OF A RANCHMAN 289 



from the nature of the land the sport can be 

 followed quite a on horseback, than 



which there is no more pleasant kind of 

 hunting. The best shot I ever made in 

 life a shot into which, however, I am afraid 

 the element of chance entered much more 

 largely than the element of skill was made 

 while hunting black-tail on horseback. 



\Ve were at that time making quite a long 

 trip with the wagon, and were going up the 

 fork of a plains river in Western Montana. 

 As we were out of food, those two of our 

 number who usually undertook to keep the 

 camp supplied with game determined to 

 make a hunt of? back of the river after black- 

 tail ; for though there were some white-tail 

 in the more densely timbered river bottoms, 

 we had been unable to get any. It was ar- 

 ranged that the wagon should go on a few 

 miles, and then halt for the night, as it was 

 already the middle of the afternoon when we 

 started out. The country resembled in char- 

 r other parts of the cattle plains, hut it 

 was absoh re of trees except along the 



