ON THE PRAIRIE 27 



in which antelope are found, it may be taken 

 for granted that they are always within 

 reaching distance of some spring or pool of 

 water, and that they visit it once a day. Once 

 or twice I have camped out by some pool, 

 which was the only one for miles around, 

 and in every such case have been surprised at 

 night by the visits of the antelope, who, on 

 finding that their drinking-place was ten- 

 anted, would hover round at a short distance, 

 returning again and again and continually 

 uttering the barking " kau, kau," until they 

 became convinced that there was no hope 

 of their getting in, when they would set off 

 at a run for some other place. 



Prong-horn perhaps prefer the rolling 

 prairies of short grass as their home, but 

 seem to do almost equally well on the deso- 

 late and monotonous wastes where the sage- 

 brush and prickly pear and a few blades of 

 coarse grass are the only signs of plant life 

 to be seen. In such places, the prong-horn, 

 the sage cock, the rattlesnake, and the horned 

 frog alone are able to make out a livelihood. 



