of the place (which 

 was less than a mile from the house) that 

 we would get the buck; for when he had 

 abandoned the pursuit the deer was in a 

 copse of bushes and young trees some hun- 

 dreds of yards across, and in this it had 

 doubtless spent the night, for it was <. 

 tremely unlikely tfiat, wounded and tired as 

 it was, it would go any distance after find- 

 ing that it was no longer pursued. 



When we got to the thicket we first made 

 a circuit round it to see if the wounded 



